Apt Pupil

As you know by now, I love to enthrall you, the reader, with info you may not have been previously subjected to or cared about. Tonight and the day after tonight you will read two reviews of similar nature. NAZI nature. That is one commonality. The second is the Director. The astute Bryan Singer. He is one of the few Directors, that at such a young age, has had so many solid hits. The X-Men franchise which he launched in 2000 is the cornerstone to his career. There is no doubt about that, but without Apt Pupil (his sophomore triumph to The Usual Suspects proving he was not a 1 hit wonder), who knows where he would have gone. He obviously has a penchant for Nazi stories as he has already done 2 films in his slim career on the topic. With only 7 silver screen films he has helmed 2 of this subject matter, though they are very, very different in nature. Apt Pupil is about a high school kid named Todd (Brad Renfro--July 25, 1982 - January 15, 2008). Todd is a typical bored high school kid with no friends. He does however begin doing some research into one of his elderly neighbors. Arthur Denker (Mackellan) is just any ordinary elderly who keeps to himself never bothering anyone, but Todd thinks there is more to him than meets the eye. Is he a wizard? Can he manipulate metal? These are just a couple of the questions going through Todd's brain. In fact with due diligence Todd comes to the conclusion that this man is far worse than he can imagine. He believes Arthur is a Nazi War Criminal. After visiting with him several times he finally confronts him, only to find his accusations don't go over too well. He then proceeds to blackmail Arthur in the form of knowledge. Todd swears he will keep the man's secrets if Arthur tells him in depth, graphic stories of the WWII concentration camps and the genocide that took place. As Arthur does not want to go to prison for the rest of his life, and does want to continue attending the neighborhood yard sales, he reluctantly agrees. With his new "friend", Todd is eager to go straight from school to Mr. Denker's home for the daily lesson until it gets out of control. Todd continues to push Denker for more and more information about what he knows, always with his finger on the proverbial button. Denker is getting fed up, but continues. When Todd makes him put on an SS uniform he got through an antique store and perform the official march is when it goes from history lesson to intensely real. The mentality of the impressionable Todd is beginning to change-for the worse. The is one of the greats, that once seen one time, that is all you will need for a long time. I have only seen it twice, both in 1998. I have been trying to get A-Bomb and my wife to watch it. They both would if only I had a copy. We went out one night looking, but to no avail. Maybe we can netflix it. Tomorrow is part 2 of 2 in the category titled "Bryan Singer and Nazi's."

NBM Rates Apt Pupil - Phenomenal