Amazon.co.uk Review
The only real problem with Stir of Echoes has nothing to do with the movie itself, but with unlucky coincidence. Adapted from a Richard Matheson novel, this film arrived around the same time as The Sixth Sense. Surface similarities made it suffer by cursory comparison and the competing film's phenomenal success. It's a pity, because this one features one of Kevin Bacon's best performances, in a psychological thriller that makes a lot more right moves than wrong ones.
Bacon plays a blue-collar guy who laments his ordinary life, only to learn, when his sister-in-law (Ileanna Douglas) hypnotizes him, that he is a "receiver" capable of seeing spirits and split-second glimpses of past and future events. It's a torturous gift to have--especially since his friendly Chicago neighbourhood possesses a dark secret--and Bacon plays the role with an appropriate mixture of obsession and internalised torment. Similarity to The Sixth Sense applies only to the basic premise and the character of Bacon's young son. Otherwise, this is more of a hard-edged journey of self-discovery, marital crisis, and recovery, with Bacon's wife (played by the highly underrated Kathryn Erbe) involved in an underdeveloped sub-plot about a group of people who share Bacon's gift as paranormal "receivers". Furthering his career as a writer-director of intelligent thrillers, David Koepp makes a few mis-steps in pacing and thematic overkill, but overall Stir of Echoes is a sharp, sensitive thriller that unfolds to reveal a dramatically satisfying solution to its mystery. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com
Amazon.co.uk Review
The only real problem with Stir of Echoes has nothing to do with the movie itself, but with unlucky coincidence. Adapted from a Richard Matheson novel, this film arrived around the same time as The Sixth Sense. Surface similarities made it suffer by cursory comparison and the competing film's phenomenal success. It's a pity, because this one features one of Kevin Bacon's best performances, in a psychological thriller that makes a lot more right moves than wrong ones.
Bacon plays a blue-collar guy who laments his ordinary life, only to learn, when his sister-in-law (Ileanna Douglas) hypnotizes him, that he is a "receiver" capable of seeing spirits and split-second glimpses of past and future events. It's a torturous gift to have--especially since his friendly Chicago neighbourhood possesses a dark secret--and Bacon plays the role with an appropriate mixture of obsession and internalised torment. Similarity to The Sixth Sense applies only to the basic premise and the character of Bacon's young son. Otherwise, this is more of a hard-edged journey of self-discovery, marital crisis, and recovery, with Bacon's wife (played by the highly underrated Kathryn Erbe) involved in an underdeveloped sub-plot about a group of people who share Bacon's gift as paranormal "receivers". Furthering his career as a writer-director of intelligent thrillers, David Koepp makes a few mis-steps in pacing and thematic overkill, but overall Stir of Echoes is a sharp, sensitive thriller that unfolds to reveal a dramatically satisfying solution to its mystery. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com
Customer Reviews:
Freaky!!!.......2008-02-04
This film was really enjoyable!!! I'm not a fan of obvious gore and this does subtly with all the "freaky" stuff... keep an eye out for the nail breaking bit - it is gross but really effective. Good plot and Kevin Bacon does single-minded obsession very well! Plenty of twists and turns to keep you interested!!
A Supernatural Thriller.......2007-10-05
This movie is based on the book of the same name written by Richard Matheson. Kevin Bacon plays a fairly typical working-class guy living in Chicago with his wife and his son. One night at a party, he gets into a lively discussion with his sister-in-law, who believes in psychic communication and the power of hypnosis. He challenges her to hypnotize him, and she plants in him a post-hypnotic suggestion to be more open-minded. But the results aren't quite what either of them expected; he sees the spirit of a girl from the neighborhood that disappeared months ago, as does his son.
Far preferable to The Sixth Sense.......2007-08-19
Coming out less than a year later, this movie could hardly be accused of copying the Sixth Sense, but its theme is very similar, even if its storyline is quite different. Neither movie is really my cup of tea, as I'm not that keen on formula movies, or the moralising these modern kind of films are now prone to, or the feyness that pervaded both films. However I easily recommend this one out of the two. This film put its story across much more smoothly than the former movie, is more of a thriller, was less drawn out and didn't rely so heavily on its similar ending. In other words, it seems a more honest film. It was also a better story and did have a better message: If you murder people, don't think your respected background and reputation are going to be enough to see you get away with it, even if to the police, you are above suspicion. A neatly made film.
An excellent 'Supernatural' movie.......2007-08-11
I love movies similar to the 6th sense, the gift, the hole, or anything to do with clarivoyants or mediums. This movie is one of my favourites and is based on Kevin Bacon being hypnotised at the beggining of the film, and from there the story slowly unravels and will keep you guessing till the very end. Its amazing how it all comes together, I have probably watched this movie 10 times over the past 5 years. Watch it!
I WAS PLEASENTLY SURPRISED BY THIS MOVIE.......2007-08-09
Stir of Echoes is a solid movie with a suspenseful and engaging plot. But what stood out for me in particular was the believability of the characters...they come across as real people, and they are what makes the movie in my opinion. A movie's just a movie without characters that the audience sympathizes with, after all. It's fun to just watch everybody on the screen, and everybody involved turned in a great performance. Kevin Bacon and Kathryn Erbe's Tom and Maggie seem like a genuine couple in their late 20's to early 30's that you would actually know out in the world who still have their hip edge. What happens when working class people who are cool and look good "grow up" and have a family? Tom and Maggie would be it. They still cuss. They still dress cool. They still have an edge. They just happen to be married with a kid. ;) You don't see that too often in movies. (in fact, I wanted Maggie's wardrobe :D The little black leather jacket, her shirts, choker necklaces and silver rings covering her fingers, she's got that feminine 'rocker chick' look to her, I love it) And Illeana Douglas' Lisa, the sister of Maggie, is someone we'd all like to have around us in life, the hip psychic mystic who does readings and counsels clients in her apartment while smoking "fatties." :D And Zachary David Cope as Jake, the ("indigo child") boy with psychic abilities, by far steals the show. What a little cutie, playing a character wise beyond his six years. When it comes to the characters in this movie it's all in the small details - the way conversation dialogue bounces back and forth, it's all very realistic, like real people. We've all KNOWN people like these characters, and may even see ourselves and our relationships in them. All the leads even have the proper Chicago accent too...another plus. Often times, movies don't even bother to have their lead roles talk in the regional accent of wherever the film takes place.
As far as the plot itself goes, it's been explained in every review so far. (VERY MINOR SPOILERS TO FOLLOW.) But in summary, Tom and Maggie are a working class couple in a Chicago neighborhood who attend a party one night at a neighbor's house, and where Tom lets himself be hypnotized by Maggie's sister Lisa. He's a closed minded skeptic who more or less dares Lisa to "try" to hypnotize him. She begins walking him through the hypnotic cues, and the next thing he knows it's scene skip, and he's sitting up in the chair gasping, looking like he's been crying with everybody breathlessly circled around him, watching him. What happened in between? Apparently he went under like a lead weight....and while there, it turns out Lisa implanted a post hypnotic suggestion for him to be more "open minded" after he wakes, to be receptive to everything around him, like an open door.
An open door indeed. Next thing Tom knows, he's having hallucinations of feeling like he's being attacked, of having his tooth fall out, then he sees a girl appear and then disappear on his livingroom couch, starts chugging orange juice like there's no tomorrow, and is haunted by a mystery song riff that he can't get out of his head. Mystified by what it all means, Tom goes back about his working class life as a utility lineman, while we the viewer are learning that Jake apparently has some psychic abilities of his own. While this phenomenon is all new to Tom, and he reacts with amped up agitation about it, Jake on the other hand is calm and collected about it. He knows who he is and what he can do, and understands that it scares the grownups. It soon becomes apparent that a missing girl from the neighborhood named Samantha Kozak - whom Jake can see and even talks to - is at the root of Tom's newfound psychic and paranormal occurrences, and it's up to Tom to figure out why she's haunting his house, and what happened to her.
(On a side note, when I just re-watched this movie I realized with a smile that there was a great line with a clever double meaning - Following the scene where Tom has his weird hallucinations and sees the mystery girl on his couch in the middle of the night, he's heading back up to bed when he encounters his son Jake on the stairs. Jake looks down the stairs at him and says with smiling enthusiasm, "You're awake now, Daddy!" "Awake now" as in, up during the middle of the night when he wouldn't normally be....but "awake now" also as in, psychically awake now, for the first time in his life. :) Because right after saying that, Jake comes down the steps and stands next to his dad, smiling, touching the side of his head and says,"Don't be afraid of it Daddy." So, Jake definitely can see that his dad is "awake" now. So that was awesome, I love it.)
"Stir of Echoes" has of course been compared to "The Sixth Sense," and was unfortunately overshadowed being that it came out during the same year. But other than the fact that both movies feature a young boy from a blue collar background who can see ghosts, there's nothing else in common between both movies. In fact, Jake/Zachary David Cope was FAR more enjoyable to watch than Haley Joel Osmet. It's just a better performance, hands down, and I was surprised to see that ZDC never went on to film anything else after this movie!
"Stir of Echoes" is a good movie in its own right, an engaging and suspenseful mystery that tackles the subject of psychic powers with realistic, enjoyable characters, and is well worth the rent.
Amazon.co.uk Review
The only real problem with Stir of Echoes has nothing to do with the movie itself, but with unlucky coincidence. Adapted from a Richard Matheson novel, this film arrived around the same time as The Sixth Sense. Surface similarities made it suffer by cursory comparison and the competing film's phenomenal success. It's a pity, because this one features one of Kevin Bacon's best performances, in a psychological thriller that makes a lot more right moves than wrong ones.
Bacon plays a blue-collar guy who laments his ordinary life, only to learn, when his sister-in-law (Ileanna Douglas) hypnotizes him, that he is a "receiver" capable of seeing spirits and split-second glimpses of past and future events. It's a torturous gift to have--especially since his friendly Chicago neighbourhood possesses a dark secret--and Bacon plays the role with an appropriate mixture of obsession and internalised torment. Similarity to The Sixth Sense applies only to the basic premise and the character of Bacon's young son. Otherwise, this is more of a hard-edged journey of self-discovery, marital crisis, and recovery, with Bacon's wife (played by the highly underrated Kathryn Erbe) involved in an underdeveloped sub-plot about a group of people who share Bacon's gift as paranormal "receivers". Furthering his career as a writer-director of intelligent thrillers, David Koepp makes a few mis-steps in pacing and thematic overkill, but overall Stir of Echoes is a sharp, sensitive thriller that unfolds to reveal a dramatically satisfying solution to its mystery. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com
Customer Reviews:
Freaky!!!.......2008-02-04
This film was really enjoyable!!! I'm not a fan of obvious gore and this does subtly with all the "freaky" stuff... keep an eye out for the nail breaking bit - it is gross but really effective. Good plot and Kevin Bacon does single-minded obsession very well! Plenty of twists and turns to keep you interested!!
A Supernatural Thriller.......2007-10-05
This movie is based on the book of the same name written by Richard Matheson. Kevin Bacon plays a fairly typical working-class guy living in Chicago with his wife and his son. One night at a party, he gets into a lively discussion with his sister-in-law, who believes in psychic communication and the power of hypnosis. He challenges her to hypnotize him, and she plants in him a post-hypnotic suggestion to be more open-minded. But the results aren't quite what either of them expected; he sees the spirit of a girl from the neighborhood that disappeared months ago, as does his son.
Far preferable to The Sixth Sense.......2007-08-19
Coming out less than a year later, this movie could hardly be accused of copying the Sixth Sense, but its theme is very similar, even if its storyline is quite different. Neither movie is really my cup of tea, as I'm not that keen on formula movies, or the moralising these modern kind of films are now prone to, or the feyness that pervaded both films. However I easily recommend this one out of the two. This film put its story across much more smoothly than the former movie, is more of a thriller, was less drawn out and didn't rely so heavily on its similar ending. In other words, it seems a more honest film. It was also a better story and did have a better message: If you murder people, don't think your respected background and reputation are going to be enough to see you get away with it, even if to the police, you are above suspicion. A neatly made film.
An excellent 'Supernatural' movie.......2007-08-11
I love movies similar to the 6th sense, the gift, the hole, or anything to do with clarivoyants or mediums. This movie is one of my favourites and is based on Kevin Bacon being hypnotised at the beggining of the film, and from there the story slowly unravels and will keep you guessing till the very end. Its amazing how it all comes together, I have probably watched this movie 10 times over the past 5 years. Watch it!
I WAS PLEASENTLY SURPRISED BY THIS MOVIE.......2007-08-09
Stir of Echoes is a solid movie with a suspenseful and engaging plot. But what stood out for me in particular was the believability of the characters...they come across as real people, and they are what makes the movie in my opinion. A movie's just a movie without characters that the audience sympathizes with, after all. It's fun to just watch everybody on the screen, and everybody involved turned in a great performance. Kevin Bacon and Kathryn Erbe's Tom and Maggie seem like a genuine couple in their late 20's to early 30's that you would actually know out in the world who still have their hip edge. What happens when working class people who are cool and look good "grow up" and have a family? Tom and Maggie would be it. They still cuss. They still dress cool. They still have an edge. They just happen to be married with a kid. ;) You don't see that too often in movies. (in fact, I wanted Maggie's wardrobe :D The little black leather jacket, her shirts, choker necklaces and silver rings covering her fingers, she's got that feminine 'rocker chick' look to her, I love it) And Illeana Douglas' Lisa, the sister of Maggie, is someone we'd all like to have around us in life, the hip psychic mystic who does readings and counsels clients in her apartment while smoking "fatties." :D And Zachary David Cope as Jake, the ("indigo child") boy with psychic abilities, by far steals the show. What a little cutie, playing a character wise beyond his six years. When it comes to the characters in this movie it's all in the small details - the way conversation dialogue bounces back and forth, it's all very realistic, like real people. We've all KNOWN people like these characters, and may even see ourselves and our relationships in them. All the leads even have the proper Chicago accent too...another plus. Often times, movies don't even bother to have their lead roles talk in the regional accent of wherever the film takes place.
As far as the plot itself goes, it's been explained in every review so far. (VERY MINOR SPOILERS TO FOLLOW.) But in summary, Tom and Maggie are a working class couple in a Chicago neighborhood who attend a party one night at a neighbor's house, and where Tom lets himself be hypnotized by Maggie's sister Lisa. He's a closed minded skeptic who more or less dares Lisa to "try" to hypnotize him. She begins walking him through the hypnotic cues, and the next thing he knows it's scene skip, and he's sitting up in the chair gasping, looking like he's been crying with everybody breathlessly circled around him, watching him. What happened in between? Apparently he went under like a lead weight....and while there, it turns out Lisa implanted a post hypnotic suggestion for him to be more "open minded" after he wakes, to be receptive to everything around him, like an open door.
An open door indeed. Next thing Tom knows, he's having hallucinations of feeling like he's being attacked, of having his tooth fall out, then he sees a girl appear and then disappear on his livingroom couch, starts chugging orange juice like there's no tomorrow, and is haunted by a mystery song riff that he can't get out of his head. Mystified by what it all means, Tom goes back about his working class life as a utility lineman, while we the viewer are learning that Jake apparently has some psychic abilities of his own. While this phenomenon is all new to Tom, and he reacts with amped up agitation about it, Jake on the other hand is calm and collected about it. He knows who he is and what he can do, and understands that it scares the grownups. It soon becomes apparent that a missing girl from the neighborhood named Samantha Kozak - whom Jake can see and even talks to - is at the root of Tom's newfound psychic and paranormal occurrences, and it's up to Tom to figure out why she's haunting his house, and what happened to her.
(On a side note, when I just re-watched this movie I realized with a smile that there was a great line with a clever double meaning - Following the scene where Tom has his weird hallucinations and sees the mystery girl on his couch in the middle of the night, he's heading back up to bed when he encounters his son Jake on the stairs. Jake looks down the stairs at him and says with smiling enthusiasm, "You're awake now, Daddy!" "Awake now" as in, up during the middle of the night when he wouldn't normally be....but "awake now" also as in, psychically awake now, for the first time in his life. :) Because right after saying that, Jake comes down the steps and stands next to his dad, smiling, touching the side of his head and says,"Don't be afraid of it Daddy." So, Jake definitely can see that his dad is "awake" now. So that was awesome, I love it.)
"Stir of Echoes" has of course been compared to "The Sixth Sense," and was unfortunately overshadowed being that it came out during the same year. But other than the fact that both movies feature a young boy from a blue collar background who can see ghosts, there's nothing else in common between both movies. In fact, Jake/Zachary David Cope was FAR more enjoyable to watch than Haley Joel Osmet. It's just a better performance, hands down, and I was surprised to see that ZDC never went on to film anything else after this movie!
"Stir of Echoes" is a good movie in its own right, an engaging and suspenseful mystery that tackles the subject of psychic powers with realistic, enjoyable characters, and is well worth the rent.
Amazon.co.uk Review
The only real problem with Stir of Echoes has nothing to do with the movie itself, but with unlucky coincidence. Adapted from a Richard Matheson novel, this film arrived around the same time as The Sixth Sense. Surface similarities made it suffer by cursory comparison and the competing film's phenomenal success. It's a pity, because this one features one of Kevin Bacon's best performances, in a psychological thriller that makes a lot more right moves than wrong ones.
Bacon plays a blue-collar guy who laments his ordinary life, only to learn, when his sister-in-law (Ileanna Douglas) hypnotizes him, that he is a "receiver" capable of seeing spirits and split-second glimpses of past and future events. It's a torturous gift to have--especially since his friendly Chicago neighbourhood possesses a dark secret--and Bacon plays the role with an appropriate mixture of obsession and internalised torment. Similarity to The Sixth Sense applies only to the basic premise and the character of Bacon's young son. Otherwise, this is more of a hard-edged journey of self-discovery, marital crisis, and recovery, with Bacon's wife (played by the highly underrated Kathryn Erbe) involved in an underdeveloped sub-plot about a group of people who share Bacon's gift as paranormal "receivers". Furthering his career as a writer-director of intelligent thrillers, David Koepp makes a few mis-steps in pacing and thematic overkill, but overall Stir of Echoes is a sharp, sensitive thriller that unfolds to reveal a dramatically satisfying solution to its mystery. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com
Customer Reviews:
Freaky!!!.......2008-02-04
This film was really enjoyable!!! I'm not a fan of obvious gore and this does subtly with all the "freaky" stuff... keep an eye out for the nail breaking bit - it is gross but really effective. Good plot and Kevin Bacon does single-minded obsession very well! Plenty of twists and turns to keep you interested!!
A Supernatural Thriller.......2007-10-05
This movie is based on the book of the same name written by Richard Matheson. Kevin Bacon plays a fairly typical working-class guy living in Chicago with his wife and his son. One night at a party, he gets into a lively discussion with his sister-in-law, who believes in psychic communication and the power of hypnosis. He challenges her to hypnotize him, and she plants in him a post-hypnotic suggestion to be more open-minded. But the results aren't quite what either of them expected; he sees the spirit of a girl from the neighborhood that disappeared months ago, as does his son.
Far preferable to The Sixth Sense.......2007-08-19
Coming out less than a year later, this movie could hardly be accused of copying the Sixth Sense, but its theme is very similar, even if its storyline is quite different. Neither movie is really my cup of tea, as I'm not that keen on formula movies, or the moralising these modern kind of films are now prone to, or the feyness that pervaded both films. However I easily recommend this one out of the two. This film put its story across much more smoothly than the former movie, is more of a thriller, was less drawn out and didn't rely so heavily on its similar ending. In other words, it seems a more honest film. It was also a better story and did have a better message: If you murder people, don't think your respected background and reputation are going to be enough to see you get away with it, even if to the police, you are above suspicion. A neatly made film.
An excellent 'Supernatural' movie.......2007-08-11
I love movies similar to the 6th sense, the gift, the hole, or anything to do with clarivoyants or mediums. This movie is one of my favourites and is based on Kevin Bacon being hypnotised at the beggining of the film, and from there the story slowly unravels and will keep you guessing till the very end. Its amazing how it all comes together, I have probably watched this movie 10 times over the past 5 years. Watch it!
I WAS PLEASENTLY SURPRISED BY THIS MOVIE.......2007-08-09
Stir of Echoes is a solid movie with a suspenseful and engaging plot. But what stood out for me in particular was the believability of the characters...they come across as real people, and they are what makes the movie in my opinion. A movie's just a movie without characters that the audience sympathizes with, after all. It's fun to just watch everybody on the screen, and everybody involved turned in a great performance. Kevin Bacon and Kathryn Erbe's Tom and Maggie seem like a genuine couple in their late 20's to early 30's that you would actually know out in the world who still have their hip edge. What happens when working class people who are cool and look good "grow up" and have a family? Tom and Maggie would be it. They still cuss. They still dress cool. They still have an edge. They just happen to be married with a kid. ;) You don't see that too often in movies. (in fact, I wanted Maggie's wardrobe :D The little black leather jacket, her shirts, choker necklaces and silver rings covering her fingers, she's got that feminine 'rocker chick' look to her, I love it) And Illeana Douglas' Lisa, the sister of Maggie, is someone we'd all like to have around us in life, the hip psychic mystic who does readings and counsels clients in her apartment while smoking "fatties." :D And Zachary David Cope as Jake, the ("indigo child") boy with psychic abilities, by far steals the show. What a little cutie, playing a character wise beyond his six years. When it comes to the characters in this movie it's all in the small details - the way conversation dialogue bounces back and forth, it's all very realistic, like real people. We've all KNOWN people like these characters, and may even see ourselves and our relationships in them. All the leads even have the proper Chicago accent too...another plus. Often times, movies don't even bother to have their lead roles talk in the regional accent of wherever the film takes place.
As far as the plot itself goes, it's been explained in every review so far. (VERY MINOR SPOILERS TO FOLLOW.) But in summary, Tom and Maggie are a working class couple in a Chicago neighborhood who attend a party one night at a neighbor's house, and where Tom lets himself be hypnotized by Maggie's sister Lisa. He's a closed minded skeptic who more or less dares Lisa to "try" to hypnotize him. She begins walking him through the hypnotic cues, and the next thing he knows it's scene skip, and he's sitting up in the chair gasping, looking like he's been crying with everybody breathlessly circled around him, watching him. What happened in between? Apparently he went under like a lead weight....and while there, it turns out Lisa implanted a post hypnotic suggestion for him to be more "open minded" after he wakes, to be receptive to everything around him, like an open door.
An open door indeed. Next thing Tom knows, he's having hallucinations of feeling like he's being attacked, of having his tooth fall out, then he sees a girl appear and then disappear on his livingroom couch, starts chugging orange juice like there's no tomorrow, and is haunted by a mystery song riff that he can't get out of his head. Mystified by what it all means, Tom goes back about his working class life as a utility lineman, while we the viewer are learning that Jake apparently has some psychic abilities of his own. While this phenomenon is all new to Tom, and he reacts with amped up agitation about it, Jake on the other hand is calm and collected about it. He knows who he is and what he can do, and understands that it scares the grownups. It soon becomes apparent that a missing girl from the neighborhood named Samantha Kozak - whom Jake can see and even talks to - is at the root of Tom's newfound psychic and paranormal occurrences, and it's up to Tom to figure out why she's haunting his house, and what happened to her.
(On a side note, when I just re-watched this movie I realized with a smile that there was a great line with a clever double meaning - Following the scene where Tom has his weird hallucinations and sees the mystery girl on his couch in the middle of the night, he's heading back up to bed when he encounters his son Jake on the stairs. Jake looks down the stairs at him and says with smiling enthusiasm, "You're awake now, Daddy!" "Awake now" as in, up during the middle of the night when he wouldn't normally be....but "awake now" also as in, psychically awake now, for the first time in his life. :) Because right after saying that, Jake comes down the steps and stands next to his dad, smiling, touching the side of his head and says,"Don't be afraid of it Daddy." So, Jake definitely can see that his dad is "awake" now. So that was awesome, I love it.)
"Stir of Echoes" has of course been compared to "The Sixth Sense," and was unfortunately overshadowed being that it came out during the same year. But other than the fact that both movies feature a young boy from a blue collar background who can see ghosts, there's nothing else in common between both movies. In fact, Jake/Zachary David Cope was FAR more enjoyable to watch than Haley Joel Osmet. It's just a better performance, hands down, and I was surprised to see that ZDC never went on to film anything else after this movie!
"Stir of Echoes" is a good movie in its own right, an engaging and suspenseful mystery that tackles the subject of psychic powers with realistic, enjoyable characters, and is well worth the rent.
Amazon.co.uk Review
The only real problem with Stir of Echoes has nothing to do with the movie itself, but with unlucky coincidence. Adapted from a Richard Matheson novel, this film arrived around the same time as The Sixth Sense. Surface similarities made it suffer by cursory comparison and the competing film's phenomenal success. It's a pity, because this one features one of Kevin Bacon's best performances, in a psychological thriller that makes a lot more right moves than wrong ones.
Bacon plays a blue-collar guy who laments his ordinary life, only to learn, when his sister-in-law (Ileanna Douglas) hypnotizes him, that he is a "receiver" capable of seeing spirits and split-second glimpses of past and future events. It's a torturous gift to have--especially since his friendly Chicago neighbourhood possesses a dark secret--and Bacon plays the role with an appropriate mixture of obsession and internalised torment. Similarity to The Sixth Sense applies only to the basic premise and the character of Bacon's young son. Otherwise, this is more of a hard-edged journey of self-discovery, marital crisis, and recovery, with Bacon's wife (played by the highly underrated Kathryn Erbe) involved in an underdeveloped sub-plot about a group of people who share Bacon's gift as paranormal "receivers". Furthering his career as a writer-director of intelligent thrillers, David Koepp makes a few mis-steps in pacing and thematic overkill, but overall Stir of Echoes is a sharp, sensitive thriller that unfolds to reveal a dramatically satisfying solution to its mystery. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com
Customer Reviews:
Freaky!!!.......2008-02-04
This film was really enjoyable!!! I'm not a fan of obvious gore and this does subtly with all the "freaky" stuff... keep an eye out for the nail breaking bit - it is gross but really effective. Good plot and Kevin Bacon does single-minded obsession very well! Plenty of twists and turns to keep you interested!!
A Supernatural Thriller.......2007-10-05
This movie is based on the book of the same name written by Richard Matheson. Kevin Bacon plays a fairly typical working-class guy living in Chicago with his wife and his son. One night at a party, he gets into a lively discussion with his sister-in-law, who believes in psychic communication and the power of hypnosis. He challenges her to hypnotize him, and she plants in him a post-hypnotic suggestion to be more open-minded. But the results aren't quite what either of them expected; he sees the spirit of a girl from the neighborhood that disappeared months ago, as does his son.
Far preferable to The Sixth Sense.......2007-08-19
Coming out less than a year later, this movie could hardly be accused of copying the Sixth Sense, but its theme is very similar, even if its storyline is quite different. Neither movie is really my cup of tea, as I'm not that keen on formula movies, or the moralising these modern kind of films are now prone to, or the feyness that pervaded both films. However I easily recommend this one out of the two. This film put its story across much more smoothly than the former movie, is more of a thriller, was less drawn out and didn't rely so heavily on its similar ending. In other words, it seems a more honest film. It was also a better story and did have a better message: If you murder people, don't think your respected background and reputation are going to be enough to see you get away with it, even if to the police, you are above suspicion. A neatly made film.
An excellent 'Supernatural' movie.......2007-08-11
I love movies similar to the 6th sense, the gift, the hole, or anything to do with clarivoyants or mediums. This movie is one of my favourites and is based on Kevin Bacon being hypnotised at the beggining of the film, and from there the story slowly unravels and will keep you guessing till the very end. Its amazing how it all comes together, I have probably watched this movie 10 times over the past 5 years. Watch it!
I WAS PLEASENTLY SURPRISED BY THIS MOVIE.......2007-08-09
Stir of Echoes is a solid movie with a suspenseful and engaging plot. But what stood out for me in particular was the believability of the characters...they come across as real people, and they are what makes the movie in my opinion. A movie's just a movie without characters that the audience sympathizes with, after all. It's fun to just watch everybody on the screen, and everybody involved turned in a great performance. Kevin Bacon and Kathryn Erbe's Tom and Maggie seem like a genuine couple in their late 20's to early 30's that you would actually know out in the world who still have their hip edge. What happens when working class people who are cool and look good "grow up" and have a family? Tom and Maggie would be it. They still cuss. They still dress cool. They still have an edge. They just happen to be married with a kid. ;) You don't see that too often in movies. (in fact, I wanted Maggie's wardrobe :D The little black leather jacket, her shirts, choker necklaces and silver rings covering her fingers, she's got that feminine 'rocker chick' look to her, I love it) And Illeana Douglas' Lisa, the sister of Maggie, is someone we'd all like to have around us in life, the hip psychic mystic who does readings and counsels clients in her apartment while smoking "fatties." :D And Zachary David Cope as Jake, the ("indigo child") boy with psychic abilities, by far steals the show. What a little cutie, playing a character wise beyond his six years. When it comes to the characters in this movie it's all in the small details - the way conversation dialogue bounces back and forth, it's all very realistic, like real people. We've all KNOWN people like these characters, and may even see ourselves and our relationships in them. All the leads even have the proper Chicago accent too...another plus. Often times, movies don't even bother to have their lead roles talk in the regional accent of wherever the film takes place.
As far as the plot itself goes, it's been explained in every review so far. (VERY MINOR SPOILERS TO FOLLOW.) But in summary, Tom and Maggie are a working class couple in a Chicago neighborhood who attend a party one night at a neighbor's house, and where Tom lets himself be hypnotized by Maggie's sister Lisa. He's a closed minded skeptic who more or less dares Lisa to "try" to hypnotize him. She begins walking him through the hypnotic cues, and the next thing he knows it's scene skip, and he's sitting up in the chair gasping, looking like he's been crying with everybody breathlessly circled around him, watching him. What happened in between? Apparently he went under like a lead weight....and while there, it turns out Lisa implanted a post hypnotic suggestion for him to be more "open minded" after he wakes, to be receptive to everything around him, like an open door.
An open door indeed. Next thing Tom knows, he's having hallucinations of feeling like he's being attacked, of having his tooth fall out, then he sees a girl appear and then disappear on his livingroom couch, starts chugging orange juice like there's no tomorrow, and is haunted by a mystery song riff that he can't get out of his head. Mystified by what it all means, Tom goes back about his working class life as a utility lineman, while we the viewer are learning that Jake apparently has some psychic abilities of his own. While this phenomenon is all new to Tom, and he reacts with amped up agitation about it, Jake on the other hand is calm and collected about it. He knows who he is and what he can do, and understands that it scares the grownups. It soon becomes apparent that a missing girl from the neighborhood named Samantha Kozak - whom Jake can see and even talks to - is at the root of Tom's newfound psychic and paranormal occurrences, and it's up to Tom to figure out why she's haunting his house, and what happened to her.
(On a side note, when I just re-watched this movie I realized with a smile that there was a great line with a clever double meaning - Following the scene where Tom has his weird hallucinations and sees the mystery girl on his couch in the middle of the night, he's heading back up to bed when he encounters his son Jake on the stairs. Jake looks down the stairs at him and says with smiling enthusiasm, "You're awake now, Daddy!" "Awake now" as in, up during the middle of the night when he wouldn't normally be....but "awake now" also as in, psychically awake now, for the first time in his life. :) Because right after saying that, Jake comes down the steps and stands next to his dad, smiling, touching the side of his head and says,"Don't be afraid of it Daddy." So, Jake definitely can see that his dad is "awake" now. So that was awesome, I love it.)
"Stir of Echoes" has of course been compared to "The Sixth Sense," and was unfortunately overshadowed being that it came out during the same year. But other than the fact that both movies feature a young boy from a blue collar background who can see ghosts, there's nothing else in common between both movies. In fact, Jake/Zachary David Cope was FAR more enjoyable to watch than Haley Joel Osmet. It's just a better performance, hands down, and I was surprised to see that ZDC never went on to film anything else after this movie!
"Stir of Echoes" is a good movie in its own right, an engaging and suspenseful mystery that tackles the subject of psychic powers with realistic, enjoyable characters, and is well worth the rent.
Amazon.co.uk Review
The only real problem with Stir of Echoes has nothing to do with the movie itself, but with unlucky coincidence. Adapted from a Richard Matheson novel, this film arrived around the same time as The Sixth Sense. Surface similarities made it suffer by cursory comparison and the competing film's phenomenal success. It's a pity, because this one features one of Kevin Bacon's best performances, in a psychological thriller that makes a lot more right moves than wrong ones.
Bacon plays a blue-collar guy who laments his ordinary life, only to learn, when his sister-in-law (Ileanna Douglas) hypnotizes him, that he is a "receiver" capable of seeing spirits and split-second glimpses of past and future events. It's a torturous gift to have--especially since his friendly Chicago neighbourhood possesses a dark secret--and Bacon plays the role with an appropriate mixture of obsession and internalised torment. Similarity to The Sixth Sense applies only to the basic premise and the character of Bacon's young son. Otherwise, this is more of a hard-edged journey of self-discovery, marital crisis, and recovery, with Bacon's wife (played by the highly underrated Kathryn Erbe) involved in an underdeveloped sub-plot about a group of people who share Bacon's gift as paranormal "receivers". Furthering his career as a writer-director of intelligent thrillers, David Koepp makes a few mis-steps in pacing and thematic overkill, but overall Stir of Echoes is a sharp, sensitive thriller that unfolds to reveal a dramatically satisfying solution to its mystery. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com
Customer Reviews:
Freaky!!!.......2008-02-04
This film was really enjoyable!!! I'm not a fan of obvious gore and this does subtly with all the "freaky" stuff... keep an eye out for the nail breaking bit - it is gross but really effective. Good plot and Kevin Bacon does single-minded obsession very well! Plenty of twists and turns to keep you interested!!
A Supernatural Thriller.......2007-10-05
This movie is based on the book of the same name written by Richard Matheson. Kevin Bacon plays a fairly typical working-class guy living in Chicago with his wife and his son. One night at a party, he gets into a lively discussion with his sister-in-law, who believes in psychic communication and the power of hypnosis. He challenges her to hypnotize him, and she plants in him a post-hypnotic suggestion to be more open-minded. But the results aren't quite what either of them expected; he sees the spirit of a girl from the neighborhood that disappeared months ago, as does his son.
Far preferable to The Sixth Sense.......2007-08-19
Coming out less than a year later, this movie could hardly be accused of copying the Sixth Sense, but its theme is very similar, even if its storyline is quite different. Neither movie is really my cup of tea, as I'm not that keen on formula movies, or the moralising these modern kind of films are now prone to, or the feyness that pervaded both films. However I easily recommend this one out of the two. This film put its story across much more smoothly than the former movie, is more of a thriller, was less drawn out and didn't rely so heavily on its similar ending. In other words, it seems a more honest film. It was also a better story and did have a better message: If you murder people, don't think your respected background and reputation are going to be enough to see you get away with it, even if to the police, you are above suspicion. A neatly made film.
An excellent 'Supernatural' movie.......2007-08-11
I love movies similar to the 6th sense, the gift, the hole, or anything to do with clarivoyants or mediums. This movie is one of my favourites and is based on Kevin Bacon being hypnotised at the beggining of the film, and from there the story slowly unravels and will keep you guessing till the very end. Its amazing how it all comes together, I have probably watched this movie 10 times over the past 5 years. Watch it!
I WAS PLEASENTLY SURPRISED BY THIS MOVIE.......2007-08-09
Stir of Echoes is a solid movie with a suspenseful and engaging plot. But what stood out for me in particular was the believability of the characters...they come across as real people, and they are what makes the movie in my opinion. A movie's just a movie without characters that the audience sympathizes with, after all. It's fun to just watch everybody on the screen, and everybody involved turned in a great performance. Kevin Bacon and Kathryn Erbe's Tom and Maggie seem like a genuine couple in their late 20's to early 30's that you would actually know out in the world who still have their hip edge. What happens when working class people who are cool and look good "grow up" and have a family? Tom and Maggie would be it. They still cuss. They still dress cool. They still have an edge. They just happen to be married with a kid. ;) You don't see that too often in movies. (in fact, I wanted Maggie's wardrobe :D The little black leather jacket, her shirts, choker necklaces and silver rings covering her fingers, she's got that feminine 'rocker chick' look to her, I love it) And Illeana Douglas' Lisa, the sister of Maggie, is someone we'd all like to have around us in life, the hip psychic mystic who does readings and counsels clients in her apartment while smoking "fatties." :D And Zachary David Cope as Jake, the ("indigo child") boy with psychic abilities, by far steals the show. What a little cutie, playing a character wise beyond his six years. When it comes to the characters in this movie it's all in the small details - the way conversation dialogue bounces back and forth, it's all very realistic, like real people. We've all KNOWN people like these characters, and may even see ourselves and our relationships in them. All the leads even have the proper Chicago accent too...another plus. Often times, movies don't even bother to have their lead roles talk in the regional accent of wherever the film takes place.
As far as the plot itself goes, it's been explained in every review so far. (VERY MINOR SPOILERS TO FOLLOW.) But in summary, Tom and Maggie are a working class couple in a Chicago neighborhood who attend a party one night at a neighbor's house, and where Tom lets himself be hypnotized by Maggie's sister Lisa. He's a closed minded skeptic who more or less dares Lisa to "try" to hypnotize him. She begins walking him through the hypnotic cues, and the next thing he knows it's scene skip, and he's sitting up in the chair gasping, looking like he's been crying with everybody breathlessly circled around him, watching him. What happened in between? Apparently he went under like a lead weight....and while there, it turns out Lisa implanted a post hypnotic suggestion for him to be more "open minded" after he wakes, to be receptive to everything around him, like an open door.
An open door indeed. Next thing Tom knows, he's having hallucinations of feeling like he's being attacked, of having his tooth fall out, then he sees a girl appear and then disappear on his livingroom couch, starts chugging orange juice like there's no tomorrow, and is haunted by a mystery song riff that he can't get out of his head. Mystified by what it all means, Tom goes back about his working class life as a utility lineman, while we the viewer are learning that Jake apparently has some psychic abilities of his own. While this phenomenon is all new to Tom, and he reacts with amped up agitation about it, Jake on the other hand is calm and collected about it. He knows who he is and what he can do, and understands that it scares the grownups. It soon becomes apparent that a missing girl from the neighborhood named Samantha Kozak - whom Jake can see and even talks to - is at the root of Tom's newfound psychic and paranormal occurrences, and it's up to Tom to figure out why she's haunting his house, and what happened to her.
(On a side note, when I just re-watched this movie I realized with a smile that there was a great line with a clever double meaning - Following the scene where Tom has his weird hallucinations and sees the mystery girl on his couch in the middle of the night, he's heading back up to bed when he encounters his son Jake on the stairs. Jake looks down the stairs at him and says with smiling enthusiasm, "You're awake now, Daddy!" "Awake now" as in, up during the middle of the night when he wouldn't normally be....but "awake now" also as in, psychically awake now, for the first time in his life. :) Because right after saying that, Jake comes down the steps and stands next to his dad, smiling, touching the side of his head and says,"Don't be afraid of it Daddy." So, Jake definitely can see that his dad is "awake" now. So that was awesome, I love it.)
"Stir of Echoes" has of course been compared to "The Sixth Sense," and was unfortunately overshadowed being that it came out during the same year. But other than the fact that both movies feature a young boy from a blue collar background who can see ghosts, there's nothing else in common between both movies. In fact, Jake/Zachary David Cope was FAR more enjoyable to watch than Haley Joel Osmet. It's just a better performance, hands down, and I was surprised to see that ZDC never went on to film anything else after this movie!
"Stir of Echoes" is a good movie in its own right, an engaging and suspenseful mystery that tackles the subject of psychic powers with realistic, enjoyable characters, and is well worth the rent.
UK DVD:
- Supernatural - Season 2 Part 1
- Switchblade Romance [2003]
- Texas Chainsaw Massacre - Beginning (Uncut) [2006]
- The 51st State [2001]
- The Blob [1988] (REGION 1) (NTSC)
- The Burning [1981] (REGION 1) (NTSC)
- The Cave [UMD Mini for PSP] [2005]
- The Changeling [1980]
- The Day Of The Triffids
- The Descent
UK DVD List
UK DVD
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