I Witness (2003)

After 27 bodies are discovered in a collapsed tunnel in Tijuana, a man tries to unravel the mystery before becoming the next victim.

Director:

Rowdy Herrington

Writers:

Colin Greene, Robert Ozn

Stars:

Jeff Daniels, James Spader, Portia de Rossi

Cast

Credited cast:
Jeff Daniels	...	James Rhodes
James Spader	...	Douglas Draper
Portia de Rossi	...	Emily Thompson (as Portia De Rossi)
Clifton Collins Jr.	...	Claudio Castillo
Wade Williams	...	Roy Logan (as Wade Andrew Williams)
Mark Carlton	...	Carter
Jordi Caballero	...	Captain Madrid
Adriano González	...	Umberto Zato (as Adriano Gonzalez)
Pablo Cunqueiro	...	Father Perez
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Ricardo Alvarez	...	Bolo
Yan England	...	Jud
Norman Grant	...	Fields (as Norman J. Grant)
Oscar H. Guerrero	...	Antonio
Enrique Huertas	...	Ramon
Carolyn Seymour	...	Lady Anne

Storyline

Jim Rhodes is a human rights worker in Tijuana for a few days to make sure that union elections are fair at a maquiladora owned by a U.S. corporation. In quick succession, the police assault the strikers, the bodies of 27 peasants turn up in an abandoned tunnel that has caved in, and two U.S. teen bikers are missing. As Rhodes pokes around and speculates on connections among these events, he's beaten up, warned off by a drug dealer's attorney, and given varying degrees of help by the U.S. State Department rep, the U.S. Trade rep, and an honest local cop. It's always about money, but whose is at stake and how cheap is Rhodes's life?

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Plot Keywords:

human rights | union | detective | state department | corporation | 

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Genres:

Drama | Action | Thriller | Crime

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Details

Country:

USA Germany

Language:

English Spanish Portuguese

Release Date:

13 April 2003 (USA)

Also Known As:

Apodeixeis enohis

Filming Locations:

Puerto Rico

Box Office

Budget:

$8,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Promark Entertainment Group, Videal GmbH

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

When Rhodes and Emily Thompson are drinking "doubles" in the bar; as they converse, their glasses go from newly filled to almost empty to newly filled again within moments.

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Quotes

[Castillo, who's a detective, and Rhodes, who's an American, are being shot at while investigating some shacks in Mexico]
James Rhodes: People hunt out here a lot?
Claudio Castillo: Just for gringos and dumb cops.

User Reviews

My brief review of the film

Some intriguing introductory sequences keep this thriller mildly interesting, but it is pretty conventional film-making overall, with a cheap, B-grade telepic feel to the material, which is enhanced by some poor music application. There are some parts of the film that are well shot and edited smartly, but the technical side does not enliven the film very much. The politics are drone and the film drags between the action sequences that are not that exciting in the first place. It provides some insight into relations between different nations, and a few other things, but nothing worth really praising. The film will be of interest to fans of James Spader, Clifton Collins Jr., or any of the other supporting actors, but I would be cautious to recommend it to anyone else.