Witness By Peter Weir: Difference In Culture

How does Weir convey the difference in culture in his film Witness?
The difference in culture is emphasised through distinctive ideas and characters in the film ‘Witness’ directed by Peter Weir. He uses themes and film techniques to further emphasise the difference in culture in the film, especially in the “Happy Valley” scene and the “Barn-Raising” scene. Weir attempts to emphasise the moral of the film which is that the mainstream western society has lost its way as it results to violence and “unclean” values in order to bring peace compared to the Amish, who believe there is no such thing as violence used for good and that there is always another way to protect the good.
Weir emphasises the moral by demonstrating this distinct idea of the collision of the two cultures and, furthermore, through the
After Samuel tells Book that the suspect is not the murderer, Rachel demands that her son won’t be exposed to this sort of violence again. John Seale, the cinematographer of the film, brilliantly uses artificial lighting, close-ups, point of view and low angle shots to emphasise Samuel’s fear of the violence that his culture is foreign to. The door that Samuel is behind in this scene is symbolic of a barrier which stops him from entering a world that he does not belong in. This scene is very effective in contrasting the pacifistic attitude of Rachel and Samuel and the violent attitude of Book. Weir uses distinct characters in Samuel and Rachel, in this scene, as they represent the innocence of the Amish and this is emphasised through the techniques he demonstrates. He also uses distinct characters in John Book to represent the violent western society so he can effectively contrast the differences in their