Apt Pupil • The Next Reel

Bryan Singer’s film “Apt Pupil” was actually the second time the film was under production; the first attempt had several casting issues and when it finally started shooting, ended up running out of funds, killing the project. Perhaps that was a sign that Stephen King’s novella was a bit too tricky to make correctly. It’s a very dark story that doesn’t really have any likable characters in it. Singer’s 1998 adaptation toned much of the violence from the book down, but also took a different angle with the ending that many people, including us, felt didn’t work. Join us — Pete Wright and Andy Nelson — as we finish our epic Stephen King adaptation series with Singer’s “Apt Pupil.” We talk about what worked well in the book, what works in the film, and where the film may have gone wrong. We discuss the wonderful performances by Ian McKellan and the late Brad Renfro and look at what they bring to the film, despite its problems. We chat about Singer and some of his regulars, notably John Ottman, his composer/editor. And we circle back to the Nazi elements within the film and what Singer may have been after with this story, as well as other films in his career. It’s an interesting but flawed film that we have a great conversation about. Check it out! Hey! You know what would be awesome? If you would drop us a positive rating on iTunes! If you like what we’re doing here on TNR, it really is the best way to make sure that this show appears when others search for it, plus, it’s just a nice thing to do. Thanks!!

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