Apt Pupil
![Watch film Apt Pupil — Apt Pupil (1998) ORIGINAL TRAILER [HD 1080p]](https://www.acmodasi.in/amdb/images/movie/w1920/0/94/apt-pupil-1998-158233.webp)
Short description
In 1984, a bright high school student named Todd Bowden becomes fixated on the history of Nazi Germany. He comes to suspect that an elderly neighbour, living quietly under an assumed name, is in fact Kurt Dussander, a former concentration camp officer who has evaded justice for decades. Rather than report him, Todd approaches the old man with an offer: his silence in exchange for firsthand accounts of the atrocities he committed.
The arrangement gives Todd the knowledge he craves, but it also revives something in Dussander, and the balance of control between the two shifts as their secret understanding deepens. Ian McKellen plays Dussander and Brad Renfro plays Todd, with Bruce Davison, Elias Koteas and Joe Morton in supporting roles.
Apt Pupil was directed by Bryan Singer, following his 1995 film The Usual Suspects and preceding X-Men (2000), from a screenplay by Brandon Boyce based on Stephen King's novella. Made for about 14 million dollars, it returned roughly 9 million worldwide and holds a 6.5 rating on TMDB from around 760 votes.
What's left behind the scenes
- Plans to adapt Stephen King's novella of the same name first appeared as far back as 1984. James Mason was set to play the role of Kurt, but he passed away from a heart attack before filming began. Richard Burton, who was considered as his replacement, also died before he could receive an official invitation to join the project. A third attempt to create the film took place in 1987, and this time it actually went into production. However, after six weeks of work, filming was halted due to significant budget overruns, with only 10 days left until the end of the shooting process. Rick Schroder and Nicole Williamson starred in the lead roles, and Alan Bridges served as the director. A year later, additional sources of funding were found, but the production had to be abandoned because Rick Schroder had grown too much in the intervening time, and the project was finally scrapped. According to Stephen King himself, who had the opportunity to see the footage, the adaptation would have turned out to be of very high quality.
- Filming was supposed to begin in June 1996, but due to significant disagreements between director Bryan Singer, producer Scott Rudin, and Spelling Films, it was delayed by nearly six months.
- The voiceover for one of the teachers at the very beginning of the film is provided by Christopher McQuarrie.
- By his own admission, Ian McKellen, who was 57 at the time, was quite surprised to be offered the role of a character written as a 75-year-old Kurt Dussander.
- After Stephen King learned that Bryan Singer intended to adapt his novella, he sold the rights for just $1. Additionally, the writer played the role of one of the guests at the graduation ceremony.
- As one of the photographs of Kurt Dussander from World War II, a photo of Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler was used, with his face digitally replaced by that of actor Ian McKellen.
- The film contains several references to director Bryan Singer's past. For example, he used the names of real people—teachers who taught at his alma mater in New Jersey. The mascot and colors (green and yellow) of Todd Bowden's basketball team are exactly those of Singer's school. Additionally, the number on Todd's jersey (85) corresponds to the year the director received his high school diploma.
- The film's premiere was delayed for some time because the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) had concerns regarding a scene in the school showers featuring a nude Brad Renfro (the actor was under sixteen at the time of filming). Ultimately, the film received an R rating from the MPAA.
- Shortly before the premiere, Brad Renfro was arrested by police on suspicion of possession of marijuana and cocaine. On January 15, 2008, Brad Renfro died of a heroin overdose. He was only 25 years old.
Similar movies
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
