![Secret Window [DVD]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/515OiThiFkL._SX300_SY300_QL70_ML2_.jpg)
![Mortdecai [DVD + Digital]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/91Ma610I6GL._AC_UL160_SR160,160_.jpg)
Johnny Depp, outspoken critic of `freedom fries' (`I was ecstatic they re-named 'French Fries' as 'Freedom Fries.' Grown men and women in positions of power in the U.S. government showing themselves as idiots.'), has certainly had long and colorful career, but I'll always remember him a Glen Lutz from his very first film A Nightmare On Elm Street (1984). His popularity seemed to wan a bit, that was until he appeared in the blockbuster hit Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003), and is set to also appear in the following sequels, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006), and Pirates of the Caribbean 3 (2007). Somewhere in there he managed to find time to star in this film, Secret Window (2004), one of four films he appeared in during 2004. The film, based off a Stephen King story entitled `Secret Window, Secret Garden', was written and directed by David Koepp (Stir of Echoes), and, along with Depp, stars John Turturro (O Brother, Where Art Thou?), and Maria Bello (Payback). Also appearing is Timothy Hutton (The Dark Half), Charles S. Dutton (Mimic), and Len Cariou (About Schmidt).
Depp plays Mort Rainey, a writer who's not only suffering from a mild case of writers block (and usually a wicked case of the bed head), but is also knee deep in divorce proceedings with his estranged wife Amy (Bello). Seems Mort found Amy in the arms (and bed) of another man named Ted (Hutton), and this prompted their separation (apparently their marriage had been suffering for some time, and Amy's liaison was the point when they decided to call it quits)...but the divorce has yet to be finalized, due to Mort dragging his feet on signing the papers. In line with the saying that `when it rains, it pours', Mort also finds himself accused of plagiarism by a hillbilly sort named John Shooter (Turturro), who turns out to be more than just your garden variety nut job, as he begins stalking Mort, leaving ominous messages and threatening even worse if Mort doesn't `make things right' (Mort claims to have proof that he didn't steal the story, as it was published in a magazine some years before Shooter claims to have written his). So not only does Mort have his wife and her somewhat greasy boyfriend to deal with (they're pushing him to sign the papers), but Shooter keeps upping the stakes, presenting Mort with little mementos regarding the ever increasing serious nature of his intent.
Without actually giving away the nature of the story, specifically the characters, I will say I've seen similar aspects of this story before. It's not that I necessarily recognized the elements as they were presented, but about halfway through I sort of knew where we were headed. The interesting thing is how writer /director Koepp decided to `let the cat' out of the bag, in particular with the slow build up and relatively quiet realization (about three-quarters of the way in), rather than a more sensational revelation near the end (he describes his reasoning for this, and many other choices, in one of the featurettes). I thought it was a nice twist. While I did find some of the elements predictable, the film was still fun and entertaining to me based on the performances, scripting, and well thought out direction. I enjoyed Depp's character a lot, and I thought he did a good job bringing Mort to life, infusing him with all kinds of humanizing mannerisms and an overall realistic tone. I thought Turturro's character was a little off in the beginning (not the psychological make up of the character himself, but the performance) as his southern drawl distracted me a little bit, but I did get used to it, and given the true nature of the character, it worked (I still think the choice of a different actor for this part may have worked better, but that's neither here nor there). Maria Bello...I'm not especially particular to blondes (I like them brunettes), but I've always found her pleasing to watch, not only as an actress but also as a hot babe. I think she did relatively well, even if her role wasn't often as well defined as I thought it should have been, but perhaps this was the intent as we are supposed to focus our attention on Depp's character, and the fact that he was on the short end of the relationship stick. I thought the direction was very well done, as Koepp certainly knows how to relate a story and get a desired effect from the audience, that audience being myself. He used a lot of literal interpretations within the film (they not always obvious when first presented) and I was sort of on the fence about this aspect, but then I remembered one of Depp's previous films, The Ninth Gate (1999), by Roman Polanski, and how much trouble I had picking up on the subtle, sometimes completely obscure, concepts presented there, and found myself comfortable in the fact I didn't have to exert my brain as much here as I did there. I don't mind films with ambiguous stories, open to all kinds of interpretation, but some directors can take it too far, forgoing the audience's enjoyment for the sake of their own, bizarre conceptualizations (in terms of Polanski, I've found I either really like his films like Chinatown, or I'm completely annoyed by them as in The Ninth Gate.
The wide screen (2.40:1 aspect ratio) looks really good on this DVD, as the colors are rich and vibrant, along with clear definition between the light and the dark. The Dolby Digital 5.1 audio is also excellent, and comes through clear. There are a number of extras on this DVD including three featurettes (From Book to Film, A Look Through It, and Secrets Revealed), Animatics (animated storyboards), a director's commentary, four deleted scenes (two with directors commentary), and a number of previews for other Columbia/Tristar releases.
Cookieman108
Frequently bought together
![Secret Window [DVD]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/515OiThiFkL._AC_UL116_SR116,116_.jpg)
- +
- +
Total price:
To see our price, add these items to your cart.
Choose items to buy together.
Customers who viewed this item also viewed
Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1
Customer reviews
I ordered this movie from two different sellers... product is fine so I'm not going to return the DVD again. However, I'd like to mention that I specifically bought it because the description stated it was dubbed in Czech, and Spanish, which wasn't the case since both of them are in English, and French. I believe the description is created in advance and, then, the sellers tie their DVDs to it, so I'd encourage them to read the details more diligently.
Images in this review
Top reviews from the United States
There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 25, 2005
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 18, 2022
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 24, 2021
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 8, 2020
Top reviews from other countries
Pauli Lepistö
Classic Johnny Depp.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on September 20, 2018
Laurence Paul
Slick, Suspenseful Story of Danger, Doubt & Depp.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on May 11, 2016Austin haigh
Johnny depp does Stephen king
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on August 5, 2016sarah
Didn’t play the whole film!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on June 6, 2020Sarah Jane
After getting "Sleepy Hollow" (which is also a good film) thinking it was "Secret Window"
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on December 6, 2015
