Review of Apt Pupil (1998) by Rob C — 01 Aug 2009
Apt Pupil takes an outstanding premise?young boy blackmails the old Nazi war criminal hiding next door?and turns it into 3/4s of a terrific movie. The late Brad Renfro gives an outstanding turn as Todd Bowen, the precocious 16-year-old who forces the Nazi (played by the great Ian McKellen) to provide him with first-hand accounts of holocaust atrocities.
An interesting study on the corrupting influence of evil, the real power of this film lies in watching the relationship between Bowen and the Nazi evolve. Bowen is firmly in control at first but that slowly changes as the film progresses, partly due to Bowen?s naiveté and partly due to the old Nazi?s craftiness.
The film clunks to a less-than-satisfying conclusion, but everything that comes before definitely makes it worth a look.
This review of Apt Pupil (1998) was written by Rob C on 01 Aug 2009.
Apt Pupil has generally received mixed reviews.
Was this review helpful?
