Claim: Cape Fear includes a brief appearance from Robert Mitchum.

Cape Fear is a 1991 American psychological thriller film directed by Martin Scorsese and a remake of the 1962 film of the same name . It stars Robert De Niro , Nick Nolte , Jessica Lange , and Juliette Lewis , and features cameos from Gregory Peck , Robert Mitchum , and Martin Balsam , who all appeared in the original film . It was Peck 's final theatrical film . The film tells the story of a convicted rapist who , using mostly his newfound knowledge of the law and its numerous loopholes , seeks vengeance against a former public defender whom he blames for his 14-year imprisonment due to purposefully faulty defense tactics used during his trial .   Cape Fear marks the seventh of eight collaborations between Scorsese and De Niro , the others being Mean Streets -LRB- 1973 -RRB- , Taxi Driver -LRB- 1976 -RRB- , New York , New York -LRB- 1977 -RRB- , Raging Bull -LRB- 1980 -RRB- , The King of Comedy -LRB- 1982 -RRB- , Goodfellas -LRB- 1990 -RRB- and Casino -LRB- 1995 -RRB- . The film received positive reviews and received Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for Best Actor -LRB- De Niro -RRB- and Best Supporting Actress -LRB- Lewis -RRB- .