Secret Window
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''Secret Window'' is a 2004 American
psychological thriller film Psychological thriller is a genre combining the thriller and psychological fiction genres. It is commonly used to describe literature or films that deal with psychological narratives in a thriller or thrilling setting. In terms of context and ...
starring
Johnny Depp John Christopher Depp II (born June 9, 1963) is an American actor and musician. He is the recipient of multiple accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award, in addition to nominations for three Academy Award ...
and
John Turturro John Michael Turturro (; born February 28, 1957) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his contributions to the independent film movement. He has appeared in over sixty feature films and has worked frequently with the Coen brothers, ...
. It was written and directed by
David Koepp David Koepp (; born June 9, 1963) is an American filmmaker. Koepp is the ninth most successful screenwriter of all time in terms of U.S. box office receipts with a total gross of over $2.3 billion. Koepp has achieved both critical and commercial ...
, based on the novella ''
Secret Window, Secret Garden ''Four Past Midnight'' is a collection of novellas written by Stephen King in 1988 and 1989 and published in August 1990. It is his second book of this type, the first one being ''Different Seasons''. The collection won the Bram Stoker Award in 1 ...
'' by
Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, crime, science-fiction, and fantasy novels. Described as the "King of Horror", a play on his surname and a reference to his high s ...
, featuring a musical score by
Philip Glass Philip Glass (born January 31, 1937) is an American composer and pianist. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential composers of the late 20th century. Glass's work has been associated with minimal music, minimalism, being built up fr ...
and
Geoff Zanelli Geoffrey Zanelli is an American composer working primarily in the medium of film, television, and video game scores. His early career was notable for scoring additional music on roughly 30 film scores written by Hans Zimmer, John Powell, Harry ...
. The story appeared in King's 1990 collection ''
Four Past Midnight ''Four Past Midnight'' is a collection of novellas written by Stephen King in 1988 and 1989 and published in August 1990. It is his second book of this type, the first one being ''Different Seasons''. The collection won the Bram Stoker Award in 1 ...
''. The film was released on March 12, 2004, by
Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...
; it was a moderate box office success and received mixed reviews from critics.


Plot

After catching his wife Amy having an affair with their friend Ted, mystery writer Mort Rainey retreats to his cabin at Tashmore Lake in
upstate New York Upstate New York is a geographic region consisting of the area of New York State that lies north and northwest of the New York City metropolitan area. Although the precise boundary is debated, Upstate New York excludes New York City and Long Is ...
, while Amy stays in their marital home. Six months later, Mort, depressed and suffering from
writer's block Writer's block is a condition, primarily associated with writing, in which an author is either unable to produce new work or experiences a creative slowdown. Mike Rose found that this creative stall is not a result of commitment problems or th ...
, has delayed finalizing the
divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...
. One day, a man named John Shooter arrives at the cabin and accuses Mort of
plagiarizing Plagiarism is the fraudulent representation of another person's language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions as one's own original work.From the 1995 '' Random House Compact Unabridged Dictionary'': use or close imitation of the language and thought ...
his short story, "Sowing Season". Upon reading Shooter's manuscript, Mort discovers it is virtually identical to his own story, "Secret Window", except for the ending. The following day, Mort, who once plagiarized another author's story, tells Shooter that his story was published in a mystery magazine two years before Shooter's, invalidating his plagiarism claim. Shooter demands proof and warns Mort against contacting the police. That night, Mort's dog, Chico, is found dead outside the cabin, along with a note from Shooter giving Mort three days to provide proof. Mort reports the incident to Sheriff Newsome. Mort drives to his and Amy's house intending to retrieve a copy of the magazine but leaves because Ted and Amy are there. Mort instead hires
private investigator A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI and informally called a private eye), a private detective, or inquiry agent is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private investigators of ...
Ken Karsch, who stakes out the cabin and speaks to Tom Greenleaf, a local resident who may have seen Shooter and Mort talking together. At the cabin, Shooter appears and demands that Mort revise his story's ending to Shooter's version, where the protagonist kills his wife. When an arson fire destroys Amy and Mort's house, and presumably the magazine, Mort reveals to the police that he has an enemy. Karsch tells Mort that he suspects Shooter has threatened Greenleaf after Greenleaf claimed he never saw Mort and Shooter talking together. Mort and Karsch agree to confront Shooter but first choose to meet up with Greenleaf at the local diner the next morning. Arriving late, Mort discovers that neither Karsch nor Greenleaf showed up at the diner. On his way back, Mort encounters Ted at a gas station where Ted demands Mort sign the divorce papers. Believing Shooter is in Ted's employ, Mort refuses, taunts Ted, and leaves. Later, Shooter summons Mort to a meeting place; when he arrives, Mort finds Karsch and Greenleaf dead inside Greenleaf's truck and passes out at the sight. When he recovers Shooter tells Mort he killed the two men because they had "interfered" in his business, and warns Mort he has deliberately implicated him in the two men's murders (having used Mort's axe and screwdriver as the murder weapons) and implies Mort should dispose of the bodies. Mort agrees to meet Shooter at his cabin to show him the magazine containing his story, which is supposed to arrive that day, having been sent overnight by his literary agent. Mort later retrieves his tools and then pushes Greenleaf's truck with both bodies still in it off a steep cliff into a water-filled quarry where it sinks. Mort retrieves the package containing the magazine from the post office but finds that it has already been opened with the pages containing his story ripped out. At Mort's cabin, Mort sees Shooter's hat and puts it on and begins speaking to himself, trying to make sense of the events. Frustrated and in denial, Mort throws an object at the wall and is surprised to see a growing crack fracture the cabin in half. Looking in the mirror, he's startled to see the back of his head reflected instead. Mort realizes that Shooter is a figment of his imagination, a character brought to life through Mort's undetected
dissociative identity disorder Dissociative identity disorder (DID), better known as multiple personality disorder or multiple personality syndrome, is a mental disorder characterized by the presence of at least two distinct and relatively enduring personality states. The di ...
, unwittingly created to cope and carry out malevolent tasks that Mort cannot do - like killing Chico, Greenleaf and Karsch, as well as burning down their home. That persona now takes full control of Mort. Amy arrives at the cabin, finding it ransacked and sees the word "SHOOTER" carved repeatedly on the walls and furniture. Mort appears, speaking and acting as Shooter, wearing his hat. Amy realizes the name "Shooter" represents Mort's desire to "SHOOT HER". He chases Amy and stabs her in the ankle. Ted, looking for Amy, arrives and is ambushed by Mort, who smashes his face with a shovel. Amy watches helplessly as Mort bludgeons Ted with the shovel, while reciting the ending of "Sowing Season". He then murders Amy offscreen. Months later, Mort has recovered from his writer's block and his passion for life returns. He is feared and shunned in town because of the rumors about the missing people associated with him. Sheriff Newsome arrives and tells Mort that he is the prime suspect in the supposed murders. He warns him that the bodies will eventually be found and he will be caught, then says he is no longer welcome in town. Mort passively dismisses the threat and tells Newsome that the ending to his new story is "perfect". It is implied that Amy and Ted's bodies are buried under the corn growing in Mort's garden, allowing Mort to slowly destroy any evidence of their murders. (In an alternative ending cut for home media their bodies are shown under the earth.)


Cast

*
Johnny Depp John Christopher Depp II (born June 9, 1963) is an American actor and musician. He is the recipient of multiple accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award, in addition to nominations for three Academy Award ...
as Morton "Mort" Rainey *
John Turturro John Michael Turturro (; born February 28, 1957) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his contributions to the independent film movement. He has appeared in over sixty feature films and has worked frequently with the Coen brothers, ...
as John Shooter *
Maria Bello Maria Elena Bello (born April 18, 1967) is an American actress and writer. Her film roles include ''Permanent Midnight'' (1998), ''Payback (1999 film), Payback'' (1999), ''Coyote Ugly (film), Coyote Ugly'' (2000), ''The Cooler'' (2003), ''A Hist ...
as Amy Rainey *
Timothy Hutton Timothy Tarquin Hutton (born August 16, 1960) is an American actor and film director. He is the youngest recipient of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, which he won at age 20 for his performance as Conrad Jarrett in ''Ordinary People ...
as Ted "Teddy" Milner *
Len Cariou Leonard Joseph Cariou (; born September 30, 1939) is a Canadian actor and Theatre director, stage director, best known for his portrayal of Sweeney Todd in the original cast of ''Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street'', for which he wo ...
as Sheriff Dave Newsome *
Charles S. Dutton Charles Stanley Dutton (born January 30, 1951) is an American actor and director. He is best known for his roles in the television series ''Roc (TV series), Roc'' (1991–1994) and the television film ''The Piano Lesson (film), The Piano Lesson'' ...
as Private Investigator Ken Karsch *John Dunn Hill as Tom Greenleaf


Production

Part of ''Secret Window'' was filmed in the town of
North Hatley, Quebec North Hatley is a village of 675 people (2021 Census), located at the north end of Lake Massawippi. It is part of the Memphrémagog Regional County Municipality in the Eastern Townships region of Quebec, Canada, also known as Estrie or Cantons de ...
in the
Eastern Townships The Eastern Townships (french: Cantons de l'Est) is an historical administrative region in southeastern Quebec, Canada. It lies between the St. Lawrence Lowlands and the American border, and extends from Granby in the southwest, to Drummondv ...
approximately two hours south east of
Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
. Other filming locations included
Lake Massawippi Lake Massawippi is a freshwater lake in Memphrémagog Regional County Municipality in the Estrie region of Quebec, Canada. The Tomifobia River is the source of the lake at its southern tip, near the village of Ayer's Cliff, Quebec. In early recor ...
, Lake Sacacomie, Lake Gale and the village of
Bromont, Quebec Bromont is a city in southern Quebec, Canada, at the base of Mont Brome; it is in the Brome-Missisquoi Regional County Municipality. The Bromont area and its resort, Ski Bromont, is well known as a tourist destination for its downhill skiing, mo ...
. According to director David Koepp on the DVD commentary track, the footage of the ocean scene during Mort's restless night on the couch was extra b-roll footage taken from '' The Lost World: Jurassic Park''. The film's ending is different from the source novella's. In the novella, Ted and Amy survive Mort's attempt on their lives, and Mort dies. It is also revealed that through
supernatural Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...
forces, the fictional John Shooter had manifested and come to life from Mort's imagination, and really was the one to commit the murders and arson.


Reception

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...
awarded ''Secret Window'' three stars out of a possible four, stating that it "could add up to a straight-faced thriller about things that go boo in the night, but Johnny Depp and director David Koepp ... have too much style to let that happen." He continues by noting that the "story is more entertaining as it rolls along than it is when it gets to the finish line. But at least King uses his imagination right up to the end, and spares us the obligatory violent showdown that a lesser storyteller would have settled for." Ian Nathan from ''Empire'' only awarded the film 2 stars out of a possible 5, stating that "The presence of the sublime Depp will be enough to get Secret Window noticed, but even his latest set of rattling eccentricities is not enough to energise this deadbeat parlour trick." On
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, ''Secret Window'' has an approval rating of 46% based on 163 reviews, with an average rating of 5.50/10. The site's critics' consensus reads: "Depp is quirkily entertaining, but the movie runs out of steam by the end." On
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
, the film has an aggregated score of 46 out of 100 based on 34 critics, indicating "Mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by
CinemaScore CinemaScore is a market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts based on the data. Background Ed Mintz founded Ci ...
gave the film an average grade of "C+" on an A+ to F scale. Each film's score can be accessed from the website's search bar. The film was a modest box office success, succeeding at recouping its budget of $40 million with a worldwide gross of $92.9 million. An alternate ending was included on the home media release, explicitly showing both Ted and Amy's dead bodies underneath the corn patch in Mort's garden. In the final version of the film, it is implied, but the bodies are not shown.


See also

*
List of films featuring mental illness This is a non-exhaustive list of films which have portrayed mental disorders. Inclusion in this list is based upon the disorder as it is portrayed in the canon of the film, and does not necessarily reflect the diagnosis or symptoms in the real wo ...


References


External links

* * * * * {{Philip Glass 2004 films 2004 horror films 2004 psychological thriller films 2000s English-language films 2000s horror thriller films 2000s mystery thriller films 2000s psychological horror films Adultery in films American horror thriller films American mystery thriller films American psychological horror films American psychological thriller films Columbia Pictures films Fiction with unreliable narrators Films about dissociative identity disorder Films about writers Films based on American horror novels Films based on works by Stephen King Films directed by David Koepp Films scored by Philip Glass Films scored by Geoff Zanelli Films set in New York (state) Films shot in Quebec Films with screenplays by David Koepp Uxoricide in fiction 2000s American films