Stir of Echoes (1999) review

Dir. David Koepp

By: Steve Pulaski

Rating: ★★★½

David Koepp’s strengths as a filmmaker lie in his ability to conceive average, everyday believable characters who are thrust into situations beyond their comprehension. In such stories, Koepp moves his characters like chess pieces; smartly, thoughtfully while a groundswell of events takes them to physical and mental places the likes of which they’d never imagine they’d go. Koepp’s directorial debut, The Trigger Effect, focused on very average, normal people forced to grapple with a power outage that sparked the slowburn degradation of society around them. It was a taut, well-acted thriller underscored by Koepp’s careful writing, which delivered a balanced dose of realism and entertainment.

Koepp chases The Trigger Effect with Stir of Echoes, another winner of a thriller that had the misfortune of following The Sixth Sense into theaters just four weeks prior to the latter’s release. That saddled Stir of Echoes with the unfortunate blackmark of being a copy-cat in a year that was already dominated by films revolving around the occult. Tis pity because not only is the film a beautiful ode to the city of Chicago, but it’s also a captivating story about a man whose hypnosis leads him down a path of opaque visions which eventually brew obsession.

The story revolves around Tom and Maggie Witzky (Kevin Bacon and Kathryn Erbe, respectively), who reside in a working class neighborhood of Chicago. Allow me to gush for a moment about the city I love. Bungalow houses, gangways, cozy hardwood interior spaces, and porch parties define their abode and the city as a whole. The beautiful thing about a movie set in Chicago that’s actually filmed in the Windy City is there’s no mistaking the ambiance. Kudos to cinematographer Fred Murphy for highlighting the rustic charm of a blue collar city while also casting it with a sinister edge.

Where was I? Tom and Maggie are already raising a five-year-old (Zachary David Cope) on a cash-strapped budget, with another on the way. One night, while at one of those bungalow porch parties, Tom allows himself to be hypnotized by Maggie’s sister, Lisa (Illeana Douglas). He doesn’t believe in woo-woo, but gives it a shot, aided by a little liquid courage. While inside Tom’s mind, Lisa encourages him to “open up.” Tom shoots up in a cold sweat, completely unaware of what he did and said while hypnotized.

From there, Tom begins experiencing paranormal visions, seeing the ghost of a teenage girl (Jenny Morrison) in his living room. He becomes obsessed with trying to figure out who she is, let alone what happened to her, neglecting his family and his job in the process. The only one who understands is his son, for he sees visions of dead people as well. To reiterate, you can imagine the simultaneous shock and disappointment that washed across Koepp’s face when he presumably saw The Sixth Sense months prior to the release of his own work.

Based on a novel by fantasy/horror writer Richard Matheson — who penned the film The Night Stalker, which would later spawn the Kolchak TV series — Stir of Echoes thrusts us into Tom’s mind and keeps us there as he increasingly grows unstable. Koepp is exceptional at showing us the degradation of a man who becomes consumed by obsession, to the point where he lashes out at his wife and uses his kid in his exploits. When it comes to serious roles, this is one of Kevin Bacon’s finest performances. His clenched jaw and chiseled physique loan itself to the role of a man who looks like he’s physically and mentally starved. He’s hungry for a clue, a morsel of one, even, regarding the teen girl who haunts his vivid nightmares.

Consider the scene when Maggie returns home to find Tom and their son digging holes in the backyard. Tom won’t stop digging, even as Maggie begs for his attention. Bacon is believably batty (far gone, by this point), but don’t sleep on Kathryn Erbe’s tender, affected portrayal of a wife whose helplessness consumes her as much as the hypnosis consumes her husband.

Another testament to Koepp’s strong writing is his careful inclusion of side characters. Tom’s friends are mostly denizens of Chicago; recognizable types that are loud, boastful, but also potentially hiding something. He introduces us to them naturally, and moves them about the setting and storyline like a pro, allowing your mind to fester with assumptions regarding their purpose. Similarly, Koepp’s story isn’t predicated on jump-scares. Instead, its focus is on dread and consuming tension.

Stir of Echoes is the case where a smart novel by one of the masters of the horror genre was delicately handled by a consummate professional filmmaker — one who added his vision while retaining the supernatural intrigue of its source material.

Starring: Kevin Bacon, Kathryn Erbe, Zachary David Cope, Illena Douglas, Jennifer Morrison, Liza Weil, Kevin Dunn, Lusia Strus, and Chalon Williams. Directed by: David Koepp.