Product Details

• Actors: Scott Glenn, Alberta Watson, Jürgen Prochnow, Robert Prosky, Gabriel Byrne
• Directors: Michael Mann
• Format: Color, NTSC
• Language: English
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Paramount
• VHS Release Date: November 11, 1998
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (110 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6300214346
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #5,474 in Video (See Bestsellers in Video)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very good gothic thriller., March 24, 1999

By A Customer

The Keep is, as far as I know released in at least two different versions, one with a different ending. Anyway, it's a very good movie directed by Michael Mann. It was released in 1983 and was technically advanced for the age. The cinematography is outstanding, the director has made a great job. Good acting by Sir Ian McKellen, Scott Glenn, Jürgen Prochnow, Robert Prosky and Gabriel Byrne. It's a movie that really puts you right in the action, and I regard it as one of my top 10 movies of all time. I have to mention the soundtrack as well. Composed and performed by Tangerine Dream, the German electronic group. It is nothing short of a masterpiece. I can understand why people who have reviewed this movie before me have had trouble finding the soundtrack on album, since up until today it has only been released in 150 copies.

30 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Scott Glenn and a cosmic bazooka, September 11, 2003

By	N. P. Stathoulopoulos "nick9155" (Brooklyn, NY) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

The Keep is flat-out bizarre. The movie absolutely reeks of the type of post-production tampering that renders ambitious sci fi and horror films incomprehensible. Director Michael Mann, who has gone on to great things (Heat, The Insider), doesn't talk a whole lot about The Keep, and it has yet to be released properly to DVD despite the cult status.

The Keep is based on the excellent F. Paul Wilson novel that comes highly recommended. Indeed, once you read the book you'll actually have a chance at figuring out what the heck is going on in the movie.

To sum up, during WWII a German army unit encounters an evil force while guarding a remote Romanian mountain village. The Keep in question is a mysterious castle designed to keep something IN rather than out, and when the SS show up to find out why soldiers are being killed off, they unleash one pissed off movie monster complete with hoakey effects.

The novel is one of the best horror stories I've come across. Drawing on history (WWII and the Nazis), it uses human drama to highlight the battle between good and evil, or light and darkness, all the while staying suspenseful and downright creepy. Instead of treating all Germans as evil monsters, it draws careful distinction between a disillusioned army officer and his fanatical SS counterpart.

Unfortunately, The Keep is one of those movies that you really, really want to like but are forced to admit is just bad. And, as one reviewer noted, once you get past that point you can enjoy it a bit. The potential is astonishing: Michael Mann, a great source novel, great photography and a moody atmosphere, a Tangerine Dream score (famously never released and bootlegged and I might add, completely inappropriate in half the film), Jurgen Prochnow, Gabriel Byrne, Ian McKellen. Yet, the whole thing falls apart in a hurry. Things get downright mind-boggling by the end, when Scott Glenn (uh huh) uses something that resembles a cosmic bazooka to battle a demon that is equal parts smoke machine and glowing Casio readouts for eyes. Ouch.

I value The Keep highly for its important bizarre movie value. It looks great. The opening is fantastic; a gray and rainy atmosphere surrounds the proceedings and it's appropriately bleak. However, the plot gets out of control. I must admit that it's a book and a story that could use a serious and capable remake. Again, though, I have to note that some of the blame (indeed, much of the blame) can be attributed to what appears to be heavy doctoring of the entire film, making much of it impossible to understand. A pity.

Nevertheless, put this thing on DVD! Nothing is better than a bad movie WITH tons of extras to make you feel better about yourself.

Recommended for Mann fans, fans of the awesome novel, and fans of downright weird movies.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Decent Thriller, Poorly Made, May 15, 2002

By	"mpvdg" (Metro Detroit, MI) - See all my reviews

I first saw this movie as a kid and the monster Molasar scared the bejesus out of me! I later read the novel only to find that the movie really strayed from it, inlcuding Molasar's appearance. 'Tis best to treat the book and the movie as two separate entities. The Keep is definitely worth a watch, however. The storyline is quite intriguing with believable characters (Gabriel Byrne as Kampffer is especially enjoyable), with director Mann making good use of creepy mood-settings. The problem is the editing; IT'S HORRIBLE!!! Be sure to have the rewind button handy, because you'll definitely miss some of the actors' mumbled dialogue. Some scene editing and outtaking is laughable. Example: Scott Glenn and Alberta Watson do the wild thing only two minutes (movie time) after first meeting. Hats off to the film for a scary monster (note that Molasar almost never shares a camera shot with another actor!) however. The Tangerine Dream music score is fabulous, but it often does not fit the scene (heavenly music is played when we first meet our bad guy, burning red eyes and all!) Overall, viewer satisfaction depends on one's willingness to forgive technical flaws. 3 stars.