Secret Window

I didn't hate it, but that was solely because of Johnny Depp. If he wasn't in it, this would be a straight to video or made-for-TV movie on some cable channel like TNT or USA. Also, I like this movie better when it was called The Shining.

It's a Twilight Zone episode stretched out to a 90 minute Depp showcase. Competent, but little more than that.

I liked it. Depp was great.

Didn't Romero already make this movie but it was called The Dark Half? I thought Secret window was pretty standard stuff.

When I first read this story I thought that it was funny that it was about ripping of material. since King ripped himself off writing it. HHMMM a writers alter ego starting shit. The better movie was definitly The Dark half

Yeah, and what's really stoopid is they've even cast Timothy Hutton in the damned thing, too! That got me thinking along those lines right away, and pretty much derailed the movie.

I just finished watching this. Rented it, figured I'd give it a shot. And for the first 3/4 of it, was enjoying it. Not loving it, but was thinking it wasn't all that bad and was thinking that by the time it ended, it'd be one of those films you go into with low expectations and end up pleasantly surprised. I kinda stayed away from spoilers when this came out and I was hoping, while watching, that the ending wasn't going to be what it ended up being. I mean, come on. It was obvious (yes, agreement with all those who mentioned the Dark Half) and was just horrible.

For a flick where one of the last few lines of the movie is that "all that matters is the ending" Well, it certaintly got that wrong. The last 20 minutes just stunk. And the ending, esp the last few shots, just left me muttering "that was horrible." Hardly the worst film I've ever seen, or of last year, but it's the ones that kinda dissappoint you that hurt the most.

I liked it just fine and thought that Koepp actually managed to improve on King's tepid ending in the novella. Comparisons to THE DARK HALF are apt, seeing that King himself stated that the novella was his way of covering a few more issues that he had wanted to touch upon in the novel -- but Koepp directed this with a style that outclassed Romero's film version of that novel. For those who are blowing their own horns by stating how obvious the twist was, I don't think the big reveal of Depp's fractured personality is any sort of major twist -- astute viewers should be well aware of what's coming -- it's the performance that counts. And any modern Hollywood horror film that ends with the pretty blonde "heroine" and her stalwart boyfriend getting trepanned wih a shovel and turned into fertilizer is okay with me -- props to Koepp for going dark. The novella was certainly not one of King's better efforts, but Koepp managed to improve upon it measurably. It's also not Koepp's best directorial effort (that would be STIR OF ECHOES) but it's certainly worth a rental for the solid direction and tight performances.

Well said Messiahman. I totally agree with that.

Saw this last night for the first time. I'd always avoided it because the previews hinted at a fairly predictable plot, but I've been on a Stephen King kick lately.

 

Johnny Depp does an admirable job at pulling off relatively normal with quirks (for most of the movie), rather than his usual weird with shades of normal. I like the jaw clicking and the talking to himself (and the dog), and that for the first half this is essentially a one-man show.

 

The plot is perfunctory. *spoilers* It's obvious from the get-go that John Turturro's Shooter is a fictional character sprung to life. With that in mind, however, I was fully prepared to see how the film pulled this off, and whether or not it was a supernatural explanation. Unfortunately it resorts to the mundane, with Shooter turning out to be a split personality/defense mechanism on Depp's Mort's part. This does result in a bit of novelty, Johnny Depp as a villain (for all of twenty minutes) which I'm pretty sure is rarity if not one-time thing. He isn't exactly menacing with silly hat, but I appreciated the dour ending, felt like right out of an EC Comic. */spoilers*

 

I'll give Koepp credit, he gives the film a dark sense of humor. All of the townspeople are suitably oddball in the way that King likes it, and Depp struggling with dead bodies is nice gallows humor. When he starts talking outloud to his own narration the movie ventured into provocative territory, but then settled into a scene of multiple Depps bickering at each other (retroactive Pirates of the Caribbean flashback!) This was a missed opportunity, as instead of playing up the dissonance it works solely as a plot-dump of exposition. Nothing spurs Depp's sudden revelation, it just happens because Maria Bello is on the way and we need a final act fight.

 

Still, that ending is deliciously disturbing, and I can't help but feel the movie wants us to side with Depp and cheer on the murder of his cheating wife and her lover.

This movie was... CORNY.

 

 

Want a better EC flavored flick that's lesser known? Try Hammer's SCREAM OF FEAR.