The Silent Witness (1932 film)

The Silent Witness
The Silent Witness
Directed by	Marcel Varnel
Written by	Jack DeLeon (play) ; Jack Celestin (play) ; Douglas Z. Doty
Starring	Lionel Atwill ; Greta Nissen ; Helen Mack
Cinematography	Joseph H. August
Edited by	Jack Murray
Production; company	Fox Film Corporation
Distributed by	Fox Film Corporation
Release date	February 7, 1932;
Running time	73 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

The Silent Witness is a 1932 American mystery film directed by Marcel Varnel and starring Lionel Atwill, Greta Nissen, and Helen Mack.^[1] It was adapted from a play by Jack DeLeon and Jack Celestin.^[2]^[3] The film's sets were designed by the art director Duncan Cramer who worked on many Fox Film productions of the era.

Plot

An Englishman takes the blame for his son who he believes guilty of murdering his lover. The real truth surrounding the case is only revealed by a silent witness.

Cast

Lionel Atwill as Sir Austin Howard
Greta Nissen as Nora Selmer
Weldon Heyburn as Carl Blake
Helen Mack as Sylvia Pierce
Bramwell Fletcher as Anthony Howard
Mary Forbes as Lady Howard
C. Montague Shaw as Inspector Robbins
Wyndham Standing as Sir John Lawson, Barrister
Alan Mowbray as Arthur Drinton
Herbert Mundin as Henry Hammer
Billy Bevan as Horace Ward
Lumsden Hare as Colonel Grayson

Release

International Photographer, which gave the film a good review, posited that Atwill might be a hard sell to movie audiences despite his obvious talent and years of stage experience: "The difficulty of the exhibitor will be to get his patrons to see Atwill. Once he has them started the rest will be easy."^[4]

Critical Response

International Photographer described the film as playing more like a stage production than a film but still called it "gripping."^[5]

References

^ BFI.org. Accessed April 6, 2023.
^ The Silent Witness, afi.com. Accessed April 6, 2023.
^ Goble, p. 954
^ Blaisdell, George. "Looking In on Just a Few New Ones." The International Photographer Vol. 3 No. 12 p32. February, 1932. Accessed 7 May 2023.
^ Blaisdell, George. "Looking In on Just a Few New Ones." The International Photographer Vol. 3 No. 12 p32. February, 1932. Accessed 7 May 2023.

Bibliography

Goble, Alan. The Complete Index to Literary Sources in Film. Walter de Gruyter, 1999.
Turim, Maureen. Flashbacks in Film: Memory & History. Routledge, 2013.