Stir of Echoes

Stir of Echoes might not have the same box office appeal as The Sixth Sense, but it should. The movie, a haunting look at the paranormal, is set in Chicago. Telephone lineman Tom Witzky (Kevin Bacon) and his wife Maggie (Kathryn Erbe) are concerned that their young son Jake is talking to himself.

At a neighborhood block party, Tom’s sister-in-law Lisa (saucer-eyed Ileana Douglas) hypnotizes him. I’ve seen guys who get hypnotized at comedy clubs do some wacky things, but Tom ends up way out in the wild blue yonder. When he returns back to earth, Tom suffers some post-hypnotic side effects.

A mysterious girl pops up out of nowhere. Is she real or not, or is it just Tom’s imagination? Add to that the blood that comes out his mouth when he gets a drink of water, or when he yanks out his own tooth like Nick Nolte in Affliction. Warning: do not try this at home. It looks excruciatingly painful.

Dovetailing Tom’s erratic behavior is the mysterious disappearance of a slightly retarded teenage girl from the neighborhood six months before. It doesn’t take much imagination to figure out that both plot points are tied together. One weakness of Stir of Echoes is its telegraphed ending. The Sixth Sense, on the other hand, throws you for a loop at the close.

Unlike The Haunting, this film doesn’t have to hit you over the head with special effects to keep your interest. There are several violent scenes, but the payoff is worth it. Anchored by Kevin Bacon’s strong performance, Stir of Echoes is a solid film. If you are into the horror film genre without all the perfunctory gore, put this one on your must-see list.