Apt Pupil

Pros: Acting, suspense, plot, direction
Cons: Doesn't follow the King story closely

Very few movies chill me to the bone. I've endured hours of decapitations, killer creatures, serial killers, and senseless murder. But it is one film that chills me above and beyond all others. It's a film that speaks directly to and about the motives...

Pros: Brad Renfro gives the performance of a lifetime
Cons: Third act is just off.

This is a repost. Don't read it again if you already have.


Let it be stated that Apt Pupil is a horribly misunderstood and unfairly maligned film as much for ridiculous biases forced on the film by its audience and the film...

Pros: A striking scene or two.
Cons: Direction, story, script.

A word for future storytellers: When both your protagonist and antagonist are unlikeable, your chances of delivering a worthwhile story are close to nil. Apt Pupil, unsurprisingly, is no exception in its eagerness to exploit tragedy for "that's ...

Pros: Ian McKellen and Brad Renfro
Cons: None

Stop the presses! Mr. and Mrs. America and all the ships at sea. . . This review begins with the fascinating declaration that a Stephen King work has actually managed to transfer itself to the silver screen and not become a travesty falling in on itself!...

Pros: Gripping, thought-provoking film
Cons: Ending is somewhat weak

Why do men do the evil things they do? Is it because they are taught to do them? Does each of us have the potential for evil locked inside, or is evil something that some of us are just especially good at? These questions are the premise of the film...

Pros: Good story, Ian McKellen's performance
Cons: Not as good as the book, not enough bite to the ending

This review is part of the Loved the Book/ Hated the Movie write-off organized by KateTPZ, please see these other fine writers for their submissions, Blackelve, ChrisJarmick, dandj, gwsmith, j3nny3lf
jennifer_gibbons, jiastar, KateTPZ, Kay67,...

Pros: Ambitious attempt to produce psychological thriller
Cons: Heavy-handed; no attempt at balance

Ian McKellen's portrayal of "Mr. Denker" seemed absolutely right to me. In fact, I think he might even have burped a few times, as the old recluse who fled to the US to hide out from his Nazi past. He looks soiled, lonely, drinks bottle after...

Pros: Ian McKellen, direction of Bryan Singer, ability to pull you in
Cons: Bad ending, absence of any sort of hero, uneasy viewing experience

As much as I love Bryan Singer, as much as I love both "The Usual Suspects" and "X-Men", I did not love, nor barely like, this movie. I remember reading an interview with a talented filmmaker (unfortunately I forget which one) in...

Pros: Seemed to go through very fast, well written, really makes you think
Cons: none

I rented this movie last night to watch with my boyfriend, and we both sat through the entire thing silent, except when I gasped and covered my eyes.

This is a movie about a 16 year old boy who becomes fascinated with Nazi activities during...

Pros: Nothing much
Cons: Just about everything

It always amazes me how many Stephen King movies pale in comparison to the book. This is no exception. What could have been a terrifying glimpse into the evil of the Third Reich is instead a shallow B-flick as phony as the rented Nazi uniform the teen...

Pros: Sir Ian McKellan, followed the King story very closely
Cons: Some of Renfro's acting is a bit over-the-top

I read this short story by Stephen King years ago, and found it to be one his more disturbing yarns. Having said that, I really liked the film because it was true to King's vision. Most of the movies made that are based on Stephen King's books or...

Pros: Singer's Crisp Direction
Cons: Nobody for Whom You Can Really Root

If anybody tells you it's impossible to learn film making in film school, just look at Bryan Singer. This 1989 graduate of the University of Southern California film school (the school's abbreviation, USC, is also said to stand for University of...

Pros: Great acting; effectively disturbing atmosphere.
Cons: The absence of a likable character may off-put viewers.

Bryan Singer's adaptation of the the Stephen King novella Apt Pupil opens with images one would associate with such a title. A high school student receives an "A" on a paper and then shuttles off to the library, immersing himself in...

Pros: Well thought-out plot / Almost perfect acting
Cons: A little too lengthy, but not to a point where it detracts from the experience

Although rated rather poorly by other individuals on this site, Apt Pupil is not a bad film at all. Much to the contrary, in fact.

One of the major points that others used to criticize this film with is that there is nobody to like. While...

Pros: Disturbing encounter of a teenager with a Nazi war criminal.
Cons: Disturbing encounter of a teenager with a Nazi war criminal.

In this movie a teenage boy, Todd Bowden (Brad Renfro) becomes obsessed with the Third Reich and an older gentleman Kurt Dussander (Ian McKellen) who he suspects was a Nazi.

The movie gets under your skin when Todd confronts Mr. Dussander with...