NEWS: Oldboy Remake is Dead...

I know, for once, Hollywood is answering the prayers of fanboys and girls, as well as just sensible people from across the globe, by officially deep sixing the alleged remake/comic book adaptation of Oldboy.

Latino Review is now reporting that Steven Spielberg’s Old Boy starring Will Smith is officially dead. It looks like Dreamworks and original Korean production studio Mandate were working together to get the rights to the manga from which the original Park Chan-wook film was based, but the two couldn’t reach an agreement, and Dreamworks left any negotiations. Spielberg’s film was to be an adaptation of the original manga by Garon Tsuchiya and Nobuaki Minegishi, and not a direct remake of Park Chan-wook’s Oldboy.

I just placed the Chan-wook film right near the top of my Top 15 Films of The Decade, so this film is intensely close to my heart. As part of his lauded "revenge trilogy" I, unlike many, feel that this is his best, but not by much, which is saying something for that trilogy as a whole.

Now, the remake wasn't intent and was in no way going to be some sort of direct remake of the Chan-wook film. At the outset, it was discussed as a possible remake, but as reports started to come out, we found out that the film would be based on the manga, from which Chan-wook got the idea for his film. That said, it didn't make the pill any easier to take. It's like wrapping up a spike covered ball in paper and thrusting it down your throat. It doesn't do much to soften the blow of this rather brilliant piece of cinema being remade.

It didn't help that two people were behind it, who were completely wrong for the project. I LOVE Spielberg. He's given me one hell of a childhood, and with films like Jurassic Park and Schindler's List, he's also made some of the most memorable films of the past 20 years. That said, with a film like Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Shitty X-Files Episode, I think that he is much better off sticking to something along the lines of his Abe Lincoln project, which I think is set to be brilliant, especially with him at the helm, instead of this. I also think that with a big name like Will Smith, while I do think the guy has a huge cinema I.Q., the film would probably lose a lot of it's brutality and intensity.

Overall, I'm glad to see this film die a brutal death, like a man getting dropped from the top of a building. Here's the original films trailer:



Go see something good...

NEWS: Oldboy Remake DOA?

Well, as of this second, it looks so (and that was the girlsh scream you heard me just yell out of excitement)

Steven Spielberg and Will Smith have been developing (or so news has said) an American remake (of sorts) of the famous and brilliant film, Oldboy, which was the second film of Chan-wook Park's vengence trilogy (with Sympathy for Mr. Vengance, and Sympathy for Lady Vengance as the trilogy's bookends). It was going to be an adaptation of the original Manga by Nobuaki Mingegishi and Garon Tsuchiya, which the afformentione film was also based on.

However, that may have just been thrown in the gutter by Japanese publisher Futabasga. Here's what a report from AnimeNewsNetwork stated:

Futabasha is suing to confirm the lack of a binding contract between the two parties, due to an alleged breach. Futabasha asserts that Show East violated its basic agreement with Futabasha, and thus nullified it, when Show East pushed for the production of a film remake with America’s Universal Pictures. Show East signed its contract with Futabasha over film rights in September of 2002, and signed a second contract in December of 2003 that amended the original one to cover other materials.

If you have not seen the original film, Oldboy, then you have something important to do right now. The film is easily one of the best modern revenge films (possibly the best of all time), and one of the best films period, from the past 10 years. It follows a man, named Dae-Su, who is locked in a room for 15 years without knowing why or who is his captor. He is suddenly released, given money, clothes and a cellphone and is sent on journey for revenge. Really, this movie is something that should not be missed by anyone. Also, tell me this fight scene isn't bad ass.

This is perfect news, and while I do love Speilberg, Smith is NOT someone who should be in this film, and really, Speilberg isn't a director that should be doing this film. It's not a big film, but quite the opposite. It's a stark and disturbing look at revenge, and the films style is equally as intimate and dark. What do YOU think?

Go see something good!

NEWS: Oldboy and Arrested Development...

Hey guys! Today is only halfway complete, and yet, there is some really big news to discuss, so here are the two noteworthy headlines...

- It looks as though the reports on Speilberg's Oldboy film were half correct. He is indeed working on a film involving Will Smith in the lead, but the film will NOT be a remake...A tip of the hat to /film for the info...

“We’re looking at that right now. Not the film though, it’s the original source material,” Smith told FSR. “There’s the original comics of ‘Oldboy’ that they made the first film from. And that’s what we’re working from, not an adaptation of the film…”

Well, my hatred for the project is now pretty much gone. I am off the thinking, that if you have a source, you can adapt that source as many times as you want, in whatever way you want. Take the Batman franchise for example. The Chan Wook Park film is based on a manga, and so will the Speilberg flick.

Here's the plot summary of the manga...

“Ten years ago, they took him. He doesn’t know who. For ten years he has been confined in a private prison. He doesn’t know why. For ten years his only contact with the outside world has been a television set and the voices of his jailers. In time, he lost himself. He changed . . . transformed himself into something else . . . something hard . . . something lethal. Suddenly one day, his incarceration ends, again without explanation. He is sedated, stuffed inside a trunk, and dumped in a park. When he awakes, he is free to reclaim what’s left of his life . . . and what’s left is revenge.”

Now, in a recent article, the Onion A/V club has mentioned that the original manga is far less perverse and grim than the Park film is, so I'm actually fine with this. What are your thoughts?

- Finally, it appears as though Ron Howard and Mitch Hurwitz are in the last stages of getting a deal done to bring the critically acclaimed television series, Arrested Development, to the big screen.

What should the film be about?

Come back later for more news and notes...

Go see something good!

NEWS: He Man, Captain America, and the Worst. Idea. Ever.

Hey guys! Here are your major headlines for this Wednesday, the 19th of November, 2008...

- It looks as though the director of Kung Fu Panda, John Stevenson, will be helming the much talked about adaptation of He Man...

- Early reviews for Valkyrie have been released, and lets just say they aren't to hot, particularly one scene in which Tom Cruise must give the "heil Hitler" salute...

It’s an unsettling scene but you almost start to laugh…His character is resisting it but you never forget it’s Tom Cruise saying “Heil Hitler.” It’s funny and shocking at the same time.

READ THE FULL MSNBC ARTICLE HERE

Also, a new article over at the New York Times discusses just how much risk this film is and can be for MGM...

Valkyrie has turned into a test not only of Mr. Cruise’s career durability, but of MGM’s determination — with new ownership, and under the chairmanship of Harry E. Sloan since 2005 — to be taken seriously as a producer and distributor of the kind of risky event films that define a major studio.

If Valkyrie succeeds, even moderately, MGM wins a modicum of credibility in image-is-everything Hollywood. A failure brings fresh sniping that the studio does not know what it is doing, making the job of attracting top-notch talent even harder. Financially speaking, the stakes are considerable. With a stated production budget of $75 million — competitors insist it is closer to $90 million — Valkyrie is the most expensive film made for distribution by MGM under Sloan’s watch. The studio will now spend about $60 million to market the movie — if nothing else, to make the point that it can play in the big leagues.

Thanks to /film for the update!

- Disney will be rereleasing Beauty and The Beast in 3D come 2010...AWESOME

- Gore Verbinski is set to produce, with much talked about commercial director, Frank Bond in the directors chair, a remake of the critically beloved, including much love from yours truly, Korean monster film, The Host...

- Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, scribes of the recent Chronicles of Narnia films, are in final negotiations to pen the script for the upcoming Captain America film. Also, in an interesting thought, a few people, mainly the guys over at cinematical, have begun discussing who could fill the boots of Cap himself, and they have talked about Channing Tatum, most famous for his roles in Step Up, and the upcoming G.I. Joe film. What are YOUR thoughts on that? I think it could really work. He's a fine actor, especially in A Guide To Recognizing Your Saints, and he wouldn't be a big hit on the Avengers budget, like a previously talked about actor, Matthew McConaughey, would be. Thoughts?

- Finally, in the worst idea in the history of man category, it looks like the man behind the brilliant cinematic achievement that was Poseidon, Mark Protosevich, has landed the job of penning the script for the upcoming Oldboy remake...this makes me disappointed, angry, and mainly sad. I challenge all of you to PLEASE rent, no, buy the original, and see what a brilliant film it is, and how it will not work with the current people at the helm.

I have one question for you all to answer, and it relates to this ridiculous idea. What makes subtitled films SO unpopular, so much that American remakes are almost needed to get people to see a film? Why do you like or dislike subtitled films? I LOVE them, and I really think, especially foreign horror films, are so much better than there American counterparts, that it's almost laughable to see people try to remake them. Thoughts?

Expect a review of Australia tomorrow, and come back later for more movie news and notes...

Go see something good!

NEWS: Oldboy Remake...

Okay, so I've had a long night. I've got papers to write, housing fees to pay, and now this crap bomb has been released...

It looks as though Steven Speilberg and Will Smith are set to direct and star in a new remake of cult hit and personal favorite of mine, Oldboy. Thanks to /film for this interesting information...

Steven Spielberg and Will Smith are in talks to collaborate on a remake of Chan Wook-Park’s Oldboy. Spielberg has been looking for an opportunity to work with Smith for a few years now, and this just might be the project. DreamWorks is in the process of securing the remake rights, and Spielberg is on the search for a screenwriter to develop the project. The project was originally set up with Fast and Furious director Justin Lin.

In the 2003 South Korean film, a man named Dae-Su is locked in a hotel room for 15 years without knowing why or who is holding him captive. He is suddenly released, given money, clothes and a cellphone and is sent on journey for revenge. The film won the Grand Prix at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival and was highly praised by Jury President Quentin Tarantino. Roger Ebert called Oldboy a “powerful film not because of what it depicts, but because of the depths of the human heart which it strips bare” … “We are so accustomed to ‘thrillers’ that exist only as machines for creating diversion that it’s a shock to find a movie in which the action, however violent, makes a statement and has a purpose.” It definitely has one of the best side-scrolling action scenes I’ve ever seen (included below).

This may be one of the greatest and most viscerally intense and exhausting films I've ever seen, and I personally don't think Speilberg and Smith are good fits, especially Smith. This is an INSANELY dark and intense film, and it doesn't seem like his kind of film. Speilberg is a similar story. It's a visually stunning film, but not necisarrily in Speilbergs sort of way. Now, this remake is going to get made no matter what, so this isn't the worst case, but I think it should go to a more visually oriented director. Someone like a Darron Aronofsky or maybe, here's a novel thought...LEAVE IT THE HELL ALONE...

For those few of you who have seen it, what do you think about this news? If you haven't had the chance to check this film out, please, do yourself a favor, rent this right away.

Go see something good!