IMDb >
Stir of Echoes (1999)
Watch It
Buy it at Amazon
Rent it at blockbuster.com
Discuss in Boards More at IMDb Pro Add to My Movies Update Data
BETA
Discuss in Boards More at IMDb Pro Add to My Movies Update Data
Quicklinks
Top Links
trailers and videosfull cast and crewtriviaofficial sitesmemorable quotesOverview
main detailscombined detailsfull cast and crewcompany creditstv scheduleAwards & Reviews
user commentsexternal reviewsnewsgroup reviewsawardsuser ratingsparents guiderecommendationsmessage boardPlot & Quotes
plot summaryplot synopsisplot keywordsAmazon.com summarymemorable quotesFun Stuff
triviagoofssoundtrack listingcrazy creditsalternate versionsmovie connectionsFAQOther Info
merchandising linksbox office/businessrelease datesfilming locationstechnical specslaserdisc detailsDVD detailsliterature listingsNewsDeskPromotional
taglines trailers and videos posters photo galleryExternal Links
showtimesofficial sitesmiscellaneousphotographssound clipsvideo clipsStir of Echoes (1999) More at IMDbPro »
| Photos (see all 38 | slideshow) | Videos (see all 2) |
Overview
User Rating:
Release Date:
10 September 1999 (USA) moreTagline:
Some doors weren't meant to be opened. morePlot:
After being hypnotized by his sister in law, a man begins seeing haunting visions of a girl's ghost and a mystery begins to unfold around her. full summary | add synopsisAwards:
3 wins & 1 nomination moreNewsDesk:
(7 articles)
Double's The Pleasure (From Studio Briefing - Film News. 28 September 1999)
Moviegoers Spurn Critics Again
(From Studio Briefing - Film News. 27 September 1999)
User Comments:
Bacon 'Cooks' As An Unwilling Medium... moreCast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| Zachary David Cope | ... | Jake Witzky | |
| Kevin Bacon | ... | Tom Witzky | |
| Kathryn Erbe | ... | Maggie Witzky | |
| Illeana Douglas | ... | Lisa Weil | |
| Kevin Dunn | ... | Frank McCarthy | |
| Conor O'Farrell | ... | Harry Damon | |
| Lusia Strus | ... | Sheila McCarthy | |
| Stephen Eugene Walker | ... | Bobby | |
| Mary Kay Cook | ... | Vanessa Damon | |
| Larry Neumann Jr. | ... | Lenny | |
| Jennifer Morrison | ... | Samantha Kozac (as Jenny Morrison) | |
| Richard Cotovsky | ... | Neighborhood Man | |
| Steve Rifkin | ... | Kurt Damon | |
| Chalon Williams | ... | Adam McCarthy | |
| Liza Weil | ... | Debbie Kozac, the Babysitter |
Additional Details
MPAA:
Rated R for violence, sexuality and language.Parents Guide:
View content advisory for parentsRuntime:
99 minCountry:
USALanguage:
EnglishColor:
ColorAspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 moreCertification:
Japan:PG-12 | Iceland:16 | Canada:14+ (Ontario) | Singapore:PG (cut) | Philippines:R-18 | Italy:VM14 (cinema rating) | Italy:VM18 (tv rating) | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA | Chile:14 | Finland:K-16 | France:-12 | Germany:16 | Hong Kong:IIB | Hungary:16 | Ireland:18 | Mexico:B | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R16 | Norway:15 (video premiere) | Portugal:M/16 | South Korea:18 | Spain:13 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 | USA:RFun Stuff
Trivia:
In an earlier version of David Koepp's script, there were some important differences from the finished movie: - Maggie Witzky's hypnotist sister Lisa was actually a brother called Philip. - To find out what was wrong with him, Tom Witzky had an MRI scan done by a cousin of Maggie's, a neurologist named Elizabeth. - We found out that Tom Witzky had first met his wife while working as a lifeguard. His psychic abilities helped save her from drowning. - Instead of accusing the Witzkys of having something to do with her sister's disappearance, the young babysitter was worried they were abusing their son. Tom found out she was being abused by her stepfather and chased him out of town. - At the end of the movie, Maggie gave birth to a girl with the same psychic abilities as the couple's son. moreGoofs:
Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): Lisa tells Maggie the baby she is expecting will be a Gemini, and that "Einstein was a Gemini". In fact, Albert Einstein was born on March 14, 1879, making him a Pisces. moreSoundtrack:
It's Not The Spotlight moreFAQ
Is "Stir Of Echoes" based on a book?How does it end?
more
more
Message Boards
Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Stir of Echoes (1999) moreRecommendations
If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
Show more recommendations
|
|
|
|
|
| The Others | Into the Black | Carrie | The Living and the Dead | City of Shoulders and Noses |
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
Related Links
| Full cast and crew | Company credits | External reviews |
| News articles | IMDb Thriller section | IMDb USA section |
| Add this title to MyMovies |














I have always admired and marveled at Kevin Bacon's versatility as an actor. From the likable fish-out-of-water guy who trips the light-fantastic through a piece of fluff like FOOTLOOSE, to putting everything on the line to play a pedophile in the unnerving THE WOODSMAN, there's hardly anything he can't - or won't do - to show his amazing range.
That being said, STIR OF ECHOES still holds what is for me one of his all-time Top Five performances.
He plays Tom Witzky, a regular mug living with his family in a working-class suburb of Chicago. Though he loves his family, hotter-than-hot wife Maggie (Kathryn Erbe) and precocious son Jake (Zachary David Cope), he's also a man becoming bored with his life. He wants to do and be something more than who and what he is.
Obviously, the old adage "be careful what you wish for" went right over Tom's head.
At a party for family and friends, Tom volunteers to be hypnotized by his flaky sister-in-law, Lisa (the always excellent Illeana Douglas), who makes a powerful suggestion to Tom that his mind takes literally. What happens next will change his life and everyone's around him forever.
A 'doorway' has been opened inside Tom's head that allows him to communicate with the dead, and for them to reach out and touch him...whether he wants to or not. When the "nightmares" that he's been having begin to intensify, Tom knows he must find a way to close that doorway for good before he loses his family...and his sanity. The urgency is heightened when he discovers how sensitive he was before the hypnotic suggestion, in the most chilling way possible...it seems that son Jake can see and talk to the dead as well.
In the tradition of THE CHANGELING, LADY IN WHITE and THE SIXTH SENSE, the focus of Tom's visions comes from one apparition in particular, who won't leave him or his family in peace until he can figure out what it wants and why. The situation provides fodder for one intense and terrifying performance, and with help from a strong supporting cast, Bacon comes through like a champ.
When movies like this are adapted from older works by classic authors, I usually proceed with the greatest caution. But Richard Matheson's creepy novel has been skillfully transformed by David Koepp, a man who knows a little bit about balancing thoughtful plotting and dialogue with outright terror, (as in APARTMENT ZERO) and the outstanding job he does here will make you think twice the next time somebody wants to 'put you out' at a party with something more than just shots of Captain Morgan...