Apt Pupil (1998)

A boy blackmails his neighbor after suspecting him to be a Nazi war criminal.

Director:

Bryan Singer

Writers:

Stephen King (novel), Brandon Boyce (screenplay)

Stars:

Ian McKellen, Brad Renfro, Joshua Jackson

6 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Brad Renfro	...	Todd Bowden
Ian McKellen	...	Kurt Dussander
Joshua Jackson	...	Joey
Mickey Cottrell	...	Sociology Teacher
Michael Reid MacKay	...	Nightmare Victim
Ann Dowd	...	Monica Bowden
Bruce Davison	...	Richard Bowden
James Karen	...	Victor Bowden
Marjorie Lovett	...	Agnes Bowden
David Cooley	...	Gym Teacher
Blake Anthony Tibbetts	...	Teammate
Heather McComb	...	Becky Trask
Katherine Malone	...	Student
Grace Sinden	...	Secretary
David Schwimmer	...	Edward French

Storyline

Neighborhood boy Todd Bowden (Renfro) discovers that an old man living on his block named Arthur Denker (Mackellan) is Nazi war criminal. Bowden confronts Denker and offers him a deal: Bowden will not go to the authorities if Denker tells him stories of the concentration camps in WWII. Denker agrees and Bowden starts visiting him regularly. The more stories Bowden hears, the more it affects his personality.

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Plot Keywords:

nazi | blackmail | murder | cat | war criminal | 

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Taglines:

If you don't believe in the existence of evil, you've got a lot to learn.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for scenes of strong violence, language and brief sexuality

Details

Country:

USA France

Language:

English German

Release Date:

23 October 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

El aprendiz

Filming Locations:

Alhambra, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$14,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$3,583,151, 25 October 1998, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$8,838,938, 3 January 1999

Company Credits

Production Co:

Phoenix Pictures,Bad Hat Harry Productions,Canal+ Droits Audiovisuels

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS (8 channels) Dolby SR

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Sir Ian McKellen later claimed that Dussander's accent was very difficult to master, since Dussander was supposed to have been living in California for decades speaking English, and trying to suppress his German accent.

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Goofs

At the dinner scene the man points at a deer head on the wall and says, "that's a white tail buck". The deer head is in fact a mule deer and not a white tail deer.

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Quotes

Kurt Dussander: [seeing the SS uniform Todd has bought for him] Mary, Mother of God!

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Connections

Referenced in Angel: Somnambulist (2000)

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Soundtracks

Take Me Out to the Ball Game
(uncredited)
Written by Jack Norworth and Albert von Tilzer

User Reviews

A brilliantly concocted mindgame between a Nazi, a boy, and you.

This film is not for the light of heart or of mind. The story is about a boy who learns that a Nazi war criminal is living right in his metaphoric backyard. Obsessed with learning more than just what they teach you in school, the boy sets off on a journey to discover "How did it feel?" The writing, based on a novella by Stephen King, takes you through the minds of both the boy and the Nazi. It's a battle of wits with real people being the pawns. This movie will mess with your mind. Do not watch it if you aren't up to the challenge. My hat goes off to Brandon Boyce and Bryan Singer, the writer and director, respectively, who seem to have interwoven the story and the audience. Never have I witnessed such an excellent display of psychological warfare.