The Keep

Paramount Pictures | Release Date: December 16, 1983

4.5	USER SCORE Mixed or average reviews based on 10 Ratings

USER RATING DISTRIBUTION

Positive:

Mixed:

Negative:

Watch Now

Buy on

Stream On

Review this movie

VOTE NOW

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Please sign in or create an account before writing a review.

Check box if your review contains spoilers

0 characters (5000 max)

User Reviews

User score By date Most helpful

BunkerfoxApr 6, 2015

This film has been very heavily edited, and it seriously shows.

This film has some amazing visuals. The keep where most of the film is set is beautifully eerie, Michael Mann creates beautiful visual landscapes in his films, and in thisThis film has been very heavily edited, and it seriously shows.

This film has some amazing visuals. The keep where most of the film is set is beautifully eerie, Michael Mann creates beautiful visual landscapes in his films, and in this early work his talent is on display.
The heavy editing can be seen in this films story and the overall pace. It's not exactly hard to follow because there isn't much TOO follow. Large parts of the story have been cut so I have no idea who people are, why they are there, what they are doing, or even their motive. The story is confused as well. It starts out at a normal pace, and then suddenly it's like you miss an hour of the film and everything has changed. Watch confused for a while longer and then the finale just jumps out and surprises you, and it's over. It feels like there is a good story that can be told here, but the film is rushing to the finish and is happy to skip as much story as it can get away with to get there.

The acting isn't bad, but it isn't good either. No one beyond Jürgen Prochnow or Ian McKellen is allowed enough screen time with their characters. Scott Glen is the hero of the film and Michael Carter is the villain, but they are barely in it!

The soundtrack is, in my opinion, great. However, it probably won't be to everyone's taste as it is rather synthesized as opposed to orchestral. It is also much more of a soundscape than a traditional soundtrack you would find for a movie, but it fits the dark and creepy atmosphere of the film beautifully.

The sound quality in other regards is very poor however. Audio levels and quality vary wildly, with people going from speaking clearly to inaudible within the same line. Sound effects also often have poor quality, almost as if this film was recorded straight to a VHS.

In summary, this is a film that looks great, but is a confused and dull mess. A film that is only of interest to Michael Mann fans or people who like seeing how studio editing can butcher a film.… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

All this user's reviews