Customer Rating: 
Summary: Cult Classic
Comment: This is a Cult Classic, the Atmosphere, the locations, the acting, The Story. I love it, I just wish they would put it out on DVD. Those that criticize the special effects, I mean come on... it was made in 1983.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Ugh!
Comment: I love the book by F. Paul Wilson. Read the book instead and ignore this awful movie. I really wanted to like this movie...IMPOSSIBLE! Bad acting, bad FX, bad script, bad make-up. Avoid this mess.
Customer Rating:
Summary: truncuated masterpiece
Comment: The Keep is quite literally a shadow of its former self. Michael Mann originally shot this film with a reputed running length of about 3 hours. However, the studio - Paramount got cold feet with a budget overrun, fired Mann, and severely edited the work in progress to about a 90 minute run time. Naturally being cut in half was never going to enhance the film and achieved the reverse. What was probably an in depth and complex adaptation of F. Paul Wilson's superb novel of the same title became a largely incomprehensible mess to anyone who had not read the book. The result was a Box Office flop on its release, accompanied by largely damning reviews from most critics. It acquired something of a cult status on its video release though. That said, many fans of Michael Mann are often astonished that that they have not heard of it or in fact seen it.
Set in WW2 Romania, a garrison of German soldiers are assigned to guard a seemingly deserted Keep, deep in the Carpathian mountains. Their captain, played by Jurgen Prochnow is dismayed to learn, however, that the Keep is not as empty as originally thought but in fact is home to something ancient, evil and very powerful and which embarks on killing his men. An SS contingent arrives to back up the embattled soldiers, led by a vicious Gabriel Byrne. The SS believe the local villagers to be responsible and embark on a series of atrocities. However, this just seems to make the situation worse. Accompanying the SS is a Jewish professor, played by Ian McKellen and his daughter - Alberta Watson who have been brought along to try to shed some light on what is actually going on. Before long, a mysterious stranger played by Scott Glenn arrives at the Keep, with an in depth knowledge of the place and what lies within....
The film is superbly enhanced by an incredibly atmospheric score from those maestros of electronic music - Tangerine Dream.
My recommendation to anyone wishing to watch this film, is to read the book first because of its severely truncuated nature. That said scenes within the film do stand up well in their own right, and give us a glimpse of what may have been had Michael Mann been allowed to complete his vision. There are differing cuts of the film all over the world it would seem. Of the two UK releases on VHS, the first release - the 'Pre Cert' actually has more complete scenes than the stereo VHS that was to follow later. Various TV versions of the film across the globe appear to have additional scenes from time to time too. One piece of good news though is that Michael Mann and Paramount finally appear to have buried their differences, and may well be embarking on a Director's Cut of the film which we can only hope restores it as fully as possible to what it should have been firstly. Now that would be a truly worthwhile exercise.
Customer Rating:
Summary: The Keep that doesn't....(keep, that is)
Comment: Caveat: I read and disliked the original novel which the film intended to follow closely. That said, having sat through both, I can confidently say that the flick fails on its own merits, repeating (if not enhancing) flaws of the novel while succumbing to editing flubs.
THE PLOT: It's 1941, and Jurgen Prochnow is a Wehrmacht officer sent to garrison a remote Romanian village centered on an enigmatic fortress known as "the Keep". The origins and purpose of the Keep are enigmatic, even to its caretakers. Each brick is inlaid with a symbol slightly resembling a crucifix and - contrary to the basic rules of martial architecture - the Keep's structure is stronger on the inside than the outside, as if it were designed more as a prison than a fortress. It isn't long before greedy Wehrmacht troops breach the structure of the Keep and release its sole inmate. Able to kill at will, the malevolent being cannot escape the Keep itself - which is apparently a box-within-a-box. However, there is the mysterious Glenn (Scott Glenn) who journeys across the Mediterranean once "sensing" that the Keep has been disturbed. There is also Theodore Cuza (Ian Mckellan) who looks older here than he did in "Fellowship of the Ring". Cuza, a scholar who's spent time studying the Keep, has been biding time a death camp when he's drafted by the Germans to explain the secrets of the Keep. Cuza is accompanied by his strong-willed daughter Magda, and we soon sense that the two Cuzas will be locked in a battle paralleling that of the cosmic forces represented by Glenn and The Monster of the Keep.
WHY IT DON'T WORK: The book has its fans, but I doubt that many will appreciate a film that sloppily carves up the story. The nature and identity of "The Monster" and its shared origin with Glenn are never described - in contrast with the novel which DOES establish the two elements, then switches gears and adds new ones. Instead "The Keep" never becomes more than a battle between Scott Glenn and some (nearly) invincible guy in a suit. The flick hints at the conflict between Wehrmact Captain Woermann (always dependable Jurgen Prochnow) and SS Sturmbanfuhrer Kampffer (Gabriel Byrne in a surprising turn), even though both will eventually share a fate as fodder for The Beast. Though the remaining story has less entertainment value than an hour-long episode of "Twilight Zone" (the `80's version at that), incoherent storytelling is bound to make the experience feel longer than its 2-hour running time. In fact, there's little plot at all strung between the arrival of the Nazis and the confrontation between Beast and Glenn. The flick botches novel's dilemma of whether the Beast is better or worse than the Nazis, or what it even is (readers of the novel, and maybe the flick's credits will know he's Molasar) and compliments that failure with visual effects that are sometimes intriguing but mostly laughably dated (animated lighting effects).
WHY IT MIGHT WORK: The most recurring complaint is how the film botches re-telling of the novel, but those who haven't read it may appreciate the flick's atmospheric settings, score by Tangerine Dream and some bare attempt to keep up the suspense - even as the script utterly fails to gel into any story (whether faithful to the novel, or otherwise). Instead, I'd suggest getting either John Carpenter's "The Thing" or "Prince of Darkness", or perhaps either version of "Quatermass and the Pit".
Customer Rating:
Summary: If you are a visual person...
Comment: this movie was spectacular. One of the most beautiful set of images I've ever seen on the screen. It stimulated and aroused my imagination. I have not seen the movie for years, and am still struck by it's beauty and wonder.
The story is good, the actors are good, read the rest of the reviews. They tell it rightly. I'll wait patiently for the dvd release, and go buy the book now. Do your eyes and brain a service and watch this movie.
Summary: Cult Classic
Comment: This is a Cult Classic, the Atmosphere, the locations, the acting, The Story. I love it, I just wish they would put it out on DVD. Those that criticize the special effects, I mean come on... it was made in 1983.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Ugh!
Comment: I love the book by F. Paul Wilson. Read the book instead and ignore this awful movie. I really wanted to like this movie...IMPOSSIBLE! Bad acting, bad FX, bad script, bad make-up. Avoid this mess.
Customer Rating:
Summary: truncuated masterpiece
Comment: The Keep is quite literally a shadow of its former self. Michael Mann originally shot this film with a reputed running length of about 3 hours. However, the studio - Paramount got cold feet with a budget overrun, fired Mann, and severely edited the work in progress to about a 90 minute run time. Naturally being cut in half was never going to enhance the film and achieved the reverse. What was probably an in depth and complex adaptation of F. Paul Wilson's superb novel of the same title became a largely incomprehensible mess to anyone who had not read the book. The result was a Box Office flop on its release, accompanied by largely damning reviews from most critics. It acquired something of a cult status on its video release though. That said, many fans of Michael Mann are often astonished that that they have not heard of it or in fact seen it.
Set in WW2 Romania, a garrison of German soldiers are assigned to guard a seemingly deserted Keep, deep in the Carpathian mountains. Their captain, played by Jurgen Prochnow is dismayed to learn, however, that the Keep is not as empty as originally thought but in fact is home to something ancient, evil and very powerful and which embarks on killing his men. An SS contingent arrives to back up the embattled soldiers, led by a vicious Gabriel Byrne. The SS believe the local villagers to be responsible and embark on a series of atrocities. However, this just seems to make the situation worse. Accompanying the SS is a Jewish professor, played by Ian McKellen and his daughter - Alberta Watson who have been brought along to try to shed some light on what is actually going on. Before long, a mysterious stranger played by Scott Glenn arrives at the Keep, with an in depth knowledge of the place and what lies within....
The film is superbly enhanced by an incredibly atmospheric score from those maestros of electronic music - Tangerine Dream.
My recommendation to anyone wishing to watch this film, is to read the book first because of its severely truncuated nature. That said scenes within the film do stand up well in their own right, and give us a glimpse of what may have been had Michael Mann been allowed to complete his vision. There are differing cuts of the film all over the world it would seem. Of the two UK releases on VHS, the first release - the 'Pre Cert' actually has more complete scenes than the stereo VHS that was to follow later. Various TV versions of the film across the globe appear to have additional scenes from time to time too. One piece of good news though is that Michael Mann and Paramount finally appear to have buried their differences, and may well be embarking on a Director's Cut of the film which we can only hope restores it as fully as possible to what it should have been firstly. Now that would be a truly worthwhile exercise.
Customer Rating:
Summary: The Keep that doesn't....(keep, that is)
Comment: Caveat: I read and disliked the original novel which the film intended to follow closely. That said, having sat through both, I can confidently say that the flick fails on its own merits, repeating (if not enhancing) flaws of the novel while succumbing to editing flubs.
THE PLOT: It's 1941, and Jurgen Prochnow is a Wehrmacht officer sent to garrison a remote Romanian village centered on an enigmatic fortress known as "the Keep". The origins and purpose of the Keep are enigmatic, even to its caretakers. Each brick is inlaid with a symbol slightly resembling a crucifix and - contrary to the basic rules of martial architecture - the Keep's structure is stronger on the inside than the outside, as if it were designed more as a prison than a fortress. It isn't long before greedy Wehrmacht troops breach the structure of the Keep and release its sole inmate. Able to kill at will, the malevolent being cannot escape the Keep itself - which is apparently a box-within-a-box. However, there is the mysterious Glenn (Scott Glenn) who journeys across the Mediterranean once "sensing" that the Keep has been disturbed. There is also Theodore Cuza (Ian Mckellan) who looks older here than he did in "Fellowship of the Ring". Cuza, a scholar who's spent time studying the Keep, has been biding time a death camp when he's drafted by the Germans to explain the secrets of the Keep. Cuza is accompanied by his strong-willed daughter Magda, and we soon sense that the two Cuzas will be locked in a battle paralleling that of the cosmic forces represented by Glenn and The Monster of the Keep.
WHY IT DON'T WORK: The book has its fans, but I doubt that many will appreciate a film that sloppily carves up the story. The nature and identity of "The Monster" and its shared origin with Glenn are never described - in contrast with the novel which DOES establish the two elements, then switches gears and adds new ones. Instead "The Keep" never becomes more than a battle between Scott Glenn and some (nearly) invincible guy in a suit. The flick hints at the conflict between Wehrmact Captain Woermann (always dependable Jurgen Prochnow) and SS Sturmbanfuhrer Kampffer (Gabriel Byrne in a surprising turn), even though both will eventually share a fate as fodder for The Beast. Though the remaining story has less entertainment value than an hour-long episode of "Twilight Zone" (the `80's version at that), incoherent storytelling is bound to make the experience feel longer than its 2-hour running time. In fact, there's little plot at all strung between the arrival of the Nazis and the confrontation between Beast and Glenn. The flick botches novel's dilemma of whether the Beast is better or worse than the Nazis, or what it even is (readers of the novel, and maybe the flick's credits will know he's Molasar) and compliments that failure with visual effects that are sometimes intriguing but mostly laughably dated (animated lighting effects).
WHY IT MIGHT WORK: The most recurring complaint is how the film botches re-telling of the novel, but those who haven't read it may appreciate the flick's atmospheric settings, score by Tangerine Dream and some bare attempt to keep up the suspense - even as the script utterly fails to gel into any story (whether faithful to the novel, or otherwise). Instead, I'd suggest getting either John Carpenter's "The Thing" or "Prince of Darkness", or perhaps either version of "Quatermass and the Pit".
Customer Rating:
Summary: If you are a visual person...
Comment: this movie was spectacular. One of the most beautiful set of images I've ever seen on the screen. It stimulated and aroused my imagination. I have not seen the movie for years, and am still struck by it's beauty and wonder.
The story is good, the actors are good, read the rest of the reviews. They tell it rightly. I'll wait patiently for the dvd release, and go buy the book now. Do your eyes and brain a service and watch this movie.