azgirl188
I completely agree with the previous comment, this movie should have a higher rating in my opinion. I thought that Barry Flatman, as the evil District attorney, did a great job at being slimy and mean. He reminded me a little of Micheal Douglas. Yancy butler is a wonderful actress and played each of her characters so well. I especially loved the role of the old lady! Amazing... The little boy, Justin, was so cute as her shy son.I am such a fan of movies that have twists and turns.... this one had it all. I don't want to say too much more as I don't want to spoil the movie. A clever movie with a super cast. ;o)
blanche-2
A woman goes after a crooked DA in "The Witness Files," a 1999 film starring Yancy Butler, David Newman and Barry Flatman. Butler plays a victim of domestic violence, Sandy Dickinson, who killed her husband and was sent to prison. She is promised early parole by the DA who put her there (Newman) if she will pose as a witness to help him put away a mob boss. In order to be with her son, she agrees. Since she's a former actress, she's able to disguise herself as a street person and tell the police that she saw the mobster commit murder. Everything goes smoothly until someone tries to kill her.This is a far-fetched story but nevertheless absorbing, with the beautiful, throaty-voiced Butler handing in a fine performance as Sandy. David Newman is extremely likable as Dennis, the detective who falls in love with Sandy without knowing her true identity. And this is a plot hole - when it is learned that Sandy is missing, why did a detective working with the DA never look at a photo of her and realize she was the woman he fell in love with? As stated above, the story is a little out there.A good rental.
nygal-3
In this suspense thriller, the plot thickens as Yancy Butler, who plays the convicted and now released on parole Sandy Dickenson, turns the tables on the crooked prosecutor Frank Sutton- that prosecuted Sandy Dickenson's case for the involuntary manslaughter of her husband. Sutton is in favor of her parole, admitting that Dickenson did kill her abusive husband in self defense. But she must do something for him in return - testify against a mafia king pin.As it turns out, Sutton uses the "witness files" to prosecute his tough cases as a way to secure witnesses. Then he murders them. In finding this out, Sandy turns the game on Sutton, leading to his arrest and conviction for her murder. The storyline is very creative and unique- there are no dull moments in this thriller. Butler lands a A+ performance in this suspense laden movie.A must see for all Yancy Butler fans!
rcimasi
Great twist on the "corrupt prosecutor gets his just-due" genre. Yancy Butler plays Sandy Dickenson, a wrongly convicted mother - released from prison by corrupt prosecutor Frank Sutton(running for higher office) played by Barry Flatman, who extorts her into giving false testimony to convict a crime lord to bolster his political standing aided by a gullible police detective David McCoy, played well by David Nerman, who Sandy seduces and manipulates into pursuing prosecutor Sutton....and with the help of Sandy's prison acquaintance con-family Sandy pulls off the ultimate "con". The pace & film-making qualities of this movie are impressive, as is the editing. The best part is Yancy Butler's star-turn performance - her best to date.