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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writer:
Anthony Waller (written by)
Release Date:
15 September 1995 (USA) more
Tagline:
She Can't Speak. She Can't Scream. She Can't Beg For Mercy. more
Plot:
Billy Hughes, a mute makeup artist working on a slasher film being shot in Moscow, is locked in the studio after hours... more | full synopsis
Awards:
3 wins & 2 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(6 articles)
Exclusive: Ten Questions with Mushroomhead
(From Fangoria. 25 August 2009, 3:17 PM, PDT)
Interview: Rick R. Reed "Bashed" Ghosts!
(From doorQ.com. 20 April 2009, 2:13 AM, PDT)
User Comments:
Late Night Surprise -- Suspense! more (58 total)
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| Marina Zudina | ... | Billy Hughes (as Marina Sudina) | |
| Fay Ripley | ... | Karen Hughes | |
| Evan Richards | ... | Andy Clarke | |
| Oleg Yankovskiy | ... | Larsen (as Oleg Jankowskij) | |
| Igor Volkov | ... | Arkadi | |
| Sergei Karlenkov | ... | Lyosha | |
| Alec Guinness | ... | The Reaper (as Mystery Guest Star) | |
| Nikolai Pastukhov | ... | Janitor | |
| Stephen Bouser | ... | Lovett | |
| Valeri Barakhtin | ... | Mitja (as Valeri Barahtin) | |
| Olga Tolstetskaya | ... | Actress | |
| Denis Karasyov | ... | Fake policeman | |
| Igor Ilyin | ... | Fake policeman | |
| Oleg Abramov | ... | Double | |
| Vladimir Salnikov | ... | Lab assistant |
Additional Details
Also Known As:
Stumme Zeugin (Germany)
more
MPAA:
Rated R for violence and a strong scene combining sex and violence.
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
95 min
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
Brazil:14 | Iceland:16 | South Korea:18 | Argentina:16 (re-rating) | Argentina:18 (original rating) | Australia:R | Chile:18 | Finland:K-16 (video premiere) | Germany:16 | Peru:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R
Filming Locations:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Director Anthony Waller filmed Alec Guinness' scenes nine years before the rest of the film from an earlier draft of the screenplay. Guinness gave his performance in one morning before catching a plane. When Waller needed an additional scene, he used the film from earlier and reversed it. more
Goofs:
Continuity: When Karen is holding the gun inside Billy's apartment, it suddenly disappears from her hand. A few moments later, it appears in Andy's hand. more
FAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (58 total)
Message Boards
Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Mute Witness (1994)| Recent Posts (updated daily) | User |
|---|---|
| So when were Alec's scenes shot? | korn_mythe |
| EXCELLENT | lvsmvs |
| Alec Guiness | wanker2us |
| omg! | Darkixi |
| What was with the car bomb? | booboochiq |
| Igor Ilyin and Denis Karasyov | Olivoljan |
Recommendations
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| Peeping Tom | Romeo Is Bleeding | The Limey | The Stunt Man | Basic Instinct |
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| News articles | IMDb Drama section | IMDb Germany section |
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I couldn't stop watching this movie, though it was far past my bedtime.
Comparisons to Hitchcock are deserved -- this thing really plays with you. It walks a wonderful line between real, immediate suspense and a dark, distancing humor. Like many of Hitch's heroes, our doe-eyed mute witness has innocently stumbled into something truly horrific -- and we are taken on quite a ride with her, at turns identifying totally and feeling her fear, at turns watching in thrilling suspense as she is placed further in jeopardy.
The filmmakers have put in a lot of tender care in working this out. Right from the opening shots, they engage and challenge you to determine what is real and what is fabrication; who is to be trusted and who is a monster. The plot twists and turns unpredictably. Suspense is created with a combination of carefully chosen camerawork, imagery, music -- but most simply THE EYES of the characters, which sends raw fear right into you.
A warning: there is some frighteningly real gore, as well as some nudity. The horror scenes are done in an emotional way that make them far more scary and disturbing than in any teenage-slasher pic.
And a teen-slasher pic it AIN'T. The characters are quirky and feel like real people, for one thing -- a couple (including the heroine) you may even find endearing as I did. There will be no mistake you're watching a movie made for grown-ups. I mean, Alec Guinness is in it, briefly, and you know he didn't NEED the work!
Pop this in the VCR some night when you can't sleep. . . and don't want to, yet.