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Cape Fear

1991 · directed by Martin Scorsese · 128 min
25,005 feet · Prominence
493rd of 24,106 films scored
The Rewatchables‘Cape Fear’ With Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, and Sean Fennessey →

How this film scores

Draw69

Lifetime worldwide gross $182m, re-releases included; about $442m in 2026 money.

Rank735 of 11,051In 19919 of 176

How Draw works

Inflation-adjusted worldwide box office, on one global curve, and nothing else. It does not know whether a film was good.

Praise81

Awards claim half the headroom above the critics' score.

Critics75 baseAwards45 signal → +6 lift

Oscars2 nominated Actor, Supporting Actress
Golden Globes2 nominated Lead acting, Supporting acting
BAFTAs1 nominated Craft and other
How Praise works

Critics set the score; a tiered award record, Picture and Directing carrying the most weight, claims half the headroom above it. Praise is the verdict at the time; Legacy is the verdict since.

Legacy60

Judged directly: De Niro menace, still referenced.

Verdict60 of 100IMDb7.3 from 241kWikipedia102k views a monthAge35 years

Scored beside it · 565 of 4,039 films judged

If it does not belong in this company, the number is wrong.

How Legacy works

Legacy is a judgment, not a formula. A film can be adored by critics and culturally quiet, or lightly reviewed and permanently lodged in the culture, and no arithmetic over IMDb numbers tells the difference. Every signal behind it keeps updating.

draw 69 praise 81 legacy 60averages 70, placing it at25,005 ft
How the three become one number

Added, not multiplied, so a film transcendent on one pillar and weak on another is not zeroed out. A compression curve then squeezes the top, because the seven greatest films ever made should not be four thousand feet apart.

In these careers — elevation for this film

Robert De Niro20,455 ftNick Nolte19,460 ftJuliette Lewis19,375 ftJessica Lange18,963 ftJoe Don Baker18,006 ftGregory Peck17,991 ftRobert Mitchum17,918 ftMartin Balsam17,802 ft