Stir of Echoes

"In every mind there is a door that should never be opened."

1999 1h 39m EN

👍

6.7

SOLID

★6.7TMDB · 1,419

HorrorMysteryThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

After being hypnotized by his sister-in-law, Tom Witzky begins seeing haunting visions of a girl's ghost and a mystery begins to unfold around her.

“In every mind there is a door that should never be opened.”

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Cast

Kevin Bacon
Tom Witzky
Kathryn Erbe
Maggie Witzky
Illeana Douglas
Lisa Weil
Zachary David Cope
Jake Witzky
Kevin Dunn
Frank McCarthy
Conor O'Farrell
Harry Damon
Liza Weil
Debbie Kozac
Lusia Strus
Sheila McCarthy

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: David Koepp
Writers: David Koepp, Andrew Kevin Walker, John Coven
Languages: English, Korean, Spanish
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

27 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 3 languages: English, Korean, Spanish.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Stir of Echoes Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

CAST

Did you know

293+ people credited in cast and crew — a small city's worth of labour.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by David Koepp, shot by Fred Murphy. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by James Newton Howard. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Jill Savitt shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Kevin Bacon and Kathryn Erbe and Illeana Douglas carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

David Koepp directs. Fred Murphy behind the camera. James Newton Howard scores. Jill Savitt cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English, Korean, Spanish.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

127 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
2Dialogue crosses 3 languages: English, Korean, Spanish.
3Part of the "Stir of Echoes Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
4293+ people credited in cast and crew — a small city's worth of labour.
5Directed by David Koepp, shot by Fred Murphy. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by James Newton Howard. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor Jill Savitt shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Kevin Bacon and Kathryn Erbe and Illeana Douglas carry the top of the cast.
9Marketing tagline: "In every mind there is a door that should never be opened.".
10IMDB entry: tt0164181 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
11Classified under 15 themes, including "obsession", "cemetery", "paranoia", "haunted house".

The technical file

Cinematography: Fred Murphy
Original score: James Newton Howard
Editing: Jill Savitt
Production design: Nelson Coates
Costume design: Leesa Evans
Makeup / hair: Lilo Tauvao
VFX supervisor: Van Ling
Sound: Andy D'Addario
Stunt coordinator: Rick LeFevour
Runtime: 99 min · 1h 39m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $12,000,000
Box office: $21,142,914
Return: 176% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Stir of Echoes (1999)

Part of

Stir of Echoes Collection

A supernatural horror-thriller film series loosely based on the novel A Stir of Echoes by Richard Matheson.

Also by

David Koepp

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Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2019-10-16
★ 9/10
I see a red door and I want to paint it black! Stir of Echoes is written and directed by David Koepp who adapts from the novel of the same name written by Richard Matheson. It stars Kevin Bacon, Kathryn Erbe, Zachary David Cope, Illena Douglas, Jennifer Morrison, Kevin Dunn and Conor O'Farrell. Music is scored by James Newton Howard and cinematography by Fred Murphy. Chicago phone engineer Tom Witzky (Bacon) submits to being hypnotised by his sister-in-law and finds that his young son's imaginary friend is not imagined after all... Undeniably lost in the slip-stream of the similar themed "The Sixth Sense", Stir of Echoes screams out to be seen by more fans of supernatural mysteries. It's a near faultless production, with Koepp getting all the key ingredients right on both the page and in transfer to the screen. Pacing is often the problem with films of a similar ilk, but Koepp deftly structures it in three engrossing sections. First third establishes the main characters and the supernatural set-up, but the bonus here is that character reactions are believable, especially with Erbe's confused wife. Koepp has a great sense of atmosphere whilst ensuring we are fully immersed in Tom Wizky's new world of disorientation by way of terrifying visions and red light shocks. Second third brings the chills and the odd boo-jump, again the director is aware that too many jumps can overkill the plot, so they are nicely spaced out and accompanied by a palpable fear of the unknown. Then the last third unravels in a whirl of Roy Neary like obsessions and ghosts of the past denouements. It's a standard formula, yet it's amazing just how often film makers get it wrong, especially in horror. Not a problem here. Film is further boosted by Newton Howard's score that blends the ethereal with rising thunder and Murphy's colour photography, the latter of which helps to paint a harmonious Chicago neighbourhood, soon to be turned upside down, literally at one end of the street. The acting is super, which in Bacon's case is a given to anyone who has followed his career, and Koepp shows some nice and creepy visual filming techniques to further enhance the great Richard Matheson's story. There's the odd little misstep, such as a thread involving a secret organisation that has the "gift" of being "open" to the supernatural, that feels like filler to over state Tom's torment. While the post reaction to a suicide attempt isn't given nearly enough screen time to really add impetus to the unfolding mystery. But small complaints only, for Stir of Echoes (great title) remains a truly involving and entertaining supernatural mystery. 8.5/10

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