<P> Cape Fear is a 1962 American psychological thriller film starring Robert Mitchum , Gregory Peck , Martin Balsam , and Polly Bergen . It was adapted by James R. Webb from the novel The Executioners by John D. MacDonald . It was initially storyboarded by Alfred Hitchcock ( slated to direct but quit over a dispute ) , subsequently directed by J. Lee Thompson , and released on April 12 , 1962 . The movie concerns an attorney whose family is stalked by a criminal he helped to send to jail . </P>
who starred in the original movie cape fear
Robert Mitchum Gregory Peck Martin Balsam Polly Bergen