Secret Window

Year: 2004

Grade: B

Country: USA

Director: Koepp

Review

a well-made film. there’s a surprise ending and i had it more or less pegged about half way through, but that didn’t detract from the film at all. it’s a creepy film and that’s in large part due to the directing of the film. at the same time there was just enough comic relief to diffuse the tension on occasion.  i’m not sure what it was that made the horror aspect so effective…sometimes it was the placement of the camera – positioned in such a way that we could see depp, but not what may be lurking nearby; or hovering over him in his sleep as if the camera had taken on the subjective view of turturro (who played the psycho killer type quite well). sometimes the dark pockets that filled the screen acted as possible hiding places for turturro. and sometimes it was the philip glass score that provided the right amount of eerie atmosphere. aside from the direction, the story itself was creepy. it fed on that innate fear of being falsely accused and having things spiral out of control as a result of an unstable character you may or may not have wronged in the past (ala cape fear). depp and turturro are both very good.

Watched in theater