Rating: 
Summary: A mesmerizing, intelligent supernatural thriller
Review: Stir of Echoes has something that most movies do not have-a story adapted from a Richard Matheson novel. I haven't had a chance to read this particular novel as of yet and thus cannot say how closely the movie follows it, but the fact that we have this movie as a result of director David Koepp's chance reading of the highly talented Matheson's 1958 novel is a powerful argument for keeping the works of the truly great writers in print and readily available to all. Certainly, there is a Sixth Sense quality to this movie, quite by accident and somewhat to its misfortune in terms of the timing of its theatrical release, but this movie stands on its own quite nicely. Kevin Bacon gives a remarkable performance as Tom Witzky, a man haunted by visions he can neither understand nor escape from. These disturbing visions first come to him after he is hypnotized by his sister-in-law at a party, and almost immediately they begin to consume him. His wife Maggie (Kathryn Erbe) grows frantic with worry, while his son Jake (Zachary David Cope making his feature film debut) eases his transition into this strange new mental world. Jake has been talking to ghosts throughout his childhood, especially Samantha, the teenager Tom unexpectedly encounters on his couch that first night and seeks to "find" again. Samantha wants him to do something, and Tom's struggle involves finding out just what that something is. There are plenty of creepy scenes to be enjoyed, and the visual presentation of Samantha is especially well done; the unnatural way she moves was captured by having Jennifer Morrison walk especially slowly and filming her using a different frame rate than normal. It's remarkably effective. The visions are also impressive-we see what Tom sees and can understand the frustration he feels at not being able to interpret them. All he gets are scattered images, and it is up to him to put all of the pieces of the puzzle together. The mystery of Samantha's disappearance is not obvious, thank goodness, and this fact allows for a truly spectacular end to this movie. This is a thoroughly enjoyable, thought-provoking film, one more than capable of pleasing stalwart horror lovers like myself as well as more mainstream viewers who wander into the realm of the cinematic supernatural only on special occasions or by accident. The acting is superb on all counts, from Bacon on down the line to Cope, and the rather subdued special effects really work marvelously and help reinforce the believability of the otherwise fantastic story. There is a definite air of realism and plausibility here, and that helps maintain a crucial connection between the audience and the film. The special features offered on the DVD are good things to have, but they don't really increase your enjoyment of the movie itself. The featurette is actually rather short in length and mainly features short interviews with the cast and crew. The behind the scenes featurette seems rather strange; you just get very short looks at cast and crew preparing or doing their work, and there is no effort to explain anything that you are seeing. Of course, the DVD also features a commentary by director David Koepp for those who really want to dig deeply into the genesis of this action-packed thriller. I was disappointed to find no deleted scenes included on the DVD, though; normally, I'm not that high on deleted scenes because most of the time it is quite easy to see why they were deleted. In the production notes for Stir of Echoes, though, Koepp refers to a scene featuring Samantha which he found too creepy to include in the final cut; I would really have liked to have a look at that scene. Stir of Echoes is a great example of realistic suspense done right. Foregoing blood and heavy-handed horror tactics, director David Koepp has succeeded in giving us an electrifying, deliciously creepy, intellectually stimulating supernatural thriller every bit as exciting and memorable as The Sixth Sense.
Rating:
Summary: It gets under your skin!
Review: Director David Koepp has a frightening track record: A blockbuster smash movie OR an excellent flick that gets ruthlessly ignored...no in-betweens! Tom Witzky (Bacon) is too "ordinary" until sister in law, Lisa, hypnotizes him and makes him a "magnet" to the unknown. His son, Jake (Cope), already talks to ghosts not seen by anyone until Tom begins to see, feel, and hear what Jake does. Tom's wife, Maggie (Kathryn Erbe), is oblivious to all of this. Members of the neighborhood has a well-kept secret that is not about to re-surface any time soon until Tom flips out and supernaturally gets all the answers. Great film that was ignored because of the similarities with "The Sixth Sense". Personally, I feel this flick is creepier! Worth the buy!
Rating: 
Summary: Chilling
Review: I rented this DVD after catching the beginning of this movie on TV. Kevin Bacon and Kathryn Erbe are a realistic couple - not overly attractive, they live in a gritty Chicago neighborhood and they like to party. During one party Kevin Bacon is hypnotized by his sister-in-law (played divinely by Illeana Douglas) and he starts seeing strange things. Quite convinced he is freaking out, he is haunted by the disturbing visions, until he finally embraces them and the pieces of the puzzle fall together and a neighborhood murder is solved. During the course of the film, it is also discovered his son has the gift.
This movie's best point is that it is scary without being gross-out gory, but the ending is kind of weird. The special features are decent enough and it holds up for repeated viewings.
Rating: 
Summary: Eerie and interesting... a good rental
Review: A very watchable film that suffers from unfortunate timing of its release (so close to "Sixth Sense"). "Stir of Echoes" is based on a novel written long before "Sixth Sense" ever came out but this film will still be compared to the other due to obvious similarities and the fact the Bruce Willis film was seen by more people. Supernatural abilities involving interaction with the dead are central to the plot. This movie is pretty good and moves along rapidly but is not a must see by any means. Rent it first. If you love this type of thing then maybe it's worth buying. Disclaimer: I don't own it.
Rating:
Summary: An incredible film, atrociously ignored by the public...
Review: This had to be one of the most disappointing film-going experiences that I've ever had. When I left the movie theater I realized that I'd just seen a powerful, disturbing and very scary film that no one will see because of the still playing 'The Sixth Sense'. I like 'Sixth Sense', but I still can't see any reason for it's phenomenal success. Yes, I was surprised by the ending, but the overall story and character development was rather limp and (while I liked the kid) Bruce Willis's performance was at times downright laughable. How many of his scenes didn't actually have him in tears? 'Stir of Echoes' in my opinion is a far better film. The main reason is Kevin Bacon's knockout performance, which has to be seen to be believed. His hilarious response to his wife - "It's not over there!" had me in stitches. Lately he hasn't done any roles which would give him something to work with and in this film he finally finds the right material. He is simply sensational. You see the changes that his character goes through and you believe them 100%. Not a false note in this very difficult performance. The actress who played his wife is just as good and so is their little kid. Don't let this on slip away. It's a gripping film.
Rating:
Summary: Stir of Echoes, Spooky and overlooked
Review: Stir of Echoes, based on the book by Richard Matheson, was overlooked when it first came out in 1999. It was released within two weeks of the similar, and much better, Sixth Sense, so anyone that saw this around that time inevitably thought little of it. Interestingly, this story of Tom Wallace, a man who during a hypnotism session during a party with his new-age sister-in-law develops psychic powers. Besides being able to predict the future, he also sees a ghost from the past that has a mystery for him to solve. Incidentally, his son starts to exhibit some of the same powers and his wife becomes thoroughly alienated. This movie is at once simpler and tighter that the source material. While the movie does not linger on the thoughts that Wallace is bombarded by like Matheson did in the novel, the movie is much more driven and suspenseful around the murder mystery. The players in this movie are very good, with a surprisingly strong performance from Kevin Bacon. The directing is good and suspensful, and while this movie doesn't live up to the level of the Sixth Sense, it is much better than most of the horror/suspense movies that come out these days (can anyone say, The Haunting). The DVD presentation is very strong with clear, widescreen video and the sound, filled with subtle whispering and other nice touches, is crystal clear. The extra features are mostly throw-away fluff, but the commentary by the director is strong and informative. I strongly recommend this movie.
Rating:
Summary: The real deal
Review: Many people overlooked this movie due to the fact that it came out around the same time as the Sixth Sense, thus it suffered. However, this movie is not a rip-off in anyway shape or form. Stir of Echos is based on the novel of the same name which was on store shelves before Sixth Sense hit the big screen. So with the "who came first, and who's ripping off who" aside lets get to the movie itself. Stir of Echos is a creepy movie, it has excellent camera-work and a chilling soundtrack that sets the mood of the movie from the get go. This movie was perhaps, one of the best horror movies of the 90's, it has all the right elements in all the right places with enough special features to justify paying out your hard earned cash. I'm not going to go into the story-line, enough reviews have already done that, what I would like to mention is that Kevin Bacon puts of, in my opinion, his best performance to date! If your a fan of horror\thriller movies, then this movie is a must have as I feel it will one day be counted among the classic movies of this era. Ya people will look back and see Sixth Sense as a great box office smash, which it was. Sir of Echos however, will be considered a great horror movie.
Rating:
Summary: Watch with the lights on...please!
Review: Too bad this film didn't last very long at the theatre...probably poor timing by the people who elected to release this around the same time as Sixth Sense. Overall, this was a very good film. Very suspenseful and excellent acting by Kevin Bacon. Loaded with imagery and leaves you wondering about a lot of things...sort of reminiscent of the Twilight Zone. These are the types of "horror" films that don't require blood, gore, and Freddy Krueger types to scare you. The more realistic a film is, the more it frightens me...and this film disturbed me enough to keep me awake for many hours afterward. I would have rated it 5 stars....except...the film is adapted from a book written by Richard Matheson (who was a writer and director for the Twilight Zone, and directed some of Serling's most memorable episodes) There are many parts of the film which were changed from the book, possibly to make the film a bit more "90's". (the book was written in the 50's) Some of it wouldn't bother you unless you've read it, but the film doesn't explore the characters in an much depth as the book. They also change the circumstances of the victim's death, (and who the victim is, for that matter)and other small details (the hypnotist in the book is the wife's brother, not sister) There are also some characters in the book which would have been great in the movie and would have complimented Bacon's character, but they are not addressed at all. Overall, I would recommend this film. Just don't watch it right before bed. =)
Rating:
Summary: Kevin Bacon? Never seen him so good.
Review: This is a very clever film. I was a bit skeptical both because of it's lack of popularity and the fact that Kevin Bacon is in it. However, I was pleasantly surprised. Not only is this is a great story, it is well put together with many good actors/actresses. There's not much to say, other than: If you want a good, rare movie pick this. I warn you however that I'm not promising your liking it. Although with the right mindset, anyone can enjoy this film. Just remember: "Don't be afraid."
Rating:
Summary: Eerie and interesting... a good rental
Review: A very watchable film that suffers from unfortunate timing of its release (so close to "Sixth Sense"). "Stir of Echoes" is based on a novel written long before "Sixth Sense" ever came out but this film will still be compared to the other due to obvious similarities and the fact the Bruce Willis film was seen by more people. Supernatural abilities involving interaction with the dead are central to the plot. This movie is pretty good and moves along rapidly but is not a must see by any means. Rent it first. If you love this type of thing then maybe it's worth buying. Disclaimer: I don't own it.
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