CAPE FEAR was remade by Martin Scorsese in 1991, and not surprisingly, much of the sex and violence merely suggested in the original was presented more graphically in the new version. For my taste, the original version is fearsome enough. An grossly evil ex-con (Robert Mitchum) seeks revenge on the attorney (Gregory Peck) who convicted him. His malevolent stalking campaign rapidly escalates from innuendo to threats to murder and attempted rape. The final confrontation between Peck and Mitchum near the houseboat, on which Peck has sequestered his pretty wife (Polly Bergen) and nubile teenaged daughter, are as harrowing today as 30 years ago, notwithstanding Scorsese's efforts to top it. (Trivia note: Peck and Mitchum both had cameos in the remake that starred Robert DeNiro in Mitchum's part and Nick Nolte in Peck's, but with reversed personality traits.)
