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"I understand, I'm not your type, too many tattoos. Thing is, there isn't much to do in prison except desecrate your flesh."

-- Max Cady (Robert De Niro)

I am perhaps the wrong person to be reviewing this remake of Cape Fear, considering I am yet to see the original. But, truth be told, I cannot contain my excitement at this point in time having just witnessed one of the most misanthropically demonic and psychologically disturbing performances of a cinema antagonist ... probably ever. As I write this my hands are shaking, and the haunting presence of the film's score is still lingering around my receding hairline -- I am completely overwhelmed.

(Breathes)

Anyway, I thought I would write this review now, given the full mood of my fascination for the subject; I have just spent the last two hours feeling disturbingly tormented by De Niro's portrayal of Max Cady and feel the need to talk about it. So, forgive me now if I come across as having a slightly overwrought personality, rather than the "relaxed" and "professional" perspective of the usual critic, which I am "supposed" to have in all instances of film writing.

De Niro's performance in Cape Fear just proves how much of a cinematic legend he deserves to be. Managing to play a character that possesses such hatred for society and a sexual perversity towards fifteen-year-old girls, with a certain charisma that somehow manages to gain our affection, is nothing short of genius. De Niro had similar success playing the wife-beating, foul-mouthed rapist Jake LaMotta in Raging Bull, but this performance here may just top that -- it's that good.

So... What about the film, you say? Apart from Max Cady, is it actually a decent watch?

Well... riveting is definitely one word to describe it. Martin Scorsese never seizes to amaze me; in this, probably his most commercial film to date, he offers suspenseful thrills, haunting moments of black comedy, spectacles of brutal action, and touches of manipulative paedophilia -- and not once does he seem to substitute his individual qualities as a director so that he can achieve some commercial stardom.

Scorsese's earlier work has a reputation for being difficult, in the sense many of his films require the audience's undivided attention and, at times, numerous viewings, to really be able to appreciate their technical beauty. Cape Fear, though, has the ability to captivate the viewer like no other movie of his has done so previously; it's probably the most easily-watchable yet disturbingly-uncomfortable movie that I've come across to date.

The plot involves attorney Sam Bowden (Nick Nolte) being threatened by Max Cady, fourteen years after his unlawful defence tactics. We learn that Bowden was guilty of burying evidence at the time, which could've reduced Cady's sentence for the rape crime he committed against a young, sixteen-year-old girl. Now Cady wants revenge, but not the revenge that will quickly remove Bowden from his life; he wants to torment Sam and his family and make them remember him. His methods appear clever, so much so that the law cannot legally touch him.

Cape Fear provokes debate on the semantics of justice. Bowden is seen neither as the protagonist or antagonist, with Scorsese’s version deliberately blurring the lines between the written judicial rules and a person's decision to do what he thinks is right. Cady is seen manipulating him and his family; in particular, he develops a relationship with Bowden's teenage daughter, Danielle (Juliette Lewis -- in an astonishing debut performance). Danielle is shy, but aroused by the mystery and dangerous qualities of Cady; the relationship that the two develop demonstrates further the influence and appeal that De Niro's character has.

Notice how I keep going back to Max Cady? Hopefully by now will have gathered how much of an influence the character has had upon me over such a short period of time. He's the centre of everything here; De Niro's qualities are so diverse, you'll be hard pressed to find an actor who can make such a perverted rapist and beater of women so respectable and admirable.

If you can see past him, though, and look to the other parts of Cape Fear that make it a great watch you'll notice also the sharp editing and piercing visual qualities that will make even the most stubborn viewer flinch. Accompanied by Elmer Bernstein's haunting score, this is an experience that you won't forget; remake or not, in it's own right this is a wonderfully engrossing five-star film that warrants everyone's attention.

(C) Andy Carrington, 2009.