Cape Fear (Martin Scorsese, 1991, USA)

1991’s Cape Fear, Martin Scorsese’s most commercially successful film up to this point, is an excellent riff on the original 1962 film starring Robert Mitchum and Gregory Peck. Expanding on the original source material (including John D. MacDonald’s The Executioners), while paying it a great deal of respect (the original’s Bernard Herrmann score features prominently in this new version, and both Mitchum and Peck make appearances), Cape Fear is a classic example of a remake that in many respects exceeds the original. It is at least a remake that is warranted, particularly given the limitations of what could be shown in 1962.

De Niro’s Max Cady enhances the Southern Gothic nature of Max Cady, making him almost possessed of a religious righteous vengeance. While some have objected to De Niro’s Southern accent (which does sometimes seem inconsistent throughout the film), his performance is a tour de force. The entire ensemble, from Nick Nolte as our (less admirable than in the original) hero, to his wife Jessica Lange, to their daughter Juliette Lewis, is fantastic. It is hard to pick a standout, but it is not surprising that Lewis became one of the significant actresses of the 1990s after this film.

From a technical level, Cape Fear is an exercise in excess. From the wild camera movements to the use of intense backdrops, the film is Scorsese at his most De Palma-esque. The film’s finale on the boat in a storm is over the top in the best way possible. While Cape Fear is overlooked these days in favor of Scorsese’s more distinguished works, it is perhaps one of his more underrated films. Apparently, Steven Spielberg was at one point attached, and it would have been interesting to see what he would have done with the project. Clearly Scorsese was the right choice for the material.

8/10