Mute Witness (1994)

Director:

Anthony Waller

Writer:

Anthony Waller (written by)

Release Date:

15 September 1995 (USA)

Genre:

Thriller | Comedy | Horror

Tagline:

She Can't Speak. She Can't Scream. She Can't Beg For Mercy.

Plot:

Billy Hughes, a mute makeup artist working on a slasher film being shot in Moscow, is locked in the studio after hours...

Plot Keywords:

Bathtub Scene | Film Making | Russian Mafia | Murder | Mute

Awards:

3 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Marina Zudina	...	Billy Hughes (as Marina Sudina)
Fay Ripley	...	Karen Hughes
Evan Richards	...	Andy Clarke
Oleg Yankovsky	...	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
Sascha Buchman	...	Alex
Konstantin Sitnikov	...	Angry props manager
Regina Peter	...	Telephone operator's voice (voice)
Pete Drummond	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Norbert Soentgen	...	Peeping Tom
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Aleksandr Bureyev		(as Alex Bureew)
Nikolai Chindyajkin		(as Nikolai Chindjaikin)
Larisa Khusnolina		(as Larisa Husnolina)
Lyudmila Makeyeva		(as Ludmilla Makeeva)
Vyacheslav Naumenko		(as Naumenko Vasheslav)
Natalya Polyushkina		(as Natalia Poliushkina)
Aleksandr Pyatkov		(as Alexander Piatkov)
Yuri Sherstnyov		(as Uri Sherstiniov)

Directed by
Anthony Waller

Writing credits
Anthony Waller		(written by)

Produced by
Aleksandr Atanesyan	....	co-producer (as Alexander Atanesjan)
Alexander Buchman	....	producer
Richard Claus	....	executive producer
Marina Kapustina	....	line producer
Werner König	....	associate producer
Pieter Lony	....	associate producer
Grigori Ryazhsky	....	co-producer
Norbert Soentgen	....	producer
Anthony Waller	....	producer

Original Music by
Wilbert Hirsch

Cinematography by
Egon Werdin

Film Editing by
Peter R. Adam

Casting by
Noel Davis
Elena Denisova
Nina Sokol-Matsuk

Production Design by
Matthias Kammermeier

Art Direction by
Barbara Becker

Costume Design by
Svetlana Luzanova

Makeup Department
Arina Morozova	....	makeup artist (as Irina Morozova)
Maria Smirnova	....	makeup assistant (as Masha Smirnova)

Production Management
Tatyana Zhigayeva	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Boris Blank	....	assistant director
Marat Rafikov	....	assistant director

Art Department
Tamara Garanch	....	set dresser
Valeri Gorkov	....	set dresser
Steffi Kammermeier	....	props coordinator (as Stephie Kammermeier)
Vladimir Murzin	....	construction architect
Vladimir Pasternak	....	construction architect
Valery Semionov	....	set dresser
Yelena Shkatova	....	property master
Ludmilla Tebiakina	....	props assistant
Victor Tolkochlov	....	props assistant

Sound Department
Peter R. Adam	....	adr editor
Albert Avramenko	....	sound recordist
Richard Borowski	....	sound re-recording mixer
Benedikt Just	....	sound trainee
Alexander Kochubey	....	boom operator
Manuel Laval	....	sound effects editor
Manuel Laval	....	supervising sound editor
Emilie McLaughlin	....	assistant sound effects editor
Matthias Münster	....	assistant sound re-recording mixer
Jörn Poetzl	....	foley artist
Valery Sharov	....	boom operator

Special Effects by
Victor Orlov	....	special effects
Pavel Terchov	....	special effects

Visual Effects by
Christian Burgdorff	....	visual effects supervisor

Stunts
Elia Antonova	....	stunts
Aleksandr Balabushevich	....	stunts
Sergej Chekrigin	....	stunts
Vasili Grishin	....	stunts
Zhana Izosimova	....	stunts
Yuri Sysoyev	....	stunts (as Uri Sisoev)
Sergei Vorobyov	....	stunt coordinator (as Sergei Vorobiov)

Camera and Electrical Department
Valentina Andreanova	....	primary lighting technician
Stefan Austmeyer	....	first assistant camera
Victor Bailov	....	primary lighting technician
Sergej Beliakov	....	secondary lighting technician
Uri Dokuchaev	....	camera operator
Elena Dunaykina	....	clapper loader
Kiril Fedin-Krugliakov	....	second assistant camera
Nikolai Gnesiuk	....	still photographer
Uri Hazanov	....	grip
Nikolai Ivanishin	....	grip
Dimitri Krilov	....	secondary lighting technician
Anton Kuligin	....	video assist operator
Grigory Kunakovsky	....	primary lighting technician
Alexei Kutsnetsov	....	assistant camera: second unit
Boris Lamdon	....	primary gaffer
Andrej Laptev	....	primary lighting technician
Genady Lobachlov	....	primary lighting technician
Ivan Mandur	....	grip
Thomas Merker	....	assistant camera
Anatoli Pashvikin	....	still photographer
Nikolai Porschnev	....	secondary lighting technician
Vladimir Rogozin	....	secondary gaffer
Jekaterina Rudionov	....	clapper loader
Michail Shikaliov	....	grip
Anatoli Sokolov	....	grip
Sergei Svetlyakov	....	secondary lighting technician (as Sergej Svetliakov)
Dimitri Vostrov	....	primary lighting technician
Anthony Waller	....	camera operator
Egon Werdin	....	camera operator
Oleg Zhuravfiov	....	key grip

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Svetlana Avdeeva	....	wardrobe

Editorial Department
Bert Brücker	....	negative cutter
Jörg Eybl	....	color timer
Mamuel Laval	....	assistant film editor

Music Department
Boris Jojic	....	orchestrator
Konstantin Krimets	....	conductor
Aeseny Lapasov	....	music recording supervisor
Frank Reinke	....	music recordist

Other crew
Alexei Aleshkovski	....	continuity
Yelena Boguslavskaya	....	location manager (as Elena Boguslavskaya)
Valeri Bondarenko	....	location manager
Ariane Büsch	....	production assistant: Germany
Martina Elsner	....	production secretary: Germany
Karl-Ludwig Frick	....	computer programmer
Ted Gerschuny	....	script consultant
Pia Greschner	....	production assistant: Germany
Karin Jensen	....	production secretary: Germany
Evgeny Kovalchuk	....	production assistant
Rita Kovalenko	....	production accountant
Rosa Kulabuhova	....	production assistant
Natalya Polyushkina	....	assistant: Mr. Waller (as Natalia Poliushkina)
Markus Rosenmüller	....	script consultant (as Marcus Rosenmüller)
Alexander Sharafutdinov	....	production assistant
Martin Thau	....	script consultant
Viola Winokan	....	production assistant: Germany

Production Companies

• Avrora Media
• Cobblestone Pictures
• Comet Film Produktion GmbH
• Patoss Films

Distributors

• Columbia TriStar Film Distributors International (Argentina)
• Columbia TriStar Films de España S.A. (Spain)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (USA) (VHS)
• LK-TEL Vídeo (Brazil) (video)
• LK-TEL (Argentina) (DVD)
• LK-TEL (Argentina) (VHS)
• Sony Pictures Classics (1995) (USA)

Special Effects

• Optical Art (visual effects)

Other Companies

• Solid Sound  sound edited at

Also Known As:

Stumme Zeugin (Germany)

MPAA:

Rated R for violence and a strong scene combining sex and violence.

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

Germany | UK | USA | Russia

Language:

English | Russian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

South Korea:18 | Iceland:16 | Argentina:16 (re-rating) | Argentina:18 (original rating) | Brazil:14 | Australia:R | Chile:18 | Finland:K-16 (video premiere) | Germany:16 | Peru:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Moscow, Russia

Company:

Avrora Media

Trivia:

Originally set in Chicago, Waller changed the location when told that Moscow would provide much cheaper sets/labor.

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.

Movie Connections:

Remade as Mute Witness (2009)

A Real Scream

Superbly crafted low-budget thriller with more twists and turns than you can shake a stick at, and plenty of ghoulish humour along the way as well.

The cast play it very well, although Richards' self-centered movie director is a bit hard to take at times. The tiny two-scene cameo by Sir Alec Guinness, oozing menace as the crime czar of Moscow, is simply the icing on the cake.

Well worth repeated viewing, but not on dark nights when you're all alone!