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Secret Window (2004)

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67 out of 89 people found the following comment useful :-
A movie for writers, by writers, about writing., 22. September 2005

Author: Cycklops von United States

"The only thing that matters is the ending. It's the most important part of the story. And this one, is very good." This line, from the short story by Stephen King, and repeated with such muted insanity by Johnny Depp, is Secret Window in a nutshell.

A lot of people didn't enjoy this movie, because the ending is clichéd and predictable, but I loved the rest of it because of it's true subject matter.

The movie is about writing and the insanity of writers. For those of you unfamiliar with the process...imagine spending months or even years of your life working on a painting that you yourself can never see. You become so close to what you create that you have no idea if it's any good, and the growing doubt of your own ability along with the fear of wasting so much time and effort will most definitely have you pulling your hair out.

That's what Secret Window captures so perfectly. It's obvious Stephen King knows exactly what's going on in Mort Rainey's mind, and Koepp, a successful and busy screenwriter, probably connected with the material for the same reason.

Early in the movie, Mort walks around his house on a typical day when he's working on his latest novel. He does nothing. Sleeps. Talks to his dog. Then finally sits down at the typewriter and writes a single paragraph. He then reads it, realizes it's bad writing, and deletes it. But he does it with a SMILE. And he goes back to sleep happy, because he DID something on that day.

That's the world that Mort Rainey, as a serious writer, lives in. Completely obsessed with trying to paint a blind masterpiece, and scared to death of failure. So you can imagine that when Mort finally completes something that he's proud of, it goes down as one of the great days in his otherwise nervous and stressful existence.

And King has magnified the situation, by stripping our writer of everything else that might make him happy. Mort's personal life is a complete mess. His wife has left him for another man (a subplot staged with perfect awkward bitterness), he has no friends and is living alone in a cabin in the woods. So Mort is a writer and nothing else. The only thing he has left is the hope of his latest novel. And that naturally takes all his effort and gives him nothing but stress and doubt in return. So the only thing that can possibly be keeping him going is his previous work. The satisfaction that comes from having climbed the mountain in the past and created something that truly makes him proud.

And THAT is when the horror begins. Our villain appears, and accuses Mort of plagiarizing one of his previous stories. (If you've followed my description to this point, your stomach should turn a cartwheel at this moment.) Shooter threatens Mort's life, and Mort is left trying to find an original copy of the story to prove to his stalker (and perhaps himself) that he does have a shred of value as a human being.

And of course, as the story goes on...we get a full exploration of the affects of immersing yourself in a fictional world. It goes on to show the paranoia and madness that can come from men when they don't have the steady influence of reality to keep them anchored.

The ending of the story is very predictable and cliché, but I can forgive it, because it is a total natural for this material. Secret Window is a perfect examination of the inner madness that exists in people who create subjective art for a living. Depp's performance is pitch perfect, and people who understand the situation will most likely love this.

If you aren't, however, you won't be able to identify.

7.5/10

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75 out of 118 people found the following comment useful :-
More to appreciate than some people realize., 8. Juni 2005

Author: rjsuno von California

This is one of the few movies that you will either love or hate. There is no middle ground. The people that have slammed this movie must not have understood a lot of the symbolism. Seriously, some of it is obvious but a lot of it would require you listen to the Director's commentary to catch.

While aspects of the story are predictable, you will never see the last couple minutes coming. Koepp made a film that HE believed in, with a finale that may not sit well with the general public. For this, I applaud him.

As I've noted on the message board, Koepp borrowed a page from Hitchcock's book and relied on our imagination to fill in the gaps during the violent sequences. Some of it is shown but certainly not all. Without question this film tested the limits of the PG-13 rating but Koepp did not take the easy way out and turn this film into an R-rated gore fest. This film proves that PG-13 films can be gritty and poignant.

Depp's performance is amazing, as can be expected. The cinematography is awesome. Watch this film with an open mind, taking to heart each character's motivations.

If you've already seen the film I would strongly suggest you watch the Featurettes and listen to the Director's commentary on the DVD. You may find this to be quite an eye opener.

My Score: 8/10 stars

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31 out of 45 people found the following comment useful :-
Relationship Crisis or One Nasty Divorce Story., 25. März 2005

Author: nycritic

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

The second novella to be adapted from the Stephen King compilation "Four Past Midnight," SECRET WINDOW is one of King's adapted stories that while not being great or especially memorable, somehow manages to tell its premise quite chillingly while maintaining itself closer to B-movie status and (equally) true to its dark core.

The story is actually quite familiar ground: Stephen King commented that while MISERY depicted a writer being held prisoner by a demented ex-nurse and rabid fan who does unspeakable things to him to ensure her favorite character, Misery Chastain, lives on, and THE DARK HALF introduces a Twilight Zone-ish take on a split personality where another author is tormented by a dangerous man, SECRET WINDOW blends both into what results in "the perfect ending" to the missing pages of an apparently plagiarized story. And while the plot is clearly clichéd within every inch of its life, director David Koepp manages to generate some good suspense which allows us to care for this poor chap Mort Rainey (underplayed by Johnny Depp who by doing so makes his character totally human) and fear the rage just underneath John Shooter (a creepy John Turturro), all the while not quite giving us everything in black and white so as to suddenly introduce a left-field turn of events. As a matter of fact, once the "twist" arrives, it seems plausible and even expected, but is even more chilling in the inexorability in which it fulfills itself.

One thing that works in Stephen King's books are his constant uses of internal dialogues which here is finally brought into a great forefront by splitting Rainey into two separate entities and having them talk to each other in a crucial scene. This only intensifies the notion that Rainey is unraveling as a person and will more than likely fall prey to the darkness that seems to be closing in. It's a technique which isn't used often when adapting his novels to movies and which tends to work against suspense, and finally, someone got it right. It never feels too long a movie even though it runs just shy of an hour and three quarters, and this is due to the deft direction. Good suspense, great psychological horror that comes through an incredibly tired plot, and that's good film-making.

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41 out of 69 people found the following comment useful :-
Johnny Depp's Yummy but I'd like to spit out the movie., 27. Dezember 2004

Author: Archmagus_Majere von United States

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Johnny Depp is superb! He portray's his character, a somewhat eccentric, isolated writer, in his typically quirky manner. I enjoyed watching the movie just to see what he'd say or do next. I got the impression he was ad-libbing his monologues and it brought a smile to my face. The movie itself did little for me, however. It was pretty straight-forward through most of it, nothing terrific, nothing unexpected. Man shows up at door claiming Mort (Depp's character) plagiarized him. The man turns out to be a psycho, or so we think. By the way, why does the family pet always get killed? I mean, ALWAYS! In this one, it's the dog. Things get a little more interesting when Mort starts thinking that maybe his estranged wife's new boyfriend might be behind everything, that he might have sent this psycho after Mort in the hopes of speeding up the divorce but things have gotten out of control. Mort even confronts the boyfriend about it. Their conversation does not fit into the twist near the end of the movie, however. In fact, nothing fits in to the twist. It turns out that this psycho doesn't exist, it's Mort himself that has been doing everything to himself. He's mad. He killed his own dog. He killed his own neighbor, though he thought the stalker had killed him because he had seen the two of them together. Turns out the neighbor only saw Mort arguing with himself. Mort killed the detective he hired to intimidate the stalker. Okay, the twist was a good idea but it happened so abruptly that you were tempted to hit rewind to see if you missed something. And it really contradicted the conversation Mort had with the boyfriend who had admitted that things were out of his control. Or, who knows, maybe that conversation never took place either. Maybe Mort was standing at the gas station talking to himself. Okay, an interesting movie with an interesting twist if the twist had been integrated better, if clues had been given that you could later say, oh I should have seen that coming, I should have caught that. But there was no indication and so it seemed fabricated. I don't think the move will hurt Depp's reputation, however. He did a terrific acting job and, okay, I'm tempted to play a couple of parts again just to hear his quirky little jibes at himself and his wife and the boyfriend.. Glad I sat through it but I've seen better.

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39 out of 67 people found the following comment useful :-
Depp saves the day, 23. Juni 2005

Author: rbverhoef (rbverhoef@hotmail.com) von The Hague, Netherlands

Director David Koepp has written some nice screenplays ('Carlito's Way', 'Panic Room') and I liked his 'Stir of Echoes'. Here he comes with a thriller based on a Stephen King novel that is not very good but has some qualities. The best quality here is another terrific performance from Johnny Depp. No matter what he does, he succeeds in making a film entertaining even when it should not be.

Depp is a writer named Mort Rainey, recently divorced because his wife (Maria Bello) cheated on him. Now he lives in a cottage near a lake, alone, writing his new book. One day a man rings his bell telling Rainey he has stolen one of his stories. Rainy is unaware of this fact and he can prove it; a magazine printed his short story a couple of years before the man, who is named John Shooter (John Turturro), claims he has written his version. Shooter wants to see this magazine before he believes it, causing quite some trouble in the meanwhile.

This is a film with a secret, something we understand pretty soon. I will not reveal it, but most people will come up with an idea and find out they are right. Even though it has a secret it plays too much like a lot of thrillers we have already seen. Interesting performances (Bello is pretty good as the wive too) and some dry humor does not change that. There is one other thing I liked. Koepp payed some good attention to what David Fincher did with his 'Panic Room' screenplay, especially with the camera. There are some great shots here and together with Depp they make sure 'Secret Window' is not wasted.

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23 out of 37 people found the following comment useful :-
Depp & Turturro: Now There's A Pair!, 21. Juli 2006

Author: ccthemovieman-1 von Lockport, NY, United States

I liked this film but never bought it, even previously-viewed which I usually do if I enjoy a film and plan on seeing it multiple times. Thus, I guess what I'm saying is the film is entertaining but not that great to run out and purchase. Rent it, first, and see what you think.

People who are in love with Johnny Depp will buy it, regardless. Depp, as usual, is interesting and plays a strange character. His character, "Mort Rainey," and the film in general are interesting right from the get-go up to the surprise ending.

Speaking of guys who play wackos, John Turturro does that in here, too. He plays a very creepy character. That was good casting, having those two guys in the same film! Also in here are Maria Bello, Timothy Hutton and Charles S. Dutton.

I wonder if I did go back and watch this several times, if I would (as I think I would) find some gaping holes in the story. Perhaps it's better just to play dumb and enjoy the movie and not worry about its credibility.

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39 out of 69 people found the following comment useful :-
Nothing special but made enjoyable by a fun(ny) performance by Depp and capable direction, 22. Juli 2004
Author: MovieAddict2008 von UK

"Secret Window" is another one of those eerie thrillers where danger lurks within the shadows. We can almost feel it, and so can the hero, as he walks through his house, armed with a weapon, ready to defend himself at all costs. He hears a noise from somewhere behind him, spins around, and suddenly realizes it was just his imagination. He sighs, puts down the weapon, turns around, and BOO! There's the bad guy, who has somehow managed to enter the locked home and avoid being detected. What if, I wonder, one of these times, the bad guy was seen as he entered? What if the Fisherman from "I Know What You Did Last Summer" had been spotted, and confronted, by one of the teenagers? What if Norman Bates' "Mother" had been exposed from the start? Then there presumably would be no movie, of course.

Although we know where "Secret Window" is headed quite early on, David Koepp (writer of "Panic Room" and director of the well-made "Stir of Echoes") manages to sustain the audience's interest through a series of suspenseful camera shots. Some are inventive, while others are merely fun to watch because we can guess where Koepp got his inspiration.

Mort Rainey (Johnny Depp) is a successful author who lives up north with his beloved dog and a laptop. He apparently abandons his social life, never gets a haircut, and wears quite silly-looking glasses. He has a sarcastic personality and presumably does not get along very well with the local residents, who generally keep to themselves anyway.

Mort's life is changed forever when a strange man named John Shooter (John Turturro) shows up at his doorstep claiming that Mort has "stolen" his story. Mort is handed a dirty manuscript. Within the pages are passages literally identical to those from Mort's own book, "Secret Window," published in 1994, three years before John claims he wrote his. "Secret Window," the novel, is about a man whose wife cheats on him. Fueled by rage, the fictional character murders his own wife and buries her in the "secret garden" located outside of the "secret window" of their home.

It is said that art imitates life, and through a series of flashbacks we learn that Mort's novel bears an eerie similarity to his own problems -- "six months ago" his wife (Maria Bello) had an affair with Ted (Timothy Hutton). Mort assumes that John Shooter has some sort of connection to his past, and hires a detective (Charles S. Dutton) to find the mysterious man, who always seems to appear out of nowhere when Mort is alone.

Depp's performance is the highlight of the film -- if Depp is imitating Stephen King (the author of the short story "Secret Window" is based on), he succeeds. Barely recognizable hidden underneath a layer of geeky clothing and a generally disheveled appearance, Depp once again proves that he can tackle any sort of role as an actor -- from a scared teenager who has to stay up ("A Nightmare on Elm Street") to a Hunter S. Thompson lookalike ("Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas").

Koepp, who wrote the screenplay for the film, realizes that the key to the story is Depp's performance wisely allows his primary actor to let loose. Meanwhile the co-stars all deliver fine, convincing performances and although the grand finale is a bit of a let-down, and terribly predictable, the movie's style is interesting. "Secret Window" is better than most in its genre, although by no means is it a masterpiece of any sort. Just an enjoyable Friday/Saturday night matinée, and worthy of recommendation if you're not looking for anything special.

I could criticize the "twist" of the movie and say that it has become one of the most overused solutions to Hollywood film thriller/mysteries of the past decade, but I won't spoil it, and let you decide for yourself whether it does the story justice.

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14 out of 21 people found the following comment useful :-
Fantastic!, 9. März 2005

Author: chantellecasey von Australia

I have always wanted to see Secret Window; when a movie has such varied and mixed reviews it is always intriguing to see the movie itself and find out which side of the line you sit on. I recently viewed Secret Window with a friend from the safety of my own home. It's only a short movie, which in itself has appeal, and if it were any longer the suspense element would have most definitely fizzled away. The first hour or so nothing much happens, the story line just plods along and you wait and watch to look for anything you have missed and wonder whether the story is going to go anywhere. The first portion of the movie is not a complete failure, however, as Johnny Depp once again shines in his role and keeps the viewer somewhat interested. Once the twist kicks in, the movie takes the viewer to a whole new level. My friend and I were simply intrigued in horror. It simply is brilliant and I would recommend this to anyone who loves being taken on a journey through their imagination.

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25 out of 45 people found the following comment useful :-
Too obvious for words unless you are daft, 11. Juli 2004
Author: Rosalind Mercer von United Kingdom

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

I make no excuse for the fact that whatever Johnny Depp does I rate highly. He has amazing depth of character acting and each role he has ever played is different and never type cast it's therefore all the more disastrous that he should lend himself to such a predictable and very obvious narrative, that said perhaps he is the film's saving grace. Within the first quarter of an hour or so it is quite clear exactly what is happening because there are so many clues right in front of your very eyes, also if you are familiar with both the work of Stephen King and this genre of film you will guess the ending in its entirety. The opening paragraph of the book 'Secret Window'that John Shooter accuses Mort of plagiarising is a giveaway, the location of the cabin is another clue and although the films tries to build up to a climax any shock is totally eroded away by literally stacks of 'in your face' scenes and one liners. When Mort tells his minder friend that he has a witness who waved to him from his truck if you listen to what that witness actually said you will know immediately how this will all end and thus for any moderately bright person the film ends right there. All this is a great pity because the film could have been so much better given the basic premise and the acting skills of Depp. As a avid film fan of all genre I am getting mighty sick of the same stuff being churned out again and again and AGAIN. It is about time that we had some originality coming out of Hollywood. The problem is that when something as good as say Fight Club or The Sixth Sense provide us with such original and excellent endings other movie makers think that it is always a money spinner just to regurgitate the same ideas but with different actors.

To those of you who have no yet seen this film by all means give it a go if only to just admire the work of Depp but I guess you will feel somewhat cheated by feeling you have been here before.

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16 out of 28 people found the following comment useful :-
Great!, 17. April 2006

Author: penguin847 von United States

This is based on the Stephen King short story called "Secret Window, Secret Garden". It is about Mort Rainey, a mystery writer who had recently divorced his wife because she has cheated on him. He is struggling with the loss and lives in a cabin on lake with his beloved dog. The movie begins with him taking a nap (he does that a lot in this movie) when he hears a knock on the door, at the door there is a man blaming him of plagiarism. He soon finds out that this man,John Shooter, is very serious about the story situation, he find s his beloved dog dead, along with a few other people. Who is this John Shooter? Does he even exist? Is Mort just plain crazy? Find the answer to all of these questions in this drama/thriller. The violence in this film is scarce but pretty graphic. The language is constant, but since it is PG-13 there is only one use of the F-word, with many used of the S-word. The sexual content is the basis of the movie. Overall i love this movie and recommend it to anyone, though some may find it boring.

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