The Apple (1980)

Director:

Menahem Golan

Writers:

Menahem Golan (screenplay)
Coby Recht (story) ...
(more)

Release Date:

21 November 1980 (USA)

Genre:

Music | Musical | Romance | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

A Funky Fantasy That'll Rock Your World!

Plot:

Musical set in the 'future', e.g. 1994. A young couple enters the world of the music industry, but also the world of drugs.

Plot Keywords:

Music Industry | Drugs | Future | Song | Rain

Cast

Catherine Mary Stewart	...	Bibi
George Gilmour	...	Alphie
Grace Kennedy	...	Pandi
Allan Love	...	Dandi (as Alan Love)
Joss Ackland	...	Hippie Leader / Mr. Topps
Vladek Sheybal	...	Mr. Boogalow
Ray Shell	...	Shake
Miriam Margolyes	...	Landlady
Derek Deadman	...	Bulldog
Michael Logan	...	James
George S. Clinton	...	Joe Pittman, reporter
Francesca Poston	...	Vampire / Star Rock / Mr. Boogalow's Receptionist / Keyboard Player in 'BIM' Band / One of Ashley's 'Lap-mates' at Mr. Boogalow's Penthouse Party
Leslie Meadows	...	Ashley / Dancer
Günther Notthoff	...	Fatdog
Clem Davies	...	Clark James
Coby Recht	...	Jean-Louis
Iris Recht	...	Dominique
Lance Aston	...	Dancer
Wendy Baldock	...	Dancer
Lennie Bickely	...	Dancer
Mandy Carole	...	Dancer
John Chester	...	Dancer
Julie Collins	...	Dancer
Mary Corpe	...	Dancer
Susan Daly	...	Dancer
Jane Danielle	...	Dancer
Kathy Evans	...	Dancer
Jane Faithe	...	Dancer
Bert Francis	...	Dancer
Marta Gillot	...	Dancer
John Greaves	...	Dancer
Paul Henry	...	Dancer
Finola Hughes	...	Dancer
Beverly Kay	...	Dancer
Chrissie Kendall	...	Dancer
Heather Laurie	...	Dancer
Scott MacKee	...	Dancer
Richard Paul Majewski	...	Dancer (as Richard Majewski)
Peter Newton	...	Dancer
Diana Palmer	...	Dancer
Richard Pettyfer	...	Dancer
Andrie Reid	...	Dancer
Susan Roe	...	Dancer
Terry Sheppard	...	Dancer
Ricardo Sibelo	...	Dancer
David Tate	...	Dancer
Femi Taylor	...	Dancer
Gess Whitfield	...	Dancer
Yvonne Younger	...	Dancer

Directed by
Menahem Golan

Writing credits
Menahem Golan		(screenplay)
Coby Recht		(story) and
Iris Recht		(story)

Produced by
Yoram Globus	....	producer
Menahem Golan	....	producer

Original Music by
Coby Recht

Cinematography by
David Gurfinkel

Film Editing by
Alain Jakubowicz

Casting by
Valerie Van Ost

Production Design by
Hans Jürgen Kiebach		(as Jürgen Kiebach)

Art Direction by
Hans Jürgen Kiebach		(as Jurgen Kiebach)

Costume Design by
Ingrid Zoré		(as Ingrid Zore)

Makeup Department
Colin Arthur	....	makeup artist
Lisa Grass	....	makeup artist assistant
Tamy Levy	....	hair stylist (as Tammy Levy)
Moni Mansano	....	makeup artist
Zipporah Mansano	....	makeup artist assistant
Peter Shepherd	....	hair stylist

Production Management
Axel Bär	....	unit manager
Karl W. Schaper	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Martin Höner	....	first assistant director
Haim Idan	....	second assistant director
Dory Lubliner	....	second assistant director (as Dori Lubliner)

Art Department
Peter Alteneder	....	set dresser
Wolfgang Kallnischkies	....	propman
Sybille Kirchheim	....	assistant art director
Mario Stock	....	property master
Dietmar H. Suhr	....	assistant art director (as Dietmar Suhr)

Sound Department
Don J. Bassman	....	sound mixer (as Don Bassman)
Chris Carpenter	....	sound mixer
Joel Fein	....	sound mixer
Jacob Goldstein	....	sound editor
Eli Yarkoni	....	sound recordist

Special Effects by
Richard Richtsfeld	....	special effects

Camera and Electrical Department
Micky Binyamini	....	assistant camera (as Miki Benjamini)
Yoni Hamenachem	....	still photographer
Bernd Huebner	....	best boy (as Bernd Hüber)
Peter Kalisch	....	assistant camera
Avraham Karpick	....	assistant camera (as Avram Karpic)
Helmut Klee	....	gaffer
Avraham Leibman	....	gaffer
Shmulik Levy	....	head grip (as Shmulik Levi)
Avi Avrahami	....	electrician (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Brigitte Friedländer-Rodriguez	....	wardrobe (as Brigitte Rodriguez)
Sonja Kutschke	....	wardrobe
Gisela Nixdorf	....	wardrobe (as Giesela Nixdorf)
Helmut Preuss	....	wardrobe

Editorial Department
Hagit Anin	....	assistant editor
Dick Bernstein	....	assistant editor
Mike Berold	....	assistant editor
María Luisa Pino	....	assistant editor (as Maria Louisa Pino)
Efraim Reuveni	....	assistant editor

Music Department
George S. Clinton	....	music adaptator
George S. Clinton	....	music supervisor
Richard Goldblatt	....	music recordist
Mary Hylan	....	singing voice: Catherine Mary Stewart

Other crew
Kent Adamson	....	assistant to producer
Irith Benjamini	....	script supervisor
Nigel Lythgoe	....	choreographer
Priscilla McDonald	....	continuity
Michael Melzer	....	production assistant
Helga Ploiner	....	head accountant
Michael Scoble	....	production assistant
Manfred Thurau	....	production accountant
Trixi Waizenauer	....	production secretary
Kenneth Warwick	....	assistant choreographer
Frank J. Tsacrios	....	assistant to producer (uncredited)

Production Companies

• NF Geria III-Produktion München

Distributors

• Cannon Film Distributors (1980) (USA) (theatrical)
• Citadel Films (1980) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Paragon Video Productions (1982) (USA) (VHS)
• Star Video (1982) (West Germany) (VHS)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1986) (USA) (TV) (broadcast premiere)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2004) (USA) (VHS)
• Video Classics (????) (USA) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Boutique Sweetheart  costume house
• CCC Film Studio  studio
• Geyer Werke Berlin  laboratory
• MGM Lab - Hollywood  laboratory
• New Creative Sound  sound effects
• RGB Optical  titles and opticals
• The Music Center - London  music recorded at
• Theaterkunst  costume house
• Village Recorder, The  music remixed for dolby sound at (as Village Recorders)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

USA | West Germany

Language:

English | French | German | Italian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

UK:AA (1980) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Iceland:L | Sweden:11 | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Germany

Company:

NF Geria III-Produktion München

Trivia:

Mr. Boogalow sings the line, 'The world is nothing but a big Casino Royale.' Vladek Sheybal, who plays Mr. Boogalow, actually appeared in the film Casino Royale (1967) as Le Chiffre's Auctioneer. Sheybal also appeared in another James Bond movie, From Russia with Love (1963).

Quotes:

Alphie:It *was* an earthquake! I didn't dream it!
Mr. Boogalow:Of course you didn't. When I signed my first contract, I also felt the world was going to pieces.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "TCM Underground: The Apple/Roller Boogie (#1.44)" (2008)

Soundtrack:

Cry for Me

The Apple BITES! Watch it anyway, though....

Proudly taking its place next to "Can't Stop the Music", "Xanadu", "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" and other breathtakingly bad musicals is this rapturously awful piece of celluloid punishment. This one tops all of the aforementioned flicks in the heinousness department because the others, at least, contain some modicum of memorable and, even good, music! Released in 1980, this film is set in the far-flung future of 1994. Music (and apparently most everything!) is controlled by a huge conglomerate called BIM. During a World Music Festival, Stewart and Gilmour, two young, folksy types, pit their sappy love ballad against the over-the-top, synthetic music of Kennedy and Love. They come close to winning the competition, but the evil head of BIM (Sheybal) rigs it so that they lose. Realizing their potential, however, he attempts to sign them to a record deal. Stewart foolishly gives in while Gilmour stands his ground. Once he sees what the money, drugs and sexual excesses are doing to her, he attempts to break her away from BIM. The rather basic plot line takes its cues from The Bible, but is souped up with Rocky Horror Show-style hair, make-up and costuming topped off with ludicrous production design and some of the most dreadful, ear-assaulting production numbers ever to be captured on film. The story is slight to begin with, but is barely allowed to play out in between the endless, increasingly-bad songs. The numbers include a trip into hell, a plethora of couples writhing and posing on beds, a thoroughly zany enforced-exercise sequence and several tacky onstage concert sequences. Fans seem to be split on which songs they like or hate more...the disco-esquire BIM songs or the love ballads cranked out by Gilmour. None of the songs in the film are particularly memorable though, even if one can't get the imagery that goes with them out of one's head! It is astonishing that Stewart could actually carve out some type of career after this. Her fresh face and amiable persona somehow won out. She actually enjoyed a fairly healthy TV and movie resume in the wake of this film. Gilmour dropped off the face of the earth entirely, apparently. His singing isn't all that bad and he had a sexy body (shown off to good advantage at several stages of the movie) but he could not act at all and occasionally resembles Will Farrell! Kennedy and Love were also virtually obliterated by this turkey. Love was quite awful, but Kennedy actually appeared to have a certain amount of talent and presence and it's a shame she was sunk before she even got started. Sheybal had a long career as a character actor and he always strikes a distinctive note, but his singing here is disastrous. Ackland pops up briefly near the end and also can't sing, but manages to provide a little presence in a dual role. The film makers believed that 1994 would bring huge gas-guzzling cars with pointy ends and lots of paraphernalia attached, but aerodynamics actually won the day. However, their insight into the way the music business has evolved isn't all that far off the mark! Useful as a party-enhancing laugh machine. Look high and low, far and wide, but it is unlikely that a more splendiferously hideous film will be found.