Cape Fear

1991
R
2h 8m

IMDb RATING

7.3/10

222K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

1,827

Robert De Niro, Juliette Lewis, Nick Nolte, and Jessica Lange in Cape Fear (1991)

Play trailer2:34

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Psychological Thriller Crime Thriller

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

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.3/10

222K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

1,827

See production info at IMDbPro

Nominated for 2 Oscars
- 5 wins & 21 nominations total

Videos4

Trailer 0:31

Cape Fear

Clip 3:55

Justin Theroux Reveals His Watchlist

Video 3:08

25 Movies That Almost Starred Robert De Niro

Photos236

229

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
The thick accent Robert De Niro used to play Max Cady reportedly gave Martin Scorsese the creeps. As a joke, De Niro would call Scorsese's house, leaving voicemails as Cady.

Goofs
At the parade, Dani talks to her father but her lips are not moving.

Quotes
Max Cady: I ain't no white trash piece of shit. I'm better than you all! I can out-learn you. I can out-read you. I can out-think you. And I can out-philosophize you. And I'm gonna outlast you. You think a couple whacks to my guts is gonna get me down? It's gonna take a hell of a lot more than that, Counselor, to prove you're better than me!

Crazy credits
Later half of the credits are played to the sound of nighttime crickets.

Alternate versions
SPOILER: 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.

Connections
Edited into Cape Fear: Deleted Scenes (2001)

Soundtracks
Tipitina
Written by Alice Byrd
Performed by Professor Longhair
Courtesy of Atlantic Recording Corp.
By Arrangement with Warner Special Products

User reviews444

Review

Featured review

Better than 1962 version

It speaks volumes for Scorsese's reputation that a disappointing film for him is still worth a good 7 out of 10.

When it comes down to it, this 1991 version is so much more watchable and enjoyable than the first. Perhaps the new version's morally-complex screenplay and dynamic cinematography highlight the fact that the old Cape Fear is a bit static and, well, dull.

That's not to say the new version is perfect. The afore-mentioned cinematography, while unsettling at first (especially DeNiro virtually walking through the camera), eventually grates. Why do we need to see extreme close-ups and dramatic zooms of locks being closed?

In fact, it is bizarre that the parts of the film not set in Cape Fear are by far the best, what with the genuinely weird death of the private investigator and the 'I don't whether to look at him or read him' line from Robert Mitchum. It is in the final twenty minutes that the viewer is left numbed and ultimately tired at the 'kill the b**tard!' histronics the film endlessly subjects us to.

Despite all this, the ultimate compliment is perhaps that The Simpsons chose to parody this version rather than the 1962 version!