ONE MISSED CALL Remake Trailer Arrives And The Question Is …

Reader Comments

1. Caterpillar 09/03/2007 @ 9:15am

   Valette is obviously just the latest foreign talent getting chewed up by the Hollywood machine. It seems all these imported directors are given to do is remakes. I doubt he’ll stick around in Hollywood after this one does lukewarm business and is quickly shuffled off to DVD. Sure, it certainly doesn’t help that it’s a remake in a genre that is most definitely (and thankfully) on the wane.

   Let’s do a quick recap of imported directors and how they fared in Hollywood… There’s been a couple from France, none of them successfull. Jean-Piere Jeunet went back home after ALIEN: RESURECTION. Pitof bombed with CATWOMAN. Alexandre Aja is carving out a shallow niche as the go-to guy for remakes. Rumors have it that after HILLS HAVE EYES (which was at least interesting) and MIRRORS he will be rushed to redo PIRANHA before the strike cripples the industry. Then there has been the German import of Oliver Hirschbiegel who either catastrophically screwed up THE INVASION or had it screwed up for him by the studio. Who knows, who cares? Really, who was the last imported director who managed to do well in Hollywood? I can only come up with Guillermo del Toro and Alfonso Cuaron. Del Toro sure got the shaft in a big, painful and unlubed way when MIMIC was twisted away from his original vision but he has since rebounded and become quite someone to reckon with. Still, it seems as if too many of these undoubtedly talented guys come to America extremely ill prepared and lacking whatever it takes to win fights in the studio system.

2. Kurt Halfyard 09/03/2007 @ 10:30am

   Nimrod Antal didn’t have a remake for his crossover.  He held his own if not shining brightly.

   Herschbiegel’s version of THE INVASION - I care.  I’d love to see his (presumably restrained, low key) directors cut.

   Gavin Hood (Tsotsi) has Rendition on the way (he had studio trouble, lots of re-cuts)

   Kiwi Director Andrew Dominik (Chopper) has that Brad Pitt Malick-ian western on the way (he had studio trouble, over a year delay at this point)

   Sensing a trend…

3. The Visitor 09/03/2007 @ 11:07am

   sorry, but i feel so far, much evidence point to the fact that the Hollywood system is a death trap for most foreign directors.

   on One Missed Call, at least Miike had the foresight not to take the Hair Scare gimmick too seriously. he seems to know that Hair Scare was at the tail end of its effectiveness, and anymore of it would only become self-parody. the original One Missed Call was a fun ride, no more and no less.

4. Swarez 09/03/2007 @ 12:30pm

   The guys who did Them are going to do The Eye and if I remember correctly some French dudes are going to do the Last House on the Left remake. Michael Haneke is remaking his own stuff.
   And don’t forget that almost every HK director that tried out in Hollywood had to make a movie with Jean Claude Van Damme for some reason.

5. BtoFu 09/03/2007 @ 12:42pm

   Wow nice cast. Hehe where did that come from? I quite like Malefique myself, not so much OMC so...DVD rental I suppose.

6. Caterpillar 09/03/2007 @ 10:01pm

   I forgot the Japanese imports of Hideo Nakata (who seems to have returned to Japan for good now) and Takashi Shimizu.

   Paul Verhoeven comes to mind as one of those exceptions who managed to work within the Hollywood system. Granted, he’s made his share of stinkers in the US but he also directed one of my all time favorite movies there.

7. The Visitor 09/03/2007 @ 10:40pm

   Caterpillar,

   which one? Robocop? Total Recall? or ... gulp ... Showgirls?

   i like Total Recall a lot. just saw it again the other day and it ages well.

8. Ard Vijn 09/04/2007 @ 12:02am

   Don’t forget Basic Instinct and Starship Troopers, which are both perfect in their flawed way…

   (Yes, I know that made little sense)

9. Caterpillar 09/04/2007 @ 12:19am

   STARSHIP TROOPERS was the one I was talking about. I almost got lynched for applauding at the end when I saw it in theaters in 1997. My opinion remains unchanged.

10. The Visitor 09/04/2007 @ 12:38am

    Starship Troopers is great.

    i think initially, a lot of people didn’t understand that it’s an action movie satire. its cynicism is biting.

    i love it.

11. Caterpillar 09/04/2007 @ 3:23am

    Most people in Europe seemed (and still seem) to view it as Nazi propaganda. The entire satirical aspect was utterly lost to everyone and I had countless discussions with my friends trying to convince them. This was actually before I got internet so it wasn’t until I got the DVD and listened to Verhoeven’s audio commentary that I could finally feel at ease for having understood what he was trying to say.

12. Papigiulio 09/04/2007 @ 9:22am

    I know my comment is irrelevant, but I so agree with caterpillars comment about Starship Troopers lol

    I’m also very amazed that there are many many people on this site that have some much inside knowledge about directors and casts. unbelievable.

13. Kurt Halfyard 09/04/2007 @ 6:06pm

    holy shit!!  I thought everyone loved starship troopers, it’s a big favorite in our household...i mean the score alone is brilliant faux-Wagner!  I’m flabberghasted how anyone could MISS the satire.

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