Secret Window
My Network TV | Release Date: March 12, 2004 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
46
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 34 Critic Reviews
Positive:
13
Mixed:
14
Negative:
7
Watch Now
Stream On
Buy on
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Expand

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
75
Philadelphia InquirerSteven Rea
Bloody, bone-chilling fun. Read full review
75
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
Depp gives a smart, subtle performance, and Turturro is terrific as a foe who's both exactly what he seems and exactly the opposite. Koepp's makes his (literally) corny tricks seemfresh and surprising. Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
It's a taught, entertaining motion picture that serves its purpose. Read full review
75
USA TodayClaudia Puig
A potent psychological thriller bolstered by strong performances and an offbeat sense of humor. What renders it an unsettling cut above many thrillers is the casting of Johnny Depp in the lead. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
The story is more entertaining as it rolls along than it is when it gets to the finish line. But at least King uses his imagination right up to the end, and spares us the obligatory violent showdown that a lesser storyteller would have settled for. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle
Even if a certain glibness in the plotting deflates its impact somewhat at the finish, it remains an eerie, playful thriller and an all-around entertaining time at the movies. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeWesley Morris
A jokey, junky potboiler. Read full review
70
VarietyDavid Rooney
The resourceful actor (Depp) invigorates Secret Window with a playful personality and wryly humorous aplomb not front-and-center in the script, making the psycho-suspenser more compelling than it might otherwise have been. Read full review
67
Portland OregonianM. E. Russell
"The only thing that matters is the ending," says Rainey toward the end of the movie. He's talking about the writers' craft. Koepp, despite the best efforts of his cast, sends this comment soaring into the ether of irony. Read full review
63
Chicago TribuneMichael Wilmington
Koepp, an often ingenious writer, should have followed King's example and covered his tracks better. If he had, Secret Window might have been as good as "Stir of Echoes," and not simply a mini "Misery" and a not-quite "Shining." Read full review
63
New York PostMegan Lehmann
The film is ultimately a one-man show -- and when that man is the singularly crafty Depp, it's hard to look away. Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick Groen
A poet is not a pirate (except in his dreams), and, minus the gold in his teeth and kohl over his eyes and trinkets in his tresses, Depp is handicapped here -- for all his deft brushwork, he can only do so much with a flat character on a small canvas. Read full review
63
Baltimore SunMichael Sragow
Secret Window leaves you unsatisfied and frustrated. Depp's performance both makes the film and undercuts it. He's a poet caught in a machine. Read full review
60
The Hollywood ReporterKirk Honeycutt
The movie telegraphs its intentions too early and relies too much on a single actor, Johnny Depp, to achieve its emotional force. Read full review
58
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
Doesn't keep any secrets but an open one: that Johnny Depp is on a roll, and actor's block is definitely not his problem. Read full review
50
Charlotte ObserverLawrence Toppman
The picture isn't nearly enough on any level: not scary, not suspenseful, not complex, not atmospheric. Read full review
50
Washington PostMichael O'Sullivan
This Window ultimately feels like one most of us have climbed through before. Read full review
50
Los Angeles TimesManohla Dargis
Unsteadily pitched between horror and comedy, Secret Window turns out to be neither terribly scary nor especially funny. Read full review
50
New York Daily NewsJami Bernard
It's a slight story to begin with, and the movie teeters on camp with its jokey filler material -- the typical King stuff including colorful locals, small puns and asides and a faint whiff of the supernatural. Read full review
50
Wall Street JournalJoe Morgenstern
Secret Window has an ending that lets one of our most reliably interesting actors pull out all the stops. But getting there from a good beginning followed by a slow, repetitive middle is a test of resourcefulness for him and a test of patience for us.
50
Miami HeraldConnie Ogle
In the end Secret Window asks too much, demands allegiance when only incredulity can be mustered. Read full review
50
PremierePeter Debruge
Secret Window's premise is certainly new, even if King appears to be plagiarizing themes from himself. Read full review
50
SalonStephanie Zacharek
Instead of taking us someplace we fear to go, Secret Window leads us to a place we've already been -- we know it so well, we could write the book on it ourselves. Read full review
42
Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam Arnold
The film never kicks in as a character study or a star vehicle. Read full review
40
The A.V. ClubNathan Rabin
Secret Window is almost worth seeing for his characteristically assured performance alone, but Koepp sabotages Depp and his surroundings with an ending so atrocious, it callously betrays everything that came before it. Read full review
40
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
The movie's "shock" payoff still feels like a cheap trick. Read full review
40
Dallas ObserverLuke Y. Thompson
This is fun for a while, but the ending is so ridiculous, and obvious, as to sully all the small joys that come before it. Read full review
30
L.A. WeeklyScott Foundas
The ultimate test of one's tolerance for King's self-aggrandizing postulations about writer's block, obsessive fans and the potentially frightening manifestations of the writer's id...It's just plain lousy. Read full review
30
Austin ChronicleMarc Savlov
The film itself is an effective enough metaphor for out-of-control bullshit that frankly, Koepp aside, was part and parcel of King’s novella from page 1. Read full review
30
The New York TimesA.O. Scott
This movie is a suspense thriller whose only suspense comes from an audience wondering if the picture will hit its promised 97-minute running time. Read full review
30
Washington PostDesson Thomson
You can boost mediocrity a little, but you cannot raise it from the dead. Read full review
30
Chicago ReaderJonathan Rosenbaum
The tricky plot has an interesting payoff, but it's a slow and bumpy ride getting there, and Koepp fares better with special effects than with generating either suspense or interest in the characters. Read full review
30
Village VoiceDennis Lim
"The only thing that matters is the ending," Mort declares in the closing seconds, just as the director is serving up a colossal (and literally corny) stinker. But for Depp, it's yet another daunting mission accomplished with wit and ingenuity. Read full review
20
Film ThreatKevin Carr
The worst sin of omission in Secret Window is the removal of the fact that Rainey had actually plagiarized in the past. In the story, this is critical because it is the source of Rainey’s guilt -– and arguably the reason for his success. Read full review
More From This Movie

46 Critic Reviews

5.3 User Reviews

Details & Credits|Trailers

Current Movie Releases
By MetascoreBy User Score
1 81 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple
2 77 Project Hail Mary
3 75 Send Help
4 73 Hoppers
5 72 The Sheep Detectives
SEE ALL
Essential Links
New on Amazon Prime Video
New on Netflix
Coming Soon to DVD/Blu-ray
SEE ALL