A number of film adaptations associated with horror author Stephen King include the supernatural and unnatural. Of course, those familiar with his work know that King’s writings extend to real-world situations, psychological thrillers, and even inspirational tales. Now one such psychological thriller based on a Stephen King short story is available to stream on Max.
This particular film was released in 2004 when Stephen King adaptations weren’t quite as popular as they were in the 1980’s and 1990’s. By that time, many of the adaptations based on his works included horror films like Carrie, Christine, Pet Sematary, and Thinner to name a few. As such, this entry was an exciting change of pace that’s continued to find an audience even today.
In fact, one such reason has been the film’s lead performance which comes from actor Johnny Depp. While Depp was already popular at the time, this film was sandwiched between his performances in 2003’s Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl and 2006’s Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest. This places the film at a unique time when Depp’s modern-day quirks and eccentric performances were just becoming popular.
As such, the movie, Secret Window, based on Secret Garden, a short story from the 1990 collection Four Past Midnight, memorably turns Johnny Depp into divorced writer Mort Rainey. A large portion of the film, shortened to just Secret Window for the title, revolves around Rainey’s crumbling life. He lost his marriage and house all because his wife chose to have an affair.
To make matters worse, however, Depp’s character begins receiving visits and messages from a stalker. This man, named John Shooter, claims that Rainey has stolen one of his stories. Now that he’s being accused of plagiarism in addition to his domestic problems, Rainey attempts to prove the stalker wrong and rectify his life. This all leads to a shocking twist ending that surprised audiences when the film was first released.
It’s an intense film carried by Pirates actor Johnny Depp’s performance. Of course, there are also gorgeous visuals and an enchanting score that boosts his role as well. There aren’t very many Stephen King adaptations like it, so for fans that have access to Max, it’s certainly worth a watch.
In addition to Depp, the cast of the film includes John Turturro, Maria Bello, Timothy Hutton, Len Cariou, and Charles S. Dutton. David Koepp, known for having written such hits as Jurassic Park and Mission: Impossible, both wrote and directed the thriller.