The Keep (1983)

User Rating:

5.7/10   

Director:

Michael Mann

Writers:

F. Paul Wilson (novel)
Michael Mann (screenplay)

Release Date:

16 December 1983 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

THEY WERE ALL DRAWN TO THE KEEP. The soldiers who brought death. The father and daughter fighting for life. The people who have always feared it. And the one man who knows its secret... THE KEEP Tonight, they will all face the evil.

Plot:

Nazis guard a citadel that harbors a dangerous force that starts wreaking havoc and death upon them, forcing an uneasy alliance with a Jewish professional who can stop it.

Plot Keywords:

Nazi | SS | Death | Fortress | Cult Favorite

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Scott Glenn	...	Glaeken Trismegestus
Alberta Watson	...	Eva Cuza
Jürgen Prochnow	...	Captain Klaus Woermann
Robert Prosky	...	Father Mihail Fonescu
Gabriel Byrne	...	Major Kaempffer
Ian McKellen	...	Dr. Theodore Cuza
William Morgan Sheppard	...	Alexandru (as Morgan Sheppard)
Royston Tickner	...	Tomescu
Phillip Joseph	...	Sergeant Oster
Michael Carter	...	Molasar
John Vine	...	Lutz
Jona Jones	...	Otto
Wolf Kahler	...	S.S. Adjutant
Rosalie Crutchley	...	Josefia
Frederick Warder	...	Border Guard #1
Bruce Payne	...	Border Guard #2
David Cardy	...	Alexandru's Son
John Eastham	...	Alexandru's Second Son
Philip Bloomfield	...	Josefia's Son
Yashaw Adem	...	Carlos
Stephen Whittaker	...	S.S. Commando
Lan Ruskin	...	S.S. Commando
Stephen Jenn	...	S.S. Commando
Benedick Blythe	...	S.S. Commando
Robin Langford	...	S.S. Commando
Renny Krupinski	...	Wehrmacht Soldier
Peter Guinness	...	Wehrmacht Soldier
Sean Baker	...	Wehrmacht Soldier
Timothy Block	...	Wehrmacht Soldier

Directed by
Michael Mann

Writing credits
F. Paul Wilson		(novel)
Michael Mann		(screenplay)

Produced by
Richard Brams	....	associate producer
Colin M. Brewer	....	executive producer
Theresa Curtin	....	associate producer
Gene Kirkwood	....	producer
Hawk Koch	....	producer (as Howard W. Koch Jr.)
Gavin MacFadyen	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Christopher Franke		(as Tangerine Dream)
Edgar Froese		(as Tangerine Dream)
Johannes Schmölling		(as Tangerine Dream)

Cinematography by
Alex Thomson		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Dov Hoenig
Chris Kelly

Production Design by
John Box

Art Direction by
Alan Tomkins
Herbert Westbrook

Set Decoration by
Michael Seirton

Costume Design by
Anthony Mendleson

Makeup Department
Jan Dorman	....	hairdresser
Graham Freeborn	....	makeup artist
Joyce James	....	hairdresser
Beryl Lerman	....	makeup artist
Nick Maley	....	makeup designer
Richard Mills	....	makeup artist
Barbara Ritchie	....	hair stylist

Production Management
Patrick Clayton	....	production supervisor
Phil Sanderson	....	post-production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Ray Corbett	....	assistant director
Paul Madigan	....	first assistant director: second unit
Callum McDougall	....	third assistant director
Kieron Phipps	....	second assistant director
Roger Simons	....	assistant director
Vic Smith	....	second assistant director

Art Department
George Ball	....	property master
Peter Benson	....	propman: floor
Albert Blackshaw	....	construction manager
Denis Hopperton	....	chargehand floor propman
Geoff Langley	....	assistant construction manager
Kevin Phipps	....	draughtsman
Jill Quertier	....	production buyer
Lucy Richardson	....	assistant art director
Rosalind Shingleton	....	draughtswoman
Bill Stallion	....	storyboard artist
Leslie Tomkins	....	art director: models
Peter Wilkinson	....	assistant construction manager

Sound Department
Campbell Askew	....	footstep editor
Robin Gregory	....	sound mixer
Peter Horrocks	....	dialogue editor
John Iles	....	consultant: dolby sound
Stephen Janisz	....	assistant sound editor
Bob Jones	....	dubbing mixer
Peter Pennell	....	assistant sound editor
Terry Sharratt	....	boom operator
Stephen Spencer	....	assistant sound editor
Jeremy Strachan	....	assistant dialogue editor
Graham Sutton	....	assistant footsteps editor
William Trent	....	sound editor (as Bill Trent)
Doug E. Turner	....	sound re-recording mixer (as Doug Turner)

Special Effects by
Nick Allder	....	special effects supervisor
Alan Bryce	....	special effects technician (as Allan Bryce)
Kevin Herd	....	special effects technician
Garth Inns	....	special effects
John McGoldrick	....	special effects technician
Melvyn Pearson	....	special effects

Visual Effects by
Robin Browne	....	visual effects supervisor
Roy Carnell	....	matte camera operator
Ron Crees	....	matte cameraman
Doug Ferris	....	matte artist
Roy Field	....	optical effects
Denis Fitzgibbons	....	matte camera operator (as Denis Fitzgibbon)
John Fletcher	....	visual effects focus puller
Stuart Galloway	....	matte camera operator
Denis Hall	....	optical effects
Jamie Harcourt	....	optical camera operator
Keith Holland	....	matte camera operator
John Palmer	....	matte cameraman
Keith Thomas	....	visual effects focus puller
John Turner	....	matte camera operator (as John Turner-Grant)
Wally Veevers	....	visual effects supervisor
Ken Worringham	....	optical camera operator
Keith Holland	....	visual effects camera operator (uncredited)

Stunts
Andy Bradford	....	stunts
Jim Dowdall	....	stunts
Tracey Eddon	....	stunts
Nick Hobbs	....	stunts
Alf Joint	....	stunt coordinator
Doug Robinson	....	stunts
Paddy Ryan	....	stunts

Camera and Electrical Department
Kenneth Atherfold	....	camera grip (as Ken Atherfold)
Graham Attwood	....	still photographer
Dave Clarke	....	supervising electrician (as David Clarke)
Wick Finch	....	electrician
Anthony Gaudioz	....	focus puller (as Tony Gaudioz)
Bill Geddes	....	camera grip
John Golding	....	second camera operator
Arthur Lavis	....	unit cinematographer
Shaun O'Dell	....	camera operator
Shane O'Neill	....	clapper loader
Steve Parker	....	assistant camera
Peter Robinson	....	focus puller
Andrew Shields	....	video playback operator
Gary Spratling	....	clapper loader
John Ward	....	Steadicam operator
Micky Wilson	....	electrician

Animation Department
Ann Ducommun	....	assistant animator

Casting Department
Noel Davis	....	casting: U.K.
Nancy Klopper	....	casting: USA
Bonnie Timmermann	....	casting: USA

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Rosemary Burrows	....	costume supervisor
June Kirby	....	wardrobe assistant
Ken Lawton	....	wardrobe master

Editorial Department
Chris Kelly	....	associate editor (as Christopher Kelly)
Steve Maguire	....	second assistant editor
Tony Palmer	....	second assistant editor
Pamela Power	....	additional editor
Phil Sanderson	....	first assistant editor
Andy Stears	....	assistant optical editor
Adam Unger	....	second assistant editor

Music Department
Bob Badami	....	music editor
Gordon Greenaway	....	assistant music editor
Laurie Anderson	....	score mixer (uncredited)

Other crew
Julie Adams	....	dialogue coach
Enki Bilal	....	illustrator: demon
John Carr	....	laser effects
Bryan Coates	....	location manager
Vicki Deason	....	production assistant (as Vicki Manning)
Ann Edwards	....	continuity
Ken Goddard	....	laser effects
Denise Horsham	....	creature crew
Aneuryn Jones	....	animal supplier: North Wales
Bob Keen	....	creature crew
Doreen Landry	....	unit publicist
Nick Maley	....	creature designer
Nick Maley	....	prosthetics designer
Andrew Mollo	....	historical consultant
Josephine Olive-O'Neill	....	assistant production accountant (as Josephine O'Neill)
Christine Overs	....	creature crew
Richard Padbury	....	creature crew
Basil Somner	....	location manager
John Bernard Wall	....	production accountant
Kevin Westley	....	set runner
David White	....	creature crew

Production Companies

• Associated Capital
• Capital Equipment Leasing

Distributors

• Paramount Pictures (1983) (USA) (theatrical)
• Paramount Home Video (1983) (USA) (VHS)
• Cinéma International Corporation (CIC) (1984) (France) (theatrical)
• United International Pictures (UIP) (1984) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1989) (USA) (TV) (broadcast premiere)
• Paramount Home Video (1995) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• CIC Vídeo (????) (Brazil) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Delta Sound Services  sound re-recording
• Filmfex Productions Ltd.  opticals
• Geoff Axtell Associates Ltd.  titles
• Joe Dunton & Company  camera equipment provided by
• LaseFX  laser effects
• Lee Lighting  grip and lighting equipment
• Optical Film Effects Ltd.  opticals
• Rank Film Laboratories  opticals
• Vee Films  opticals
• Visual Concept Engineering (VCE)  opticals

Runtime:

96 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Rankcolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Finland:K-18 | Germany:16 | Australia:M | France:-12 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Blaenau Ffestiniog, Gwynedd, Wales, UK

Company:

Associated Capital

Trivia:

Ian McKellen is dubbed.

Goofs:

Continuity: The arm that Glaeken reaches out with to kiss Eva for the first time.

Quotes:

Captain Klaus Woermann: Are you insane?
Major Kaempffer: SS-Einsatzkommondo, Sturmbannfuhrer Kaempffer is what I am!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Directors: The Films of Michael Mann (#2.1)" (2001)

Soundtrack:

Walking In The Air

An odd early horror production from Michael Mann.

Kind of funny how all great directors seemed to have started of their careers with some bad movies, that no one ever remembers now days. Micheal Mann is of course a director who is best known for his movies such as "Heat", "Collateral" and "The Insider".

It's not like this movie is horrible but it's just a bit weird and different from other genre movies. It's really not done in a typical thriller/horror style and Michael Mann seemed to have more eye for the visuals at the time rather than for its script, which he also wrote himself by the way and based it on a novel by F. Paul Wilson. The story is told in a typical Michael Mann way, which means that its slow and it takes its time to set up things. This might work for his political and action thrillers but for this horror movie it doesn't work out too well. The story doesn't really flow well and it looks to me as if this movie was heavily cut down in its running time and some sequences are entirely missing from the final print. Some of the editing within this movie was also just completely horrible. Michael Mann knowing there should also be a 3 hour version of this movie floating around somewhere, which is perhaps better as well than this 96 minutes version.

It also seemed pretty weird to me that the story focuses on a group of German soldiers during WW II. Seems redundant and odd to me that the movie focuses on the 'bad guys' of WW II and also that you are supposedly should care about them. The movie tries out some tricks to let it work out but in the long run it just didn't seemed like the most logic choice to me.

It's a pretty looking movie though. Since Michael Mann had more eye for the visuals of the movie, the movie is filled with some beautiful looking sequences, despite some far from convincing looking early special effects.

For a thriller/horror movie it is simply too lacking. The movie does however has some good thriller and horror like moments but the movie is perhaps a bit too supernatural orientated, which makes the movie seem more odd and mysterious and perhaps even more like a science-fiction movie at times than a scary one. You never really quite understand what is happening and what all those mysterious events in the movie are all about.

Still amazing when you look at the cast list, how none of the actors within this movie were any big or well known ones at the time but grew out to be Hollywood celebrities later in their careers. Scott Glenn, Ian McKellen and Gabriel Byrne all weren't that well known actors yet at the time and they hadn't worked on many big productions yet. It also features Jürgen Prochnow in one of his earliest English speaking roles. He had only finished doing "Das Boot" 2 years prior to this movie. So you can't accuses this movie of bad casting, although it also is obvious that the actors weren't that experienced at the time and none of them exactly gives away the best performance out of their career. Also none of the characters really ever work out within the movie, mostly due to the fact that the story just doesn't flow very well.

It was a movie that still definitely seemed to have potential and its source materials seems to be good and interesting enough but Michael Mann's style of directing just didn't seemed right for this movie and prevented it from ever really truly working out as a genre movie. It still is a somewhat interesting viewing though.

5/10