Let's face it. Ford does not have tremendous range as an actor. Admittedly, he is a handsome and likable fellow, and can switch effortlessly from action/adventure to drama. Some would call such a switch 'acting', and I have to agree.

But whether he's holding a weapon or not, he still acts like Harrison Ford. Peter Sellers showed more versatility in either of his two Kubrick films (Lolita and Dr. Strangelove) than Ford has displayed in his entire career.

But Ford and his producers have the last laugh, and it's on the way to the bank. The Star Wars and Indiana Jones films made a pile of money, which hasn't changed Ford a bit. He's still the humble hunk, confident but sheepish and self-conscious. Once the bad guys come calling, however, Ford rises to the occasion, like a loyal watchdog.

The elaborate setup for Witness, which ends with him dramatically delivering mother and daughter to sanctuary moments before blacking out, is to place Ford on an Amish farm, where he must learn to adapt to a pacifist society. The lack of electricity isn't even worth bringing up. He also must keep his hands off the gorgeous and conveniently just widowed mother (Kelly McGillis) of the cutest and most innocent pre-adolescent (Lukas Haas) since, well, the last such child-in-peril drama was made.

Let's figure the plot out. A standard good cop-bad cop conspiracy story bookends the real movie, which has ford as an abstinent farmer.

The latter is more compelling than the former, because the cop story is so ludicrous. Once it is known that the child witnesses the initial killing, why would the conspiracy assign the incorruptible Ford to the case? Also, if bad man Danny Glover has the drop on Ford, why does he wait to pull his gun until Ford does so?

And seriously, how long would it take law enforcement to find Ford in the Amish community? Two days, maximum. Oh, the newly widowed hottie with the adorable child? That would be two miles down the road, then take a left. Where did he get a replacement windshield? The United Parcel Service?

Not to mention the preposterous finale, which has the head police honcho (Josef Sommer) making the hit. He wouldn't be anywhere near that farm, just as he wasn't in the train station bathroom when that hit went down.

So, the entire action/crime drama portion of the film is bogus, like High Noon except that the town does come to the rescue. What does work is the McGillis-Ford chemistry, which sizzles better than the McGillis-Cruise romance in box office behemoth Top Gun.

Jan Rubes is also somewhat credible as McGillis' father, who is torn asunder by conflicts between family, religion, community, and his Good Samaritan nature. Alexander Godunov is even better as McGillis' spurned boyfriend, who calmly waits his turn rather than confronting Ford. Not out of cowardice, but because it is the right thing to do.

Still, the pieces that work cannot completely overcome the problems with the story as a whole, and the pacing slows to a crawl when the bad cops are only a distant threat. And why have a synthesizer score in an Amish setting?

Nonetheless, Witness did well at the Oscars (2 wins, 6 nominations), the British Academy Awards (1 win, 6 nominations), and the Golden Globes (6 nominations).

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