| Witness Protection [Region 2] |  | Director: Richard Pearce
Actors: Tom Sizemore, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Shawn Hatosy, Skye Mccole Bartusiak, Forest Whitaker
Category: DVD
Buy Used: $35.19
Rating:  6 reviews
Sales Rank: 266605
Format: Pal
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: R (Restricted)
Region: 2
Discs: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Running Time: 105 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
EAN: 5014138287160
ASIN: B00004WZVS
Theatrical Release Date: December 11, 1999
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Amazon.com
Bobby Batton (Tom Sizemore) is a middle-class father and family man who just happens to make his living as a mobster. After surviving a midnight attempt on his life in his own home, he packs up and hustles his family off to a motel, where he tries to figure out who wants him dead. The FBI offers him a choice: face prison time on previous indictments, or turn state's evidence and enter the Witness Protection Program. The family soon finds itself in an interim facility run by the agency, a sterile apartment with all the personality of a hotel suite, trying to leave their past behind and make the adjustment to new lives and new identities. Batton's family is about as "normal" as a mobster's family could be, but things soon begin to fall apart under the strain of their situation. The reliable Sizemore and costar Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio are both good in their roles, as is Forest Whitaker as a sympathetic federal official, but they never quite rise above the shopworn story. To the screenwriter's credit, Batton's character has some real depth; on the surface, he's a fairly unsympathetic figure, a slimy mob type who's made his living as a professional criminal. When things are turned upside down, though, he shows himself to actually care about his family and struggle to make things work out. That aside, though, this is still a fairly average made-for-cable drama, with a cast making the best of an uncompelling screenplay and flat direction. --Jerry Renshaw
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| Customer Reviews: Read 1 more reviews...
 Know the Job Well May 29, 2007
Ellenida (USA)
Having worked in the Witness Program (WSP, WitSec) for 9 years, I was very impressed with this film. Sizemore was typical of mobster entering the Program: fearful, cocky, arrogant, patronizing, angry, unhappy, and unfeeling about what his actions have cost his family; in short... self-absorbed. Since I'm retired now, the movie brought back all the memories of dealing with these guys and talking to them in the only language they understand. I even remembered in which section of the file the Memorandum of Understanding went.
It also brought back memories of the James Caan movie "Hide in Plain Sight", which was a true story and changed the rules regarding non-custodial parental rights when a spouse in WSP is relocated.
Both Whittaker and Sizemore did an outstanding job in this film, which got the stamp of approval from the USMS. It's a shame it was made for video and not for the big screen. I watch it every few months just to keep my mind fresh about a job I worked and loved.
Transition into the witness protection program isn't easy June 11, 2005
Linda Linguvic (New York City)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
This 1992 HBO film dealt with a subject that has always fascinated me and yet I knew little about. What happens to a family that goes into the witness protection program? What kind of problems do they face? And how, exactly, does the transformation work. This film attempts to answer some of these questions. And, if the characters are a little larger than life, and the story sometimes dips to the level of a soap opera, it really didn't matter to me. Because by then, I was so involved with the story and the personalities of this particular fictional family that I was too caught up to care.
The story starts out strong and continues its hectic pace. We soon learn that Tom Sizemore is involved with the mob who are out to kill him. It becomes apparent that his wife and children are also in danger. That's when Tom Sizemore goes to the FBI and agrees to testify in exchange for his family's protection.
The teenage son who is doing so well is school that he could get into a prestigious college is heartbroken. He has to leave his girlfriend too. And give up what looks like his whole future. The little 5-year old girl has to learn to lie about her name. And the wife, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, has to give up all the luxuries she's become adjusted to. This family is going to be poor in their new location and the father is going to have to work as a laborer.
This change doesn't happen overnight however. First, the family must spend 5 days in an FBI relocation house which looks like a house but is really a fancy prison. Here, they have to learn how to behave in their new environment. Forest Whitiker is cast as the FBI agent who will help make this happen. He plays his "tough love" part well and keeps saying he doesn't care. But it is clear that he does care about this family.
There are arguments between the husband and wife and one scene where the dishes fly and she hits him with a frying pan. There is one scene where the son refuses to go along with the relocation. The little girl cries a lot and we wonder how this will all affect her little life. Tensions do more than mount. They explode. And there were times that my own emotions were touched and I found my eyes tearing up.
I enjoyed this film and its unique angle on what the witness protection program means in the lives of one particular family. It made me think.
 Flawlessly Performed November 27, 2003
M. Hencke (New York, NY United States)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
The performances make this made for cable efforta must see. Some of the writing particularly in the middle section of the film is really strong. Give it a chance it is quite fascinating.
Good movie June 1, 2003
Tonia (USA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
This movie starts off with a bang and keeps you in suspense but the ending becomes obvious during the last 20 or so minutes. Ms. Mastrantonio is incredible in this movie and I recommend viewing it when you've got nothing on your mind because the story really pulls you in and you might forget those important car insurance bills that have overwhelmed you tired little mind.
 This one is a good one to rent June 28, 2000
9 out of 10 found this review helpful
Witness Protection is one of the few movies that focuses on the guys behind the scenes. In this mob story of a man who goes into hiding with his family, few things are clearly stated to the viewer. The acting is decent, a good director is in the making with Richard Pearce, but the story moves slowly and is very choppy. You are left to wonder how they got from one place to another. It had a well-developed plot, but it never followed through. I was particularly disappointed with the ending and the fact that the wife really had no idea what her husband did. All in all it was a decent movie. But rent it before you consider buying it.
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