X
  • 2017
  • Film Movement
  • 1 h 55 m
  • 2017
  • Film Movement
  • 1 h 55 m

Summary When ambitious young correctional officer Aiman is transferred to the country's highest-security prison, he catches the attention of the seasoned chief executioner Rahim. Aiman's desire to become the hangman's apprentice is not only professional but born of an unspeakable urge to reconnect with a past that haunts him. [Film Movement]

Directed By: Junfeng Boo

Written By: Raymond Phathanavirangoon, Junfeng Boo

  • 2017
  • Film Movement
  • 1 h 55 m
  • 2017
  • Film Movement
  • 1 h 55 m

Apprentice

Metascore Generally Favorable Based on 7 Critic Reviews
77
User Score Generally Favorable Based on 5 User Ratings
7.0
My Score
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Where to Watch

Summary When ambitious young correctional officer Aiman is transferred to the country's highest-security prison, he catches the attention of the seasoned chief executioner Rahim. Aiman's desire to become the hangman's apprentice is not only professional but born of an unspeakable urge to reconnect with a past that haunts him. [Film Movement]

Directed By: Junfeng Boo

Written By: Raymond Phathanavirangoon, Junfeng Boo

Where to Watch

Top Cast

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Critic Reviews

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Metascore
Generally Favorable Based on 7 Critic Reviews
77
71% Positive
5 Reviews
29% Mixed
2 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews

Critic Reviews

 View All
Metascore
Generally Favorable Based on 7 Critic Reviews
77
71% Positive
5 Reviews
29% Mixed
2 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews
90
Feb 28, 2017
Tightly focused and ambitious in its multiple themes, the tale touches on how the death penalty radiates out to affect the living.
By Lisa Nesselson FULL REVIEW
90
Feb 28, 2017
One of Apprentice’s strongest selling points is how, in a very compact yet pleasingly dense way, it takes viewers into both the world of the executioners and the executed criminals’ family members who remain behind, two often almost ignored categories in films touching on capital punishment.
By Boyd van Hoeij FULL REVIEW

User Reviews

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User Score
Generally Favorable Based on 5 User Ratings
7.0
60% Positive
3 Ratings
40% Mixed
2 Ratings
0% Negative
0 Ratings

User Reviews

 View All
User Score
Generally Favorable Based on 5 User Ratings
7.0
60% Positive
3 Ratings
40% Mixed
2 Ratings
0% Negative
0 Ratings

There are no user reviews yet. Be the first to add a review.

88
Feb 27, 2017
Writer-director Boo Junfeng casually reinvigorates the prison drama, boiling its elements down to their primal essence.
By Chuck Bowen FULL REVIEW
80
Mar 2, 2017
At first Apprentice seems to be a basic revenge film in which Aiman stalks the man who killed his father. But it becomes psychologically more complex.
By Stephen Holden FULL REVIEW
80
Mar 2, 2017
In a finale rife with twisted feelings of resentment, fury, and self-loathing, the film transforms into a grave meditation on the corrosive shadow cast by the decisions, and crimes, of yesterday.
By Nick Schager FULL REVIEW
60
Feb 28, 2017
The movie feels a little too sparse and literal in places.
By Peter Debruge FULL REVIEW
42
Mar 2, 2017
While not without the occasional jolt of a sudden execution, the film feels so wholly tell and not show. Its left-wing politics about toxic masculinity bleeding into the justice system are so much a given that it’s just a dead-weight experience to watch.
By Ethan Vestby FULL REVIEW
See All 7 Critic Reviews

Details

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Production Company Akanga Film Productions, Augenschein Filmproduktion, Cinémadefacto, Doha Film Institute, Peanut Pictures, Sam Spiegel International Film Lab, Zhao Wei Films (I)
Release Date Mar 3, 2017
Duration 1 h 55 m
Genres
Tagline A good executioner never asks questions.
Website http://www.augenschein-filmproduktion.de/en/developmentdetails/items/apprentice.html
View All Details

Awards

Fribourg International Film Festival
• 2 Wins & 2 Nominations
Asian Film Awards
• 1 Win & 2 Nominations
Hawaii International Film Festival
• 1 Win & 2 Nominations

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