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Cape Fear

Play trailer Poster for Cape Fear R 1991 2h 8m Mystery & Thriller Crime Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist 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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Cape Fear

Cape Fear

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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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Critics Reviews

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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
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. 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
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Audience Reviews

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Dwayne B. @Dwayne_Barkers_World Jun 16 I went into Cape Fear (1991) completely blind. I’d seen a trailer for the new Cape Fear series and mentioned it to a friend, who told me there was an original movie with the same name. So I watched it with zero expectations — and wow. Robert De Niro is absolutely terrifying as Max Cady, a completely unhinged psychopath who spends 14 years in prison plotting revenge on the lawyer he believes wrongfully put him there. De Niro sells every second of it. Fair warning: a lot of scenes are brutal and not for the faint of heart. The film makes a chilling point about how prison can warp a man — Cady goes in dangerous, but comes out a full-blown monster. See more Ahmed M. @RT84878034 Jun 13 The movie remain as shocking and intense as ever. Robert DeNiro is mesmerizing as the unrelenting menace. Every bit biblical vengeance as he quotes. The other standout is Juliette Lewis. She is 15 year old target of Max Cady’s sexual depravity. And she conveys innocence and precocity with such precision you feel terrified for her when tries to seduce her. Of course the original score,re-used here still packs a wallop. See more Tehrah E @RT12480398 Jun 11 Omg so many jump scares 😂😂😂 crazy movie but a great must see See more Hunter T. @htott Jun 9 Grabs your attention and holds you with the suspense that builds from the very start. See more Johnathon W @Hoppynsc Jun 3 Solid remake of the original classic that leans more into the horror direction though it goes a bit over the top at times. The cast is superb across the board, especially Robert DeNiro as Max Cady, giving one of his best performances as a monster with a nice mix of intelligence and integrity. The rest of cast is equally excellent, especially Juliette Lewis as Danielle, a young woman both intrigued yet fearful of Cady. Behind the camera, Martin Scorcese crafts a fun remake that leans into the horror direction (Cady is almost supernatural in his abilities) while making the conflict more nuanced (having Bowden, played nicely by Nick Nolte, being his lawyer who threw Cady's original case adds some nice shades of grey to their conflict). However, Scorcese's direction gets too stylized and over the top a times, taking away from the horror. Overall, still a scary watch, largely thanks to DeNiro's performance. See more S. O @Col._Angus May 23 This is a great take on a story, shown in a Hitchcockian way. Definitely recommend. Is it wrong that I was rooting for Max the whole way? See more Read all reviews
Cape Fear

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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
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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, 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
Aspect Ratio
Scope (2.35:1)