RARA-AVIS: THE EXECUTIONERS / CAPE FEAR John D. MacDonald's THE EXECUTIONERS (1958) was twice adapted for the movies: CAPE FEAR (1962), and CAPE FEAR (1991). The first version had Robert Mitchum as the villain, Max Cady, and it's one of his best performances. He can just stand around looking at you with those droopy eyes and you know he's ready to kill. The late Gregory Peck plays the hero, the lawyer whose wife and daughter are threatened. It's a good movie, with some very tense sections, especially at the end. (And the score is by Bernard Herrmann.) I've never read the original THE EXECUTIONERS / CAPE FEAR

From: Nigel Algar ( montana@dircon.co.uk)
Date: 13 Jun 2003


"John D. MacDonald's THE EXECUTIONERS (1958) was twice adapted for the movies: CAPE FEAR (1962), and CAPE FEAR (1991). The first version had Robert Mitchum as the villain, Max Cady, and it's one of his best performances. He can just stand around looking at you with those droopy eyes and you know he's ready to kill. The late Gregory Peck plays the hero, the lawyer whose wife and daughter are threatened. It's a good movie, with some very tense sections, especially at the end. (And the score is by Bernard Herrmann.)

I've never read the original book, nor seen the 1991 remake that had Robert De Niro as Cady and Nick Nolte as the lawyer. I understand Mitchum and Peck have cameos. How is it? Is De Niro as menacing as Mitchum? Are the endings the same? In the 1962 version, the lawyer beats Cady in the climactic fight, but doesn't shoot him: he saves him for the police and for justice." William Denton

The original book is one of MacDonald's finest and I'd recommend it highly. The 1991 remake is another matter... Privately, Scorsese referred to it, disparagingly, as his 'Spielberg' movie and it was undertaken as part of a contractual commitment to Universal.

Mitchum has a bit part as Lieut Elgart who arrests and searches Cady. Peck plays a criminal lawyer approached by both Cady and Sam (the threatened father). While the role was not her movie debut, Juliette Lewis' performance as the teenager on the brink of discovering her sexuality brought her deserved recognition and is one of the best parts of the film.

In the protracted slugfest at the end of the film, Sam has no compunctions about trying to kill Cady, but his death is only an indirect consequence. In its favour, the 1991 version does inject some moral ambiguity into the characters which, as far as I recall, was absent from J Lee Thompson's powerhouse version.

1991 was a strange year for Hollywood with Scorsese delivering an inferior picture and Adrian Lyne delivering a fine movie in JACOB'S LADDER.

THE NIGHT OF THE HUNTER

The UCLA archivist Robert Gitt is currently touring with a presentation of the movie THE NIGHT OF THE HUNTER. What is on show is a an approximately three hour presentation of outtakes and rushes that reveal much of Charles Laughton's style of direction, particularly interesting as he does not cut between takes. Iimagine rara avis subscribers are devoted fans of the book and movie, so don't pass up the opportunity to see this show.

As this is my first contribution to rara avis, let me say who I am. For the last twelve years or so,I've worked on film-related programmes for British TV, and a couple of years ago made BIG SHOTS, a 50 minute doc on the British gangster movie from BRIGHTON ROCK to LOCK, STOCK etc. The last doc I made was on the very unhardboiled Bing Crosby...

Nigel

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