Stir of Echoes (1999) [Lionsgate Anniversary Re-Release] 

Now available on 4k and Blu-ray combo from Lionsgate 

Following a party where he was hypnotized, a man starts having visions of a missing girl who used to live in the area and who’s family is still around. 

Written and directed by David Koepp from the Richard Matheson novel, Stir of Echoes is an effective thriller that plays in the realm of supernatural horror. The script here is solid and filled with tense sequences that the direction brings to the screen beautifully to create a creepy atmosphere from fairly early on, balancing that atmosphere with normal daily life for a couple living in a rented house with their son. Here, the heavy lifting was done in the novel which gave Koepp a solid base to work with for this film and to make the characters and situations believable and suspenseful as he could here. Of course, some elements did not translate for the novel to the screen, but the screen version of the story works really well and makes for one creepy, scary, and sometimes jumpy suspenseful and thrilling film. The film is a classic at this point and one that deserves its status as such.  

The cast here is phenomenal with Kevin Bacon leading the way as Tom, the man who gets visions of the missing girl, Kathryn Erbe as Maggie (Tom’s wife), Illeana Douglas as Lisa (Maggie’s sister with a gift), Kevin Dunn, Conor O’Farrell, Jennifer Morrison, Liza Weil, and more, all giving great performances that really help the viewer immerse themselves into the story. The characters are clearly well written, and the performances of this cast bring them to a high level than just the writing could.  

The film’s cinematography by Fred Murphy (and team) works great here, knowing when to zoom in uncomfortably close and when to zoom out to establish the image the film needs to convey the mood and set the atmosphere. The work here is great on the visual front. Joining in the greatness are the practical special effects (a great way to help a film age well) by Tony Gardner and team. From the ghostly look to the nail being pushed off a finger in a crucial yet brutal scene, the work done by the effects team here is great and has aged really well. The subtlety needed at times is carefully achieve and the more disturbing effects are also achieved very well. This is how you use limited effects while leaving a big impression. 

As someone who saw this film for the first time in an old movie theater with similar decor and seating to the one used in the hypnosis sequence added a lot to the experience and seeing it at home doesn’t quite have the same effects. However, this is one of those films where the atmosphere is palpable, and it makes any screen it is being watched on effective for that viewing. The quality on this new release is stunning with image and sound clarity that are fantastic while allowing the viewer to really get into the film through the atmosphere, the images, and the careful sound design. This new release is packed with extras here with a few being of more interest than the others of course. These include the director’s audio commentary, the Visions of the Past featurette, the special effects featurette, the screen tests, and the deleted scenes.