Double dose of fear

Max Cady, a psychopath recently out of chokey after 14 years for rape, sets out to terrorise lawyer Sam Bowden, who, he believes, withheld information about his case at his trial.

The original Cape Fear, directed by cult British director J. Lee Thompson in 1962, starred Robert Mitchum as the avenging sicko (a role he had perfected in 1955's Night of the Hunter) and Gregory Peck as the decent lawyer.

Both actors also turn up in cameos in Scorsese's remake, in which things aren't so clear-cut.

This time, Bowden (now played by Nick Nolte) is a lousy lawyer, and a philandering husband to boot, and Cady (Robert De Niro) isn't just mad, he's positively evil.

The later version has sex, too - note the infamous scene where Bowden's daughter (Juliette Lewis) sucks Cady's finger in the empty school theatre.

And, of course, there is Scorsese's wham-bam, hurricane-tossed ending. Both excellent, both worth owning on this three-DVD pack (stacked with trailers, interviews and commentaries). All you have to decide is which to watch first.