Cape Fear (1991)

A convicted rapist, released from prison after serving a fourteen-year sentence, stalks the family of the lawyer who originally defended him.

Director:

Martin Scorsese

Writers:

John D. MacDonald (novel), James R. Webb (earlier screenplay)

Stars:

Robert De Niro, Nick Nolte, Jessica Lange

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 5 wins & 19 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robert De Niro	...	Max Cady
Nick Nolte	...	Sam Bowden
Jessica Lange	...	Leigh Bowden
Juliette Lewis	...	Danielle Bowden
Joe Don Baker	...	Claude Kersek
Robert Mitchum	...	Lieutenant Elgart
Gregory Peck	...	Lee Heller
Martin Balsam	...	Judge
Illeana Douglas	...	Lori Davis
Fred Dalton Thompson	...	Tom Broadbent
Zully Montero	...	Graciella
Craig Henne	...	Prisoner
Forest Burton	...	Prisoner
Edgar Allan Poe IV	...	Prisoner
Rod Ball	...	Prisoner

Storyline

Sam Bowden (Nick Nolte)is a small-town corporate attorney/"Leave It to Beaver" type family-man. Max Cady (Robert De Niro) is a tattooed, cigar-smoking, bible-quoting, rapist. What do they have in common? Fourteen years, ago Sam was a public defender assigned to Max Cady's rape trial, and he made a serious error: he hid a document from his illiterate client that could have gotten him acquitted. Now, the cagey, bibliophile Cady has been released, and he intends to teach Sam Bowden and his family a thing or two about loss.

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Plot Keywords:

revenge | violence | houseboat | home invasion | bible quote | 

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Taglines:

There is nothing in the dark that isn't there in the light. Except fear.

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Genres:

Crime | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence, and for language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 November 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cabo de miedo

Filming Locations:

Florida, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$35,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$79,100,000

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$103,200,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Amblin Entertainment,Cappa Films,Tribeca Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

128 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo (as Dolby Stereo SR)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Reese Witherspoon auditioned for the role of Danielle Bowden.

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Goofs

When Danielle and Max are talking in the theater, she tells Max that part of her punishment for smoking grass is that she can't drive the Cherokee. Their model Jeep is obviously a Grand Wagoneer.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Danielle: My reminiscence. I always thought that for such a lovely river the name is mystifying: "Cape Fear". When the only thing to fear on those enchanted summer nights was that the magic would end and real life would come crashing in.

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Crazy Credits

At the start of the film, when the Universal Pictures logo appears on screen, instead by studio's theme, sounds from the thunders and rainy is heard, and the logo changes of Egyptian ripple waters.

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Alternate Versions

When the movie was originally shown on network television, the blood left by Kersek's killing was optically removed by censors and replaced by a clean tile floor.

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Connections

Referenced in Supernatural: Are You There, God? It's Me, Dean Winchester (2008)

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Soundtracks

The Creature from the Black Leather Lagoon
Performed by The Cramps
Courtesy of Enigma Records
(plays while Danny is in her bedroom)

User Reviews

Robert DeNiro truly gives this movie its element of fear

To me, it's amazing that there's actually a place in North Carolina called Cape Fear, but it provides the perfect setting for this movie. Several years after attorney Sam Bowden (Nick Nolte) defended convicted rapist Max Cady (Robert DeNiro), Cady gets out of jail and decides that Bowden didn't do a good job defending him. After Sam and Max meet each other a few times, Max starts getting crazier and crazier. After he tries to enter Sam's house, Sam and his family go into hiding at Cape Fear. Then, the terror really begins.

Martin Scorsese brought a unique intensity to movies like "Mean Streets" and "Taxi Driver", but this is something completely different. Whereas his earlier movies simply made you identify with the characters, "Cape Fear" makes you both identify with the characters and find them unpleasant. Not only Max Cady, but also the Bowdens. They are never the "ideal American family", but Cady's threats against them make them get progressively nastier in their attitudes towards each other and to other people.

I think that it's safe to say that after watching "Cape Fear", you will never look at any person the same way again.