Stir of Echoes (1999)

First of all, i must admit that i was completely unaware of this film, until very recently. Second, i saw many reviewers having given a high score to this movie, comparing it to its contemporary "Sixth Sense". I must say that when the latter was released, it didn't fascinated me that much, since i found it to be a rather superficial version of the 10-year older cult masterpiece with the title "Jacob's Ladder". Having said that, i now have to add that "Stir of Souls" is not, by any means, close to "Sixth Sense". What you' ll get here is a childish one- piece ghost story, lacking even the slightest twist to get things interesting. Both the scenario and the characters lack the psychological depth that could make a typical monolithic ghost story a good movie that keeps you guessing on the edge of your seat. Second class in all its aspects. My humble rating: 3/10.

Neil goes all through with Maggie about what her boys (husband and son) are going through. He explains the difference between the way they each receive messages and that Tom doesn't have a choice but to FOLLOW them to make the ghost go away. She gets home later and is beside herself from that point on about his ridiculous digging. She's all the more put off by his blunt and robotic response that he's supposed to dig. In her mind, it's like the explanation Neil gave her never happened. How could she not have known to just leave him alone and let him do whatever weirdness he needs to?

It looks like this film was made on location in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood (after all, 'It's a decent neighborhood'). When I lived in Schaumburg, a family suburb, we referred to Lincoln Park as 'Yuppieville' but I visited friends in Lincoln Park often. In fact, it's the first place I ever smoked pot.Kevin Bacon is great, as is the rest of the cast. I thought his wife was portrayed by Courtney Cox and not Kathryn Erbe. I also thought his brother with the killer-son football star was Jim Belushi, and not Zachary David Cope. Apparently, the son of the co-conspirator (cop's son) was not killed by Jake Witzky (Zachary David Cope). There was only one casket at the cemetery along with the tombstone of the murdered girl whose ghost drifted off behind a moving car. The credits only showed Bacon and Cope's names. At the end of the film, aired on TWC's 'free movies,' (Sundance) the ending credits flashed by so quickly, I had to Google IMDb after the film ended just to view the cast.I don't see any comparison with 'Stir of Echoes' to 'The Sixth Sense.' This film was much more believable. The best parts were the unforgettable Chicago neighborhood, even if it wasn't Lincoln Park, and the brief shot of Kathryn Erbe's cute butt before her shower.I hope the Witzky family moved to Schaumburg, which really IS a 'decent neighborhood.' Lincoln Park is not a good family neighborhood. I'll take the suburbs any day. Besides, I'm not a Cub or Bears fan.

STIR OF ECHOES is a classic ghost story based on a novel by the late, great Richard Matheson. It stars Kevin Bacon as a sceptic who undergoes hypnosis and soon finds himself suffering extreme flashbacks and visions of a ghostly girl with vengeance on her mind. The story has been done to death by Hollywood recently - this came out the same year as THE SIXTH SENSE, which helped popularise the ghost story genre once again - but this film works, possessing a finesse and level of quality usually missing in the genre.The good things about STIR OF ECHOES are the reliance on good, old-fashioned storytelling over blood and guts and jump scares. It's a slow-burner of a movie and writer/director David Koepp allows the suspense to generate naturally. Most of these films have a disappointing back story when it finally gets revealed but that's not the case here - the narrative remains gripping throughout. And when it does descend into cliché at the climax, you can forgive it for the quality that's come before.Kevin Bacon is one of those underrated actors that Hollywood doesn't really know what to do with, and he's rarely given the chance to shine. Yet when he does he burns up the screen with an energy like no other, and he's on top form as the mild-mannered husband and father who finds himself channelling a kind of supernatural vengeance. His mania is both convincing and frightening. Kathryn Erbe is also very strong as his put-upon wife, and child actor Zachary David Cope is excellent in a creepy kid role. STIR OF ECHOES is a lovely surprise, a modern twist on the ghost story that feels fresh and exciting despite its familiarity.