''Perfect Witness'' is a 1989 American

made-for-television A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

thriller film Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre ...

directed by

Robert Mandel Robert Mandel (born 1945) is a film producer and director and television director from Oakland, California. He is best known for his film '' School Ties'', which includes early film roles in the careers of Brendan Fraser, Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, ...

and written by Terry Curtis Fox and Ron Hutchinson. The film stars

Brian Dennehy Brian Manion Dennehy (; July 9, 1938 – April 15, 2020) was an American actor of stage, television, and film. He won two Tony Awards, an Olivier Award, and a Golden Globe, and received six Primetime Emmy Award nominations. Dennehy had roles in ...

Aidan Quinn Aidan Quinn (born March 8, 1959) is an American actor who made his film debut in '' Reckless'' (1984). He has starred in over 80 feature films, including ''Desperately Seeking Susan'' (1985), '' The Mission'' (1986), ''Stakeout'' (1987), ''Aval ...

, Stockard Channing,

Laura Harrington Laura Harrington (born April 29, 1958) is an American actor, actress and screenwriter. Harrington is perhaps best known for her role as the main character's sister in the 1993 film ''What's Eating Gilbert Grape''. Previously seen as the charact ...

, Delroy Lindo and

Joe Grifasi Joseph G. Grifasi (born June 14, 1944) is an American character actor of film, stage and television. Grifasi was born in Buffalo, New York, the son of Patricia (née Gaglione) and Joseph J. Grifasi, a skilled laborer. Grifasi graduated from Bi ...

. The film premiered on

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

on October 28, 1989.

Plot

A witness to a mob killing has second thoughts about testifying when he realizes his family might become a target.

Cast

as James Falcon *

as Sam Paxton * Stockard Channing as Liz Sapperstein *

as Jeanie Paxton * Delroy Lindo as Berger *

as Breeze *

Ken Pogue Kenneth Pogue (July 26, 1934 – December 15, 2015) was a Canadian actor. Career His first motion picture role in 1973 was in ''The Neptune Factor''. He almost drowned in scuba gear. He worked on stage at the Crest Theatre, Stratford Shakespea ...

as Costello *

Markus Flanagan Markus Flanagan (born August 20, 1964) is an American actor. Career In 1990, he starred in the short-lived ABC police drama '' Sunset Beat'' alongside George Clooney, Michael Deluise and Erik King. He was a series regular on NBC's ''Nurses'' ...

as Woods *

David Margulies David Joseph Margulies (February 19, 1937 – January 11, 2016) was an American actor. Early life Margulies was born in Brooklyn, New York City, the son of Runya ('' née'' Zeltzer), a nurse and museum employee, and Harry David Margulies, a ...

as Rudnick *Nial Lancaster as Danny Paxton *James Greene as Paddy O'Rourke *

Colm Meaney Colm J. Meaney (; ga, Colm Ó Maonaigh; born 30 May 1953) is an Irish actor known for playing Miles O'Brien in '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' (1987–1994) and '' Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' (1993–1999). He has guest-starred on many T ...

as Meagher *

Tobin Bell Tobin may refer to: Name *Tobin (surname) * Tobin (given name) Places in the United States * Tobin, California * Tobin Bridge, near Boston, Massachusetts * Tobin Range, a mountain range in Nevada * Tobin Township, Perry County, Indiana * Tobin ...

as Dillon *

Tony Sirico Gennaro Anthony Sirico Jr. (; July 29, 1942 – July 8, 2022) was an American actor. He was best known for his role as Paulie "Walnuts" Gualtieri in ''The Sopranos''. He also made numerous appearances in the films of Woody Allen. Early life S ...

as Marco *Sam Malkin as Stefano *Kevin Rushton as Rikky *David Cumming as Kevin O'Rourke *

David Proval David Aaron Proval (born May 20, 1942) is an American actor, known for his roles as Tony DeVienazo in the Martin Scorsese film '' Mean Streets'' (1973), Snooze in '' The Shawshank Redemption'' (1994), Siegfried in '' Four Rooms'' (1995) and as ...

as Lucca *Christopher Trace as Eddie Wallis *David Christopher Adamson as Newton *Jennifer Pearson as Jeanie's Sister

References

External links

* 1989 television films 1989 films 1980s English-language films 1989 thriller films HBO Films films Films directed by Robert Mandel Films scored by Brad Fiedel American thriller television films 1980s American films {{US-tv-thriller-film-stub