Cape Fear

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Cape Fear

R

1991

2h 8m

Mystery & Thriller

Crime

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

77%

Tomatometer

60 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.

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Critics Consensus

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

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Steve Murray

Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Sep 25

Scary, gory and able to jangle your nerves in half a dozen ways.

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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.

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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.

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Dan DiNicola

The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)

Dec 18

5/5

This is a superbly taut and frightening chunk of suspense at once accessible and tinged with psychological complexity.

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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.

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Terry Francis

Southern Voice (Atlanta)

05/08/2023

2.5/4

The picture's missteps are more than numerous.

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Ludvig B

@drunkwatch Apr 6

While the performances in Cape Fear are top-tier, the film itself left me underwhelmed. Robert De Niro is terrifyingly good as Max Cady, and Juliette Lewis delivers a breakthrough performance that feels raw and authentic. However, the storyline felt weak and increasingly unrealistic as it progressed. I also found it very difficult to connect with the protagonist, Sam Bowden (Nick Nolte). His character's choices and personality were so frustrating that it made it hard to root for him, which ultimately took away from the tension. Great acting can't always save a script that feels this grating.

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James P

@RT29078324 Apr 6

Very good performances from De Niro and Nick Nolte, but they could of done so much more with the storyline, it felt like their were certain plot points that were never addressed, though it still adds to the mystery of what horror and thrillers should be like in this day and age. Soundtrack was great and enjoyed the direction. Ending was a bit abrupt but overall enjoyable.

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Kevin P

@Kevinator213 Mar 17

One of the best thrillers of all time. Classic remake.

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Sean S

@007Sean Mar 17

Stylish tense remake and was clever to keep the original musical score. Bernard Herman need i say more.

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Will N

@Williamnot Mar 6

This is a complete waste of time. Terrible acting, boring, where was the suspense?? It's like waiting for paint to dry hoping something might happen.

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Breathe J

@SilverScreenSweetheart Feb 7

Cape Fear follows Max Cady (Robert De Niro), an ex-con who seeks vengeance on his former lawyer (Nick Nolte) after serving 14 years in prison for a sexual assault. While the film has a strong storyline and offers decent tension and suspense, it failed to live up to my expectations of a good Scorsese-De Niro movie. The performances of Juliette Lewis and Jessica Lange felt forced and unnatural, the scenes were unrealistic (especially the last 30 minutes of the movie), and the ending was unsatisfactory. The only redeeming quality in this film was Robert De Niro’s portrayal of the psychotic Max Cady. While I’ve never seen De Niro give a poor performance, this one was especially spectacular. The appearance, the southern accent, the smooth manipulation; he truly stole the show and made it worth watching.

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Martin Scorsese

Director

Robert De Niro

Max Cady

Nick Nolte

Sam Bowden

Jessica Lange

Leigh Bowden

Juliette Lewis

Danielle Bowden

Joe Don Baker

Claude Kersek

Cape Fear: Official Clip - Cady Kills Kersek

2:43

Cape Fear: Official Clip - More Than Human

2:34

Cape Fear: Official Clip - Cady Drowns

2:22

Cape Fear: Official Clip - Leigh Offers Herself

2:17

Cape Fear: Official Clip - Sucking Cady's Thumb

2:58

Cape Fear: Official Clip - Strip Search

2:35

Cape Fear: Official Clip - Come Out, Come Out, Wherever You Are

2:58

Cape Fear: Official Clip - The People vs. Samuel Bowden

3:03

Cape Fear: Official Clip - Cady's Release

1:18

Cape Fear: Official Clip - Smoking and Cackling

2:23

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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, Crime, Drama
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

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