Public defender Sam Bowden (Nick Nolte) served as the attorney for brutal rapist Max Cady (Robert De Niro) at his arraignment. Shocked by the violence of Cady's crime, Sam duplicitously withheld information regarding the sexually promiscuous activities of Cady's rape victim -- information that might have won Max's acquittal. After serving a hellish 14-year sentence in a barbaric state penitentiary, Cady's out for revenge. ...