Stir of Echoes (1999)

Director:

David Koepp

Writers (WGA):

Richard Matheson (novel)
David Koepp (screenplay)

Release Date:

10 September 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Thriller | Horror | Mystery

Tagline:

Some doors weren't meant to be opened.

Plot:

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

Plot Keywords:

Hitchcockian | Mother Son Relationship | Old Dark House | Murder Suicide | Psychological Horror

Awards:

3 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Zachary David Cope	...	Jake Witzky
Kevin Bacon	...	Tom Witzky
Kathryn Erbe	...	Maggie Witzky
Illeana Douglas	...	Lisa Weil
Kevin Dunn	...	Frank McCarthy
Conor O'Farrell	...	Harry Damon
Lusia Strus	...	Sheila McCarthy
Stephen Eugene Walker	...	Bobby
Mary Kay Cook	...	Vanessa Damon
Larry Neumann Jr.	...	Lenny
Jennifer Morrison	...	Samantha Kozac (as Jenny Morrison)
Richard Cotovsky	...	Neighborhood Man
Steve Rifkin	...	Kurt Damon
Chalon Williams	...	Adam McCarthy
Liza Weil	...	Debbie Kozac, the Babysitter

MPAA:

Rated R for violence, sexuality and language.

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (DeLuxe)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Canada:14+ (Ontario) | Philippines:R-18 | Singapore:PG (cut) | Japan:PG-12 | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA | Chile:14 | Finland:K-16 | France:-12 | Germany:16 | Hong Kong:IIB | Hungary:16 | Ireland:18 | Mexico:B | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R16 | Norway:15 (video premiere) | Portugal:M/16 | South Korea:18 | Spain:13 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Chicago, Illinois, USA

Company:

Artisan Entertainment

Trivia:

The hypnosis sequence in which Tom (Kevin Bacon) is hypnotized for the first time follows actual hypnosis techniques used by professional hypnotists. In order to ensure that the audience hasn't been put to sleep (and some susceptible people have been), there's a musical accent at the close of the sequence to wake everyone up.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Tom is arguing with Maggie in the back yard, a piece of dirt on Tom's shoulder appears and disappears from scene to scene.

Quotes:

Tom Witzky: I never wanted to be famous. I just never expected to be so...
Maggie Witzky: What?
Tom Witzky: I don't know, ordinary.

Movie Connections:

References "Big Bad Beetleborgs" (1996)

Soundtrack:

Stay Awake

Big Swing and a Miss

From the very opening of the movie I waited for the characters to be given some kind of depth, for the plot to be laid out, and for the film itself to come together. None of these things ever happened. It appeared that this film suffered greatly in its final edits as scenes that seemed to begin to draw the story together -- like when the Neal the cop says to have Tom come see him for an explanation of his visions -- are not played out and stick out like so many sore thumbs. Basically the movie starts nowhere, goes nowhere, and winds up nowhere.