{"id":21571,"date":"2011-12-29T15:10:42","date_gmt":"2011-12-29T22:10:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=21571"},"modified":"2024-01-06T00:38:22","modified_gmt":"2024-01-06T07:38:22","slug":"cape-fear-1962","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=21571","title":{"rendered":"Cape Fear (1962)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;A type like that is an animal &#8212; so you&#8217;ve got to fight him like an animal.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Poster.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Poster-156x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"156\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-21572\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Poster-156x300.jpg 156w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Poster-66x128.jpg 66w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Poster-535x1024.jpg 535w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 156px) 100vw, 156px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nA sexually deviant sociopath (Robert Mitchum) stalks the wife (Polly Bergen) and daughter (Lori Martin) of the lawyer (Gregory Peck) who testified against him eight years earlier; when Peck&#8217;s attempt to secure protection from a policeman (Martin Balsam) and a private investigator (Telly Savalas) fail to keep Mitchum away from his family, he resorts to more violent tactics.\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Cat-and-Mouse<\/li>\n<li>Ex-Cons<\/li>\n<li>Gregory Peck Films<\/li>\n<li>Martin Balsam Films<\/li>\n<li>Revenge<\/li>\n<li>Robert Mitchum Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Response to Peary\u2019s Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nPeary&#8217;s review of this &#8220;tense, often uncomfortable melodrama&#8221; (remade in 1991 by Martin Scorsese) is quite brief; he simply mentions that &#8220;the climax is extremely suspenseful&#8221;, and that &#8220;in a role almost as creepy as his bogus preacher in <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=18704\"><em>Night of the Hunter<\/em><\/a> [1955], Mitchum plays one of the screen&#8217;s first <em>sexual<\/em> sadists&#8221;. Indeed, it was reviewing <em>NOTH<\/em> recently that prompted me to revisit this later film, simply out of curiosity to see how Mitchum&#8217;s two performances compare &#8212; and I must say I believe that Mitchum&#8217;s Max Cady is the &#8220;creepier&#8221; of the two. Cady is a terrifyingly brutal bastard, an intelligent but deluded and narcissistic sociopath who uses humans as fodder for a sick scenario of vengeance he&#8217;s playing out in his head. Indeed, the entire storyline for <em>Cape Fear<\/em> is a cat-and-mouse affair, with Mitchum slyly licking his paws and waiting for the moment when he knows he&#8217;ll be able to &#8220;pounce&#8221; on his vulnerable prey.  <\/p>\n<p>We&#8217;re shown exactly what kind of a self-centered bastard Mitchum is during the opening sequence, as he jostles a woman carrying a stack of books, and walks right past her rather than stopping to help her pick them up. Later, an encounter between Mitchum and a &#8220;loose&#8221; woman (Barrie Chase) he picks up at a bar &#8212; then attacks so viciously she&#8217;s scared to say a word to the authorities &#8212; is used to excellent effect, indicating to us exactly the level of violence and sexual terror Mitchum is capable of inflicting; while the &#8220;attack&#8221; itself isn&#8217;t shown explicitly, the way in which director J. Lee Thompson shows both the terrifying moments beforehand, and Chase&#8217;s brutalized appearance after, are enough to convince us that Mitchum is someone of whom to be very, very scared. Meanwhile, Bernard Herrmann provides an effectively creepy film score, and accomplished DP Sam Leavitt&#8217;s b&#038;w cinematography is consistently atmospheric.<\/p>\n<p>With all of this said, I personally find <em>Cape Fear<\/em> too disturbing a film to recommend as more than a &#8220;once-must&#8221; thriller. While the entire story is told remarkably effectively, who wants to subject themselves to this kind of vicarious torture more than once? I know there are horror fans who live for the opportunity to exist with their hearts perpetually in their throats; but the type of menace offered up here is simply too freaky for my blood. The basic premise of the screenplay is that the law won&#8217;t &#8212; or can&#8217;t &#8212; protect citizens from an uncommitted crime, no matter how obvious the threat. To that end, <a href=\"http:\/\/moria.co.nz\/horror\/cape-fear-1962.htm\">as noted by Richard Scheib<\/a>, <em>Cape Fear<\/em> is notable as &#8220;the first of a subgenre of films that placed the nuclear family and the values of ordinary American decency up against a wall&#8221;, with &#8220;direct echoes&#8230; found in films like <em>Straw Dogs<\/em> (1971) [and] <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=5347\"><em>Dirty Harry<\/em> (1971)<\/a>.&#8221; While it may be astonishing to see Peck &#8212; starring as a pacifist lawyer in the same year&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=37728\"><em>To Kill a Mockingbird<\/em><\/a> &#8212; resort to violence to protect his own family, one seriously can&#8217;t blame him. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Robert Mitchum as Max Cady<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Mitchum.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Mitchum.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"592\" height=\"320\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-58226\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Mitchum.png 592w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Mitchum-300x162.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Mitchum-128x69.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Mitchum-500x270.png 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 592px) 100vw, 592px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Atmospheric, noir-ish cinematography<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Cinematography.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Cinematography.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"592\" height=\"320\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-58227\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Cinematography.png 592w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Cinematography-300x162.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Cinematography-128x69.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Cinematography-500x270.png 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 592px) 100vw, 592px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Cinematography2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Cinematography2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"592\" height=\"320\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-58228\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Cinematography2.png 592w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Cinematography2-300x162.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Cinematography2-128x69.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Cinematography2-500x270.png 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 592px) 100vw, 592px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Cinematography3.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Cinematography3.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"592\" height=\"320\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-58229\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Cinematography3.png 592w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Cinematography3-300x162.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Cinematography3-128x69.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Cape-Fear-Cinematography3-500x270.png 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 592px) 100vw, 592px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Bernard Herrmann&#8217;s score<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes, as a powerful &#8220;once-must&#8221; thriller. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Noteworthy Performance(s)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0055824\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1962\/04\/19\/archives\/screen-pitiless-shockermitchum-stalks-peck-in-cape-fear.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/moria.co.nz\/horror\/cape-fear-1962.htm\">Moria Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/classic-horror.com\/reviews\/cape_fear_1962\">Classic Horror Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.qnetwork.com\/index.php?page=review&#038;id=152\">Q Network Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.montrealmirror.com\/ARCHIVES\/2003\/091803\/mpp.html\">Rick Trembles&#8217; Review (spoiler alerts)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/70207\/cape-fear#articles-reviews?articleId=64092\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.timeout.com\/movies\/cape-fear\">Time Out Capsule Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;A type like that is an animal &#8212; so you&#8217;ve got to fight him like an animal.&#8221; Synopsis: A sexually deviant sociopath (Robert Mitchum) stalks the wife (Polly Bergen) and daughter (Lori Martin) of the lawyer (Gregory Peck) who testified against him eight years earlier; when Peck&#8217;s attempt to secure protection from a policeman (Martin Balsam) and a private investigator (Telly Savalas) fail to keep Mitchum away from his family, he resorts to more violent tactics. Genres, Themes, Actors, and&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=21571\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21571","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-responses-to-peary"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21571","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=21571"}],"version-history":[{"count":28,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21571\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":94664,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21571\/revisions\/94664"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=21571"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=21571"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=21571"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}