Echoes - Stimmen aus der Zwischenwelt

Stir of Echoes (1999) tells the story of Tom, a middle aged man who, after being hypnotized, starts seeing things. This is the start of a suspenseful psychological thriller that sucked me in and did not let go until the credits rolled.

The acting by all the lead and supporting characters is more than adequate. Kevin Bacon is right at home in his role of a somewhat bitter individual who undergoes heavy changes throughout the film. He does a great job, as do the other actors. The film is shot in a sober and down-to-earth way, giving it a serious tone. Plot wise, the movie is also more than decent, with only a few small plot holes which will only bother the most scrutinous of viewers.

The movie's plot does however remind some viewers of other thrillers, mainly The Shining and The Sixth Sense (another 1999 release which overshadowed Stir of Echoes with a larger marketing campaign and larger overall budget). Some aspects of the story are indeed less than original, but the movie as a whole feels different and is very enjoyable.

Overall, the movie falls just short of greatness in its genre. I found the quality and depth of the story to be good, but not quite as good as some of the afore mentioned greats in the thriller/horror genres. even still, I recommend this film to every fan of thrillers and suspense.

This creepy thriller concerns about a family, when the marriage goes to a party into a calmed neighboring, happen weird events. Tom (Kevin Bacon, Sleepers) being hypnotized by his sister in law(Ileana Douglas), then, he winds up with clairvoyant abilities that link to disappeared teen girl(Jennifer Morrison, today famous by House). These faculties also have traumatized his young boy( similarly to kid in ¨The sixth sense, he isn't only one seeing dead), carrying the fear under his frail shoulders, but he can communicate with the deceased adolescent and presumed missing. Tom and son's visions lead to have problems with his wife(Kathryn Erbe, Law and Order) and friends(Kevin Dunn, secondary in Gozzilla). It leads to unexpected and breakthrough twist ending about what's happened before.

The movie packs suspense, tension, shocks, grisly horror and eerie scenes when the ghoul appear. The film takes accent as the suspense as well as the terror. Provides an imaginative, highly original and well-knit screenplay by David Koepp, also director, and based on novel by Richard Matheson. Sinister and mysterious atmosphere is finely made by cameraman Fred Murphy. Creepy music score fitting to the horror film by James Newton Howard, he's habitual maker of frightening atmospheres such as ¨Sixth sense, Devil's advocate¨ and composer of all films by Night Shyamalan. The motion picture is well directed by David Koepp, a famous screenwriter(Zathura, War of the worlds, Spiderman, Mission impossible) and occasionally director(Secret window,The trigger effect). The flick will like to terror fans because gets decent scares and intense sequences of horror.

(A) The Sixth Sense and Stir of Echoes must have been the two movies of '99 that I enjoyed the most. Both had good scripts and stories; they were interesting, mysterious, dark, weird -- those are my kinds of movies! They are also a proof that the mysteriousness of ghosts is something we will never tire of or not think to be intriguing.

Stir of Echoes was somewhat similar to Sixth Sense but it was also in many was DIFFERENT. First of all, it (SOE) is dealing with hypnosis and has a more 'criminal' as well as supernatural theme.

This movie is spectacular and the reason it was not recognized as such, is because it was released just a few weeks after The Sixth Sense - a movie which had already satisfied the audience with its supernatural theme. And because The Sixth Sense was such a hit, Stir of Echoes was shoved aside and didn't get the recognition it deserved. Don't get me wrong! I loved Sixth Sense, but this movie is also very good and if you liked The Sixth Sense, I highly recommend you see it!

In 1999, the media was in a frenzy about a new film that used real things to terrify and excite its audience. Stir Of Echoes was not it. Partly due to the studio's financial difficulties, Stir Of Echoes came and went by itself, unsung and unappreciated. Which goes to show that recognition in the Hollywood system does not go to innovators or the best storytellers. It is all about marketability, and while Stir Of Echoes had this, the companies involved in making or distributing it did not seem to want to spend the cash involved in taking advantage. Either that or Artisan and Fox decided to use it as their tax write-off for that year.

I have not read the novel by Richard Matheson, so I cannot comment on how faithfully the film follows its source. But that is irrelevant. When compared to its more big-name competitor, at least Stir Of Echoes has the courtesy to acknowledge its source. The film updates the story to a more modern era, thus saving a few dollars, since period pieces are expensive to make. In fact, the dramatic angle of the film keeps it rather cheap, since effects shots are few and far between. Not to mention the effects that do appear are fairly simple in nature. Indeed, Stir Of Echoes only cost about thirteen million to make, according to estimates. Which makes it all the more peculiar that Fox was unwilling to invest a little more effort in publicising the film.

Kevin Bacon is in fine, fine form as the film's central hero, a regular guy called Tom Witzky. Kathryn Erbe is also in great form as his wife, Maggie. Illeana Douglas is decidedly odd as his sister-in-law, Lisa. But the real surprise here is child performer Zachary David Cope. After the pretender, that pile of sachaarine garbage called The Sixth Sense, child stars had such a bad reputation that Zachary deserves a medal for portraying such a genuinely likable, layered character. Indeed, director David Koepp took one hell of a risk by placing so much of the responsibility for the plot on his shoulders. That it pays off is a testament not only to the strength of Zachary David Cope's performance, but to the strength of the material he was given. Indeed, all the best scenes in Stir Of Echoes involve interaction between Zachary, Kathryn, and Kevin.

I do think this film has its faults. Chief among them is that the story needed another ten minutes to properly develop. Plot threads like the group of psychics, a member of which helps put Kathryn Erbe's character on the path of greater understanding, needed better resolution. One moment, Maggie is asking this policeman why her husband is obsessed with a scene of memories to the exclusion of his job. The next moment, not only are details like the job forgotten, so too is the group and the policeman. Smoothing out intricate plot points such as this would have helped the story no end.

In the end, however, Stir Of Echoes is proof that the artistic work one does not hear about may just be the one that has more merit. If nothing else, it is worth watching to see a small ensemble cast that excels. Even small performances like Liza Weil's demonstrate a sense of dramatic flair that has long fled most of the rest of Hollywood. It is for this reason that I gave Stir Of Echoes an eight out of ten. It is worth watching just to see how badly misdirected the hype machine often is.

Stir of Echoes is a very good horror thriller in the traditional sense. It's the story of a guy who gets hypnotised and develops precognitive psychic abilities which he can't control.

Kevin Bacon is excellent and shows he can be a leading man, while the rest of the cast performs well. Sets, special effects and cinematography are all very good - nothing flashy but solid.

It has shocks and suspense, especially in the first half, and although it could be accused of being a little clichéd, it never strays too far into the 'seen it all before' category.

The second half of the film turns into a more traditional thriller but still holds up well, unlike similarly themed movies such as 'What Lies Beneath.' This is because it is pleasingly short, lasting around 90 minutes (the correct length for a film of this type). There are some plot strands that aren't explained, but this can be forgiven because of the film's running time.

Although not mind blowing, it has a decent payoff at the end and left me satisfied that I'd just watched a good movie. Not a great one, but a good one. Pick this one up cheap on DVD.