Reviews (94)

DISAPPOINTED
I gave this film two stars - one each for the great performances given by the actors. As far as the movie itself, it started out great but ended with not only a fizzle but left me scratching my head...

What was the point? An A student going bad? Where was the Stephen King in this picture? This could have been based on any old story.

While the storyline itself was fascinating and when the boy forced the old man into the Nazi uniform, I was right there. I invisioned all sorts of follow up but felt so let down with the dismal ending.

WARNING: Anybody who really wants to see the movie stop reading at this point. To sum it up the movie is boy finds old Nazi, boy tries to manipulates old Nazi, old Nazi comes back swinging, changes his minds, get found out, dies and boy becomes somebody not very nice. Blah, blah, blah. So what. I wanted the movie to make me care. It didn't.

Don't take that trip to the video store, save your money and wait for it to come out on cable or rent something really good because Apt Pupil simply wasn't.

Don't believe true evil exists? You have a lot to learn!
Director Bryan Singer seems fascinated by the dense blackness that comprises the unpleasant side of the human psyche, and he has built a reputation on creating films that explore those darker facets of mankind. Fans will not be disappointed, then, by APT PUPIL (1998). It is a riveting but disturbing fictional thriller that deals with the real-life subjects of evil and the Holocaust, the latter being a topic that is often regarded as too sensitive and controversial for all but non-fictional works. With APT PUPIL--which is based on a Stephen King novella--Singer actually uses the Holocaust as a backdrop for his exploration of the ease with which evil can take root in even the most prosaic of locations in the everyday world. And to a lesser degree, the film is also Singer's comment on the strong influence that an authority figure can have on shaping the worldview of a naïve and eager disciple.

In the film, an American high-school honor student (Brad Renfro) who is fascinated by the history of WWII--specifically the Holocaust--discovers that an elderly German émigré (Ian McKellen) living in the neighborhood is actually a hunted Nazi war criminal incognito, and the clever boy is able to gather enough evidence of this fact that he could easily expose the old man's true identity. But instead of turning his data over to the authorities, the boy uses it to muscle the elderly gent into sharing the details of the atrocities he committed during the war--details that "they're afraid to tell us about in school."

Of course, the old Nazi is outraged, but he also knows he's been trapped. So he ultimately resigns himself to the situation, and detailed stories of heinous actions he does tell. It isn't long before the recounting of his wartime atrocities awakens the old man's long-dormant fiendish and sadistic urges. And though the stories at first give the boy nightmares, it doesn't take too long for the boy's mind to start soaking up the vicious and perverse Nazi philosophy like a sponge soaks up water. The boy is an apt pupil indeed.

The acting in APT PUPIL is nothing short of superb. As the Nazi fugitive, the venerable Ian McKellen delivers a tour-de-force performance. He skillfully creates a convincing portrait of an utterly sadistic and amoral personality that is successfully kept hidden behind the façade of a subdued and affable persona. McKellen's performance is so realistic, in fact, that one is simultaneously awed by the actor's talent and disturbed by his characterization. Brad Renfro is also excellent--and frightening--as the white-bread everyboy whose minor inclination towards sadism is transformed into unfettered evil under the influence of the aging Nazi refugee. And though Renfro hasn't McKellen's range of skill or experience, he plays well against his mature colleague and does not come off as second-best.

David Schwimmer--better known from his role as Ross on TV's wildly popular FRIENDS--gives a believable and refreshingly somber performance in a supporting role as the boy's school counselor. And genre fans will surely recognize Bruce Davison, here playing the boy's father, from his break-out performance as the titular character in the original WILLARD (1971). Fans may also recognize genre regular James Karen, who here appears as the boy's grandfather.

As stated before, it is often considered a no-no to reference or address the Holocaust in fictional films. So it's not surprising that some critics decry APT PUPIL for trivializing the Holocaust and the suffering of Holocaust victims. But this criticism is unfounded, especially in light of the character treatment in this film. While it may be true that McKellen's interpretation of the fugitive Nazi is sometimes sympathetic, the actor never portrays the old man as repentant and therefore never assuages the repugnance or wickedness of the acts committed by such Nazis during WWII. And when the boy reveals what HE has become under the old Nazi's tutelage, his true nature is regarded as frightening and dangerous and NOT glamorous or alluring.

The DVD edition from Columbia/Tristar is a two-sided disc that offers an anamorphic widescreen version of the film in its original 2.35:1 aspect ratio (side A), as well as a full-screen pan-and-scan version of the film (Side B). The widescreen version is pristine, with few, if any, visible digital or filmic artifacts. Also on the disc are the original theatrical trailer and a short making-of featurette. All in all, this is an impeccable, reasonably priced edition of a captivating film that belongs in the collections of all serious genre fans or lovers of good cinema.

"Well today I am going to tell you story about an old man.."
This movie was not a horror movie like the preview might stimulate it as being but it is more of a dark drama, until the middle when it starts going into the thriller genre. This movie was as good as it was because of one person, Ian Mckellen. He made the movie and put on a chilling performance as the Neighbor Nazi. The movie's ending I didnt expect it, but it did not have the huge twist like Usual Suspects, Singer's other movie, but I still thought it was neat. Overall for six dollars i felt that this movie was sure worth the price and i would have payed ten to see it.

Implausable.
'Apt Pupil' was half decent until the ending, where the resolution of the story was ridiculously implausable. Yes, the Germans did very terrible things during WWII, but how long will the media continue to hammer the Germans over and over again? Haven't we had enough of the German Holocaust Thing? How many more movies can they possibly make about the subject matter??

DILATED PUPIL
Buoyed by the marvelous performances of Ian McKellen and Brad Renfro, APT PUPIL, Stephen King's expose on the horrors of the Holocaust, manages to entertain and provoke thoughts of this horrible blight on mankind.
However, at the heart, I couldn't understand Renfro's obsession with the Holocaust, nor really understand where his cold heart came from. His cruelty in humiliating McKellen during the infamous uniform/march scene, is totally despicable in showing Renfro's callousness. Everything points to the fact that despite McKellen's evil, Renfro's is even worse in that he chooses it for pleasure, rather than the distorted duty of a Nazi soldier.
The movie seems a little long at times, but director Bryan Singer keeps things interesting and his evocation of the above mentioned performances, is to his obvious credit. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

one of Dudikoff's best!
I've never seen a Dudikoff movie I didn't like. Well, maybe "Radioactive Dreams," but that doesn't count since he wasn't the star. Anyway, "Freedom Strike" actually has a pretty good story to it, and the acting is rather impressive for a DTV. Then again, Dudikoff's movies have always been well-made and feature film-quality compaired to just about every other DTV ever made. The scenes between him and the lovely Felicity Waterman are quiet and touching. After seeing those scenes, you could picture him doing a nice romantic comedy. I'd like to see him in something like "You've Got Mail." Check this one out. Now!

worth the rental fee.
i enjoy most of the well-written movies that Michael Dudikoff has been in. the story and acting in this particular movie was good, but could have showed more of the 'human' side of Michael's character. ... Read more