Cape Fear (1991)

**Cape Fear** is a 1991 American psychological thriller film directed by Martin Scorsese which was released on November 15, 1991 by Universal Pictures.

It is a remake of the 1962 film of the same name which is based on John D. MacDonald's 1957 novel, "The Executioners."

## Plot

After serving 14 years in prison, convicted rapist Max Cady stalks his lawyer, Sam Bowden and his family.

## Cast

* Robert De Niro as Max Cady
* Nick Nolte as Sam Bowden
* Jessica Lange as Leigh Bowden
* Juliette Lewis as Danielle Bowden
* Joe Don Baker as Claude Kersek
* Robert Mitchum as Lieutenant Elgart
* Gregory Peck as Lee Heller
* Illeana Douglas as Lori Davis
* Fred Dalton Thompson as Tom Broadbent
* Martin Balsam as Judge

## Production

Principal photography for "Cape Fear" began on November 19, 1990 and ended on March 17, 1991.

Filming took place in Savannah, Georgia; Hollywood, Florida; and Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The storm scene was filmed at H Stage, Shepperton Studios in Shepperton, Surrey, England.

Steven Spielberg was originally set to direct "Cape Fear", but he later recommended Martin Scorsese for the job and personally called him, letting him know that this was a commercial film that had potential to be a hit, which would exercise more power for Scorsese to make his films.

Martin Scorsese read the original script three times while making "Goodfellas" and hated it each time, because of how the Bowdens were a happy family and he wanted them to be miserable.

Scorsese's first choice for the role of Sam Bowden was Harrison Ford, but he turned down the offer despite Robert De Niro trying to convince him to take it.

Robert De Niro's accent for Max Cady came from an earlier role, where he played a Southerner. To prepare for the role, he took excerpts of the script and a tape recorder into southern towns and would ask locals to read the lines into the tape.

The scene in the high school auditorium was originally scripted as a chase scene, but Martin Scorsese wanted it to be a seduction. It was completely ad-libbed by Robert De Niro and Juliette Lewis and done on the first take. Also in the scene, it was De Niro's idea to put his thumb in Lewis's mouth.

Robert De Niro paid a dentist $5,000 to make his teeth look suitably bad for the role of Max Cady. After filming, he paid $20,000 to have them fixed. He was also tattooed with vegetable dyes which faded after a few months.

De Niro did a lot of working out several months before the film and during the shoot to make him the muscular Max Cady, reportedly taking his body fat down to only 3 percent.

Originally in the scene where Max Cady puts handcuffs on Lori, she was supposed to start freaking out, but Illeana Douglas was the one who came up with the idea of having her character laughing and trying to play along instead.

The climactic scene out in the swamp was filmed in John U. Lloyd State Park, in the middle of a mangrove swamp; however, a tropical depression set over the set for four days, so the film crew had to wait for the storm to stop so that they could make their own rain.

George C. Scott was originally supposed to play the role of Lieutenant Elgart, but due to health problems, he dropped out a few days before filming and Robert Mitchum was brought in to take his place.

Martin Scorsese wanted the Bowdens' house surrounded by oak trees, covered by hanging tufts of Spanish moss. He wanted it so it looked like a sunny oasis by day, and isolating by night. Therefore, it would make a perfect dark cover for Max Cady.

The ice cream parlor scene was shot in the first week of production where the owners complained for the first three days that they were losing business.

## Box Office

"Cape Fear" grossed $10,261,025 during its opening weekend. Overall, it grossed $182,291,969 on an estimated budget of $35,000,000.

## Critical Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, "Cape Fear" has an approval rating of 75% based on 51 reviews with an average rating of 7.10. The site's consensus reads: *"Smart and stylish, Cape Fear is a gleefully mainstream shocker from Martin Scorsese, with a terrifying Robert De Niro performance."*

On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 73 out of 100, based on 9 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews." Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave it an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale.

Roger Ebert gave the film three stars, stating: *"Cape Fear is impressive moviemaking, showing [Martin] Scorsese as a master of a traditional Hollywood genre who is able to mold it to his own themes and obsessions. But as I look at this $35 million movie with big stars, special effects and production values, I wonder whether it represents a good omen from the finest director now at work."*

Entertainment Weekly called "Cape Fear" a *"hypnotically engrossing thriller that spins along on the dreams and anxieties of its characters"* while Variety called it a *" smart and stylish remake of the 1962 suspenser."*

Desson Thomson of The Washington Post wrote: *"Martin Scorsese brings honor back to the remake. He shines up this reprise of the original with original brilliance."*

The Washington Post said: *"It's a brutal, demonic film with a grip like a vise; it grabs you early, its fingers around your throat, and never lets go."*

TV Guide Magazine called it an *"exercise in audience manipulation, with every frame designed to stagger the senses."*

Jonathan Rosenbaum of the Chicago Reader said: *"Even as a simple genre picture it works only in fits and starts."*