**_Suffering betrayal, an author faces challenges at his remote lake house_**

A successful writer (Johnny Depp) is finalizing divorce proceedings while working on a new book at his house on a lake in upstate New York when a hick from the Deep South shows up at his doorstep, accusing him of plagiarism. Maria Bello and Timothy Hutton are on hand as the wife and her beau.

“Secret Window” (2004) is a drama and crime mystery that morphs into thriller/horror in the last act. It was based on Stephen King’s novella, but director David Koepp changed the climax because “the ending is everything,” as the movie argues.

The locations are excellent (cited below) and the depiction of a writer’s mundane daily life is accurate, as well as amusing. Depp is always good while Gillian Ferrabee is a highlight on the female front in a cameo (as Fran Evans). It’s cut from the same cloth as "What Lies Beneath" and, maybe, "Cold Creek Manor,” yet mixed with the later “1922” and an angle that I can’t give away or it’ll ruin your experience (although it’s kinda obvious and predictable). I enjoyed the flick, but it’s underwhelming and won’t watch again. I prefer those other three, yet this isn’t far off.

The movie runs 1 hour, 36 minutes, and was shot at Bromont Sur Le Lac, Québec, which is about 45 miles east of Montreal, plus areas nearby, including the big city. Second unit work was done in New York City.

GRADE: B-