Leonard Stephen Vole
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Witness for the Prosecution is a 1957 American legal mystery thriller film directed by Billy Wilder and starring Tyrone Power, Marlene Dietrich, Charles Laughton, and Elsa Lanchester.
The play opened in London on 28 October 1953 at the Winter Garden Theatre, produced by Peter Saunders, and directed by Wallace Douglas. The premiere cast included Derek Blomfield as Leonard Vole, Patricia Jessel as Romaine Vole, and David Horne as Sir Wilfrid Robarts.
- Overview
- Production notes and credits
- Cast
- Academy Award nominations
Witness for the Prosecution, American courtroom-drama film, released in 1957, that was based on a short story and play by English writer Agatha Christie.
The film, set in London, centres on Leonard Vole (played by Tyrone Power), who is accused of having murdered a wealthy widow. Though his attorney (Charles Laughton) believes he is innocent, his legal prospects are clouded by the fact that his only alibi is his wife, Christine (Marlene Dietrich). Furthermore, during the trial, Christine shocks the court when she testifies on behalf of the prosecution, claiming that Leonard privately confessed to the crime. Her testimony is eventually discredited when it is revealed that she is having an affair, and Leonard is consequently acquitted. In a surprise twist, however, she confides to his attorney that she purposely concocted the affair to elicit sympathy for and thus protect Leonard, who was guilty all along.
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•Studio: United Artists
•Director: Billy Wilder
•Producer: Arthur Hornblow, Jr.
•Writers: Billy Wilder, Henry Kurnitz, and Larry Marcus
•Music: Matty Malneck
•Running time: 116 minutes
•Tyrone Power (Leonard Vole)
•Marlene Dietrich (Christine Vole)
•Charles Laughton (Sir Wilfrid Robarts)
•Elsa Lanchester (Miss Plimsoll)
•Picture
•Director
•Lead actor (Charles Laughton)
•Supporting actress (Elsa Lanchester)
•Editing
•Sound
- Lee Pfeiffer
Witness for the Prosecution: Directed by Billy Wilder. With Tyrone Power, Marlene Dietrich, Charles Laughton, Elsa Lanchester. A veteran British barrister must defend his client in a murder trial that has surprise after surprise.
- (140K)
- Crime, Drama, Mystery
- Billy Wilder
- 1958-02-06
Ailing barrister Sir Wilfrid Robarts is thrust back into the courtroom in what becomes one of the most unusual and eventful murder cases of the lawyer's career when he finds himself defending Leonard Vole, a man being tried for the murder of a wealthy woman.
Witness for the Prosecution (1957) is co-writer and director Billy Wilder's brilliant film, with crisp dialogue, a complicated and intriguing plot, unique characters and excellent acting performances. The Hitchcock-like suspenser was a convoluted, twisting courtroom drama-mystery adapted by Lawrence Marcus from Agatha Christie's classic four ...
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Witness for the Prosecution. Directed by Billy Wilder • 1957 • United States. Starring Tyrone Power, Marlene Dietrich, Charles Laughton. Agatha Christie’s masterful stage play gets a brilliantly entertaining screen adaptation courtesy of Billy Wilder, who deftly balances courtroom intrigue and black comedy for a triumph of studio-era ...
