In Witness, a screenplay written collaboratively by Earl W. Wallace and William Kelley, the authors’ use of visual language helps to evoke a film in the minds of the readers by providing descriptions that help us form magnificently striking images in our mind’s eye, thus helping us feel as if we are viewing a film in our heads. Examples of such images are found during the story’s inciting incident, when young Samuel witnesses a murder. The description of the fatally injured undercover cop holding his belly gushing blood and staring at his death wound in shock is the first in an array of striking images. When reading this description, I could see the film playing in my head. The film in my head continued with the next image of the dying cop staggering over to the bathroom mirror and smearing the blood on his hand from his belly onto the image of himself in the mirror. In my head, I see a person dying, and I see and feel the desperation of that person as they make one last effort to do something, anything, even if it is merely wiping the blood from his hand onto the mirror. I see him collapse to the cold tile floor of a poorly lit bathroom, the life spilling out of his belly. The image is grotesque, heart-breaking, and extremely effective.
Discussion Questions
1. What were your initial feelings about Rachel Lapp as a character? Did you like her, dislike her, or feel indifferent? What was it about her characterization that made you feel this way?
2. In your opinion, what was it about Kelley's original story that did not work?
1 comment:
I liked rachel from the beginning, shes going through a lot in the beginning of the script, with her husband dying, she's immediatly being hit on by daniel, her son witnessing a murder, they're lives are then in danger, you kind of feel for her. She's a strong character though, thats why I liked her.
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