Podcast (theatrical-movie-review-podcast): Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: RSS
CAPE FEAR SERIES REVIEW
Based on John D. MacDonald’s 1957 novel The Executioners, and later adapted for the big screen in 1962 and 1991, Cape Fear introduced audiences to one of cinema’s most memorable monsters, Max Cady, a vengeful ex-con terrorizing the innocent Bowden family. Both the source novel and the original film were lean thrillers with clear delinations of good and evil, but the 1991 version amped up the moral ambiguity, the violence, and the run time. Not to be outdone, this new miniseries from Apple TV is the most lurid, brutal iteration of Cape Fear yet, and it’s definitely the longest, too, with 10 episodes that update the story for the modern age. This Max Cady is the subject of true crime podcasts, and has a large online following, and he seems as intent on cancelling the Bowdens as he does on killing them. Max Cady has previously been played by Robert Mitchum and Robert DeNiro, so whoever took over the role had very large shoes to fill. Fortunately, Javier Bardem is more than up to the task. In this latest version, Anna Bowden (Amy Adams) was Cady’s court appointed defense lawyer, while Tom Bowden was the prosecutor. Shortly after the case ended with a guilty verdict for Max, Anna and Tom got married and started a family. 17 years later Cady still holds a grudge against them, convinced that the Bowdens conspired to get him locked up for a crime he didn’t commit. Now that he’s out of prison, Cady will stop at nothing to publicly expose and humiliate them, while tearing apart their family and their seemingly perfect lives. This miniseries has great actors, a solid premise, a sizable budget, and lots of talent on either side of the camera, but was that enough to win over our reviewers? Acting as judge, jury, and executioners, Kate, Eoin, and Marco have examined the evidence, and are ready to issue their verdict. Listen to their review to find out whether Cape Fear is innocent of all charges or guilty of wasting the audience’s time.
CREATED BY: Nick Antosca
STARRING: Javier Bardem, Amy Adams, Patrick Wilson, Joe Anders, Lily Collias, CCH Pounder, Malia Pyles, Jamie Hector, Anna Baryshnikov, Dot Cloud, Eric Mendenhall, Paul Schneider, Miles Mussenden, Margarita Levieva, Ron Perlman, Juliette Lewis, Geneva Carr, Jullian Dulce Vida, Lynn Wanlass, Kathleen Scott Paul, Felisha Terrell, Paul Calderón, Wesley Strick, Roberto Sanchez, Jay Huguley, Ted Levine, Ethan Embry, Wynn Everett, Sunny Mabrey, Francesca Scorsese, Mike Pniewski, Judd Lormand, Claire Bronson, Peter Macon, Martha Millan, Clayton Farris, Patrick Fischler, Max Mattern, Teresa L. Graves, Jill Larson
YOUR REVIEWERS
Marco Noyola (Digital Noise, Highly Suspect Reviews, Screener Squad, Audio Editor)
By day, Marco is a mild-mannered office worker, but by night he is a mild-mannered movie watcher. He does other mild-mannered stuff too.
“I’m not a film critic. I just play one on the Internet.”
Kate Chambers (Highly Suspect Reviews, Screener Squad)
Kate is a certified horror fiend and Horse Girl™. Her name isn’t short for anything. A native Austinite, she graduated with a BFA in Film Production from the University of Colorado Boulder then returned to the Lone Star State to make her home amid the cinephiles of the Alamo Drafthouse and the Austin Film Society. In her spare time, you can find her either down at the barn with her noble steed Jazz, watching as many movies as possible (often at work), cuddling with her pair of black cats and writing horror scripts, or nursing a beer in any available body of water… or doing Duolingo, where she’s currently on a 1000+ day streak.
Eoin Daly
Born and raised in Dublin Ireland, Eoin currently lives in London and has been an avid film lover from as far back as they can remember. Eoin enjoys going to the cinema weekly regardless of the film: new, old, or the most random title. They have no preconceived notions when taking in a new film. They tend to look for the good in any film they watch and will always love the art form. They are a major fan of actress-led cinema and will never apologize for this one film bias.
You can subscribe to the Highly Suspect Reviews and Screener Squad series of podcasts on iTunes, Spotify, and more, or use our RSS feed on whatever podcast service you use: https://oneofus.net/feed/theatrical-movie-review-podcast/ and please leave us a review!
Please think about becoming a paid subscriber to Oneofus.net, support our huge network of shows, and get access to tons of bonus shows and videos in our forums! We cannot keep this site going without support from our listeners. For added information about being a subscriber, the benefits, and the forums, please go here.
