Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows RT App News Showtimes

Cape Fear

Play trailer Poster for Cape Fear R 1991 2h 8m Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
76% Tomatometer 59 Reviews 77% Popcornmeter 50,000+ Ratings
When attorney Sam Bowden (Nick Nolte) knowingly withholds evidence that would acquit violent sex offender Max Cady (Robert De Niro) of rape charges, Max spends 14 years in prison. But after Max's release, knowing about Sam's deceit, he devotes his life to stalking and destroying the Bowden family. When practical attempts to stop Max fail, Sam realizes that he must act outside the law to protect his wife and daughter in Martin Scorsese's remake of the classic 1962 thriller.
Watch on Fandango at Home Stream Now

Where to Watch

Cape Fear

Cape Fear

What to Know

Critics Consensus

Smart and stylish, Cape Fear is a gleefully mainstream shocker from Martin Scorsese, with a terrifying Robert De Niro performance.

Read Critics Reviews

Critics Reviews

View More
Steve Murray Atlanta Journal-Constitution Sep 25
Scary, gory and able to jangle your nerves in half a dozen ways. Go to Full Review
Wendy Ide The Times (UK) 08/14/2023
Yet the grubby story is elevated by a superior cast in both the original and this grimly bloodthirsty remake. Go to Full Review
Victoria Luxford BBC.com 05/06/2022
(De Niro) had played a tough guy before, but never quite like this: a very sinister, very jagged, very dangerous character… put that together with Martin Scorsese at possibly the peak of his powers, and it’s a delightful if slightly scary film. Go to Full Review
Matt Brunson Film Frenzy Aug 26
3/4
Technically, the film is a dazzling achievement, but De Niro’s performance wavers uneasily between brutish commitment and shallow parody. Go to Full Review
Terry Francis Southern Voice (Atlanta) 05/08/2023
2.5/4
The picture's missteps are more than numerous. Go to Full Review
Peter Keough Boston Phoenix 04/21/2023
Ever shot reminds you that a consummate artist is having a great time remaking a kinky minor classic. Go to Full Review
Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View More
Jack F @MovieFan111 Nov 28 It was alright. I recently realized it was a remake to the original. See more Craig H @DownWeGo Nov 13 A slightly campy 90s thriller with De Niro at his best chewing up the scenery with his menacing, charming and psychotic performance, watching him manipulate and dismantle this family emotionally and physically was unsettling and fascinating at the same time. Some other reviews I read said in other directors hands this would of been more trashy and a lesser film and i totally agree Scorcese lifted this material. The whole cast where great also. Not Scorceses best but a mid tier Scorcese movie which is still very good See more Kevin P Nov 6 A very tense and entertaining revenge thriller that plays with the rigid and flexible sides of the law in contrast to people's primal instincts for moral justice. Robert DeNiro is creepy, mysterious, funny, and threatening as the villainous Max Cady. He easily steals the show, even if can be a bit over the top at times with his fake southern accent and it is a little unbelievable that so many characters don't take him seriously from the beginning. Nick Nolte is very believable as the timid, yet rigid and deterministic lawyer father who slowly loses his mind from Max Cady's psychological warfare. He starts off as spinless and even a bit romantically skeezy (the compensation and tennis scenes gave me secondhand embarrassment), but intensifies up over time as he's pushed further and further into a corner. I also liked the cameos from the original actors, most notably Robert Peck cameo playing against type as Cady's lawyer. There are several iconic scenes that are very memorable, but I can't help but think of how they were parodied by the Simpsons with Sideshow Bob, such as the laughing movie theatre scene, the tattoo prison workout, or hiding under the car. I really liked the opening title credits with the waves reflection. The soundtrack is terrific, incorporating Bernard Herman's classic motifs with an updated intense score. The villainous Max Cady spends much of the movie playfully skirting around legal loopholes to taunt the main family. But when he gets violent, it's absolutely brutal to watch and really cements him as a terrifying villain. It's also sad that his backstory highlights the injustice of SA laws of the time, as many don't want to come forward due to shield laws bot being updated federally until a few years later (and even then, it's still an uphill battle that many victims still struggle with coming forward to this very day). The fast-paced editing was entertaining, albeit a bit disorienting and schlocky at times. Some of the characters are aware bit stupid early on not taking the ex-battery convict seriously, but I can forgive the daughter since she was partially left in the dark on the subject, all highlighted very well in that super creepy house theatre scene. The climax is very memorable, taking place on a stormy river houseboat. It goes on for a bit too long and gets a little ridiculous, but there's a ton of tension and it really grips you with how much of a menace Max Cady is. This isn't my favorite Scorsese movie, but it's still a very entertaining thriller remake and that's saying a lot for the man's filmography that even his lesser films are still very good. See more J B Oct 15 I've watched this from cinema release to dvd - and I want to like it but not all that's scorcese is gold - it is as best a passable remake of a not a brilliant but worthy original but at worse it's a leaden & predictable lazy phone in by scorcese - if his name wasn't on it you wouldn't know - one patch of dark in the gloom is DeNiro's Cady - which can be said of Bob Mitchum in the original- they're both good despite the obstacles. It's a pity, this could have been something very special but it barely pops it's head above water. Opportunity spurn'd. See more Mitch C Oct 2 Solid remake with some good ideas that suit Scorcese and his style. Some character tweaks that work, plot adjustments that are down to preference but don't hurt the enjoyment. Cady is played with gusto by Robert De Niro who dedicates entirely - I prefer the more sinister approach but it's very entertaining. Giving Cady a motive is an unusual idea which slightly hampers Nolte's Bowden in terms of sympathy and affection. It's a respectful, neatly produced attempt that just falls short of the charm of the original See more Calvin T @Calvin504 Aug 21 One of the best performances I've seen from Robert De Niro See more Read all reviews
Cape Fear

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW

Cape Fear

Cape Fear: Official Clip - Cady Kills Kersek Cape Fear: Official Clip - Cady Kills Kersek 2:43 Cape Fear: Official Clip - More Than Human Cape Fear: Official Clip - More Than Human 2:34 Cape Fear: Official Clip - Cady Drowns Cape Fear: Official Clip - Cady Drowns 2:22 Cape Fear: Official Clip - Leigh Offers Herself Cape Fear: Official Clip - Leigh Offers Herself 2:17 Cape Fear: Official Clip - Sucking Cady's Thumb Cape Fear: Official Clip - Sucking Cady's Thumb 2:58 Cape Fear: Official Clip - Strip Search Cape Fear: Official Clip - Strip Search 2:35 Cape Fear: Official Clip - Come Out, Come Out, Wherever You Are Cape Fear: Official Clip - Come Out, Come Out, Wherever You Are 2:58 Cape Fear: Official Clip - The People vs. Samuel Bowden Cape Fear: Official Clip - The People vs. Samuel Bowden 3:03 Cape Fear: Official Clip - Cady's Release Cape Fear: Official Clip - Cady's Release 1:18 Cape Fear: Official Clip - Smoking and Cackling Cape Fear: Official Clip - Smoking and Cackling 2:23 View more videos
A Kiss Before Dying 31% 32% A Kiss Before Dying Watchlist The Trigger Effect 72% 44% The Trigger Effect Watchlist Fear 47% 63% Fear Watchlist Everybody Wins 13% 33% Everybody Wins Watchlist Thunderheart 91% 75% Thunderheart Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis When attorney Sam Bowden (Nick Nolte) knowingly withholds evidence that would acquit violent sex offender Max Cady (Robert De Niro) of rape charges, Max spends 14 years in prison. But after Max's release, knowing about Sam's deceit, he devotes his life to stalking and destroying the Bowden family. When practical attempts to stop Max fail, Sam realizes that he must act outside the law to protect his wife and daughter in Martin Scorsese's remake of the classic 1962 thriller.
Director
Martin Scorsese
Producer
Robert De Niro, Barbara De Fina
Screenwriter
John D. MacDonald, James R. Webb, Wesley Strick
Distributor
Universal Pictures, MCA/Universal Pictures [us], Universal Home Entertainment
Production Co
Universal Pictures, Amblin Entertainment, Tribeca Productions
Rating
R
Genre
Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Nov 13, 1991, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Apr 19, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$76.4M
Runtime
2h 8m
Sound Mix
Surround
Most Popular at Home Now