Sam Bowden is a small-town corporate attorney/"Leave It to Beaver"-esque family-man. Max Cady is a tattooed, cigar-smoking, bible-quoting, psychotic rapist. What do they have in common? Fourteen years, ago Sam was a public defender assigned to Max Cady's rape trial, and he made a serious error: he hid a document from his illiterate client that could have gotten him acquitted. Now, the cagey, bibliophile Cady has been released, and he intends to teach Sam Bowden and his family a thing or two about loss.
Written by James Craver
Director Martin Scorsese read the original script three times while making GoodFellas (1990) and hated it each time because of how the Bowdens were a happy family and wanted them to be miserable.
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Goofs
Crew or equipment visible:
Repeatedly reflected in Cady's sunglasses.
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Quotes
[first lines]
Danielle:
My reminiscence. I always thought that for such a lovely river the name is mystifying: "Cape Fear". When the only thing to fear on those enchanted summer nights was that the magic would end and real life would come crashing in. See more »
Crazy Credits
Later half of the credits are played to the sound of nighttime crickets.
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