Well, here’s a new one, folks. Matt Reeves, J.J. Abrams more talented sidekick (Cloverfield), has decided to write and direct a remake of Let the Right One In. The movie is based on a Swedish film, Lat Den Ratte Komma In, itself based on a novel from Swedish author, John Ajvide Lindqvist. It’s about a young boy who becomes pals with a vampire.
But here’s the catch: The original film hasn’t even been released in the United States yet. It’s due for release at the end of October, and thus far, it’s got great reviews. This seems kind of like a shitty move, if you ask me: Who’s gonna go see a subtitled movie when they know the big budget, studio-backed, dumbed-down version of it’s going to come out next year? No one, that’s who!
Well, I’d like to see it happen. I’d like to see a no-budget Swedish film take the United States by storm later this month, and how cool would it be if it completely rendered the remake moot?
Yeah. It’s not going to happen. But, if you want to see the trailer for the movie that the remake is based on (and which you can see in less than a month), well, here you go. It certainly looks creepy. It makes me feel funny in my tummy.
Posted by: "Sybil" "Knife Pile" von Beaverplatz at September 26, 2008 1:28 PM
Oh, I meant the Swedish.
Posted by: "Sybil" "Knife Pile" von Beaverplatz at September 26, 2008 1:29 PM
Certainly looks rather scary. I won't see either of them until they come out on dvd but I suspect the JJ Abrams version will either be super watered down or all of the children in this movie will be replaced by pretty "teenagers" (aka 20-somethings) who look like they belong on the Hills/Laguna Beach/the OC/the City or whatever.
Posted by: NotBlonde at September 26, 2008 1:31 PM
This is playing in Austin on Sunday as part of the Fantastic Film Fest. And I'm booked all day!!!! I'm all sad now. Austinites, go see it? Report back?
There's a very funny episode in Catch 22 when Chief White Halfoat relates the story of his people who were so good at striking oil wherever they settled, that oil companies started sending their agents to follow them. Soon the situation got so bad that the agents would guess where they would settle and would force them away once they arrived. Anyway, what I am trying to say is that Catch 22 always felt more like a theatre of the absurd play than a novel.and now Hollywood has gone the way of the absurd, with shitty megalomanic big-time studio versions of fantastic European films. I am waiting for the moment when they will start cancelling movies still in production because a remake was pumped out faster. Nip the bastards in the bud is what I'm saying.
Posted by: marija at September 26, 2008 1:38 PM
Maybe it's because I have kids, but I can't watch movies with creepy kids? Too freaky for me.
Posted by: Cindy at September 26, 2008 1:48 PM
You know, I certainly appreciate originality, and I generally agree with the distaste for Hollywood slickification, but sometimes it really does improve the movie experience to translate it culturally. I think Ringu and the Ring are a decent example. Ringu is good, but it's clear that there are a bunch of cultural references that are just meaningless to us in the U.S. Like if I said off-hand that I were going to Benji's here. For everyone who lives where I do, that would immediately give them a good idea of what kind of diner I was and what kind of evening I have planned. To people who don't, it would be meaningless. Clues like that are important parts of subtle and effective filmmaking, but they are more effective when they're translated for the culture of the viewer.
Posted by: Eep at September 26, 2008 1:49 PM
Eep, I understand what you're saying. Irish director Jim Sheridan has remade Brødre (a Danish film) and set it in America. Since it centers on a family torn apart by one member being sent to Afghanistan, and Denmark has about 12 soldiers there, Sheridan thought it would make a greater impact with American families. I don't know if it will, but it's an interesting notion.
Posted by: Sara at September 26, 2008 1:59 PM
Eep: hello, newsflash! not only Americans watch Hollywood movies - so does the rest of the world. maybe you could get out of your little Palin shell and appreciate that if the rest of the world can pick up on American culture, so can you learn something about the rest of the globe. get out a mental passport and enjoy the diversity that the world has to offer. you know, culturally speaking.
Posted by: marija at September 26, 2008 2:03 PM
This is playing at Toronto's After Dark Film Fest and I sadly have to miss out. But, from what I hear this movie is stellar, and I disagree with Dustin. The type of people taht will want to see the Swedish version (directed by a Russian I think) - the type of people that read this site - will not want to see the US/Abrams version. Of course the same goes for the masses that will flock to the Abrams version that will have no interest in reading subtitles.
Sidenote: find some way to see 'Martyrs'
Posted by: CoolWhip11 at September 26, 2008 2:07 PM
It adds to the movie to Americanize the setting and cultural references?! *sigh* No, no, no. You can loose a lot of the feel of the original movie, not to mention the intent of the original creaters. The other commenter was right in pointing out that expanding your cultural exposure is a good thing.
Frankly, these American rip-offs of movies really tick me off. The Ring over Ringu?! Come on! Give me the original movie and don't even THINK about selecting the english dubbed track!!
Posted by: staylor at September 26, 2008 2:38 PM
Marija-
Of course the rest of the world does. I'm not saying the Ring was a better movie than Ringu, I'm saying that resetting a movie culturally can preserve meaning that would have been lost in a direct translation, thus arguably making the resetting superior for its target audience. Even the language itself can contain double entendres, poetry, and who knows what other kinds of subtext that disappear if the translater isn't very clever. How can you translate cultural subtext without some kind of Pop Up Videos approach or extra exposition that would have bloated and ruined the original? If we see a bar full of cowboy hats and a confederate flag on the wall in a movie, we know immediately the kind of characters we are supposed to expect. I wouldn't expect foreigners who hadn't watched a lot of American entertainment to have any idea what that means. If I watch a British movie and see a fan of one football team interact with a fan of another football team that is their mortal enemy, I won't know unless it's Manchester United and Liverpool. If the movie is made for Brits, it's not going to be designed to translate both ways. The shirts tell the Brits the guys should hate each other. Unless the movie for some reason independently ends up implying that they should hate each other because of the teams they support, the shirts are going to be meaningless to me. Now re-set that movie in the U.S. and give them Yankees and Red Sox shirts (or lay the background earlier in the movie, or in the ad campaign) and I will know exactly what the British audience knew.
Posted by: Eep at September 26, 2008 3:08 PM
Marija,
Plenty of us Americans have opened our "mental passports" and seen stuff that doesn't originate in the US.
But this movie is from Sweeden. The land that produced Abba and Ace of Base and shitty meatballs. How good could it possibly be? Relax, we'll make it better by adding exploding cars and a lot of cursing and hopefully Steven Segal as the head vampire.
Posted by: yourdorkyfriend at September 26, 2008 3:17 PM
If someone wants to make a movie about what it's like living in a different culture, even if they only demonstrate it through subtle hints and leave things open-ended, that is a different situation from making a movie for an audience in a different culture and plopping it into this one. Ringu wasn't about being Japanese or introducing you to Japanese culture, it assumed you knew Japanese culture so that you would get the story. I want to get the full impact of the story as the author intended, and telling it to me in a Japanese setting won't do that.
To me, you guys are essentially arguing that Gone in 60 Seconds would suffer artistically if they were driving Hondas and Toyotas.
Posted by: Eep at September 26, 2008 3:17 PM
Actually, I kind of agree with Eep here, and not just because I think Marija's response was kind of obnoxious. There is certainly value in remaking foreign films... maybe not for cultural reasons, but simply for a fresh perspective. Anyone see The Departed? A fucking phenomenal movie... and a remake of a foreign film (that is equally great). And yes, Ringu is great, but The Ring is also a very good movie.
It can certainly be done well. I think the problem is more that is done too often, and without purpose. I don't object to remakes as long as the remake contributes something.
Sara-
Exactly. That's the kind of situation I'm talking about. When culture is the focus of the dialogue, leave it intact. When culture is the language of the dialogue, some cliffnotes or translation is essential if meaning isn't to be lost.
TK- agreed, and thanks. Unfortunately most of the time remakes cater to American taste rather than a translating cultural references. I think the Ring fell victim to that to some extent as well, to be honest, though much less than some films.
Posted by: Eep at September 26, 2008 3:28 PM
....Gone in 60 Seconds would suffer artistically if they were driving Hondas and Toyotas.
Posted by: Eep at September 26, 2008 3:17 PM
---------------------------------------------
Eh, I'm afraid I would have to physically assault... to death... anyone who tried to do such a thing.
Posted by: BarbadoSlim at September 26, 2008 3:30 PM
My response wasn't supposed to be obnoxious and I agree that a purposeful remakes can and are being made. It's just that as a foreigner I had an issue with Eep's need for cultural translation instead of contextualization. Coming from a small European country I had to learn what Benji's is and which British teams are traditionally hostile, etc. - like a tabula rasa. Is it too much to expect a little reciprocity or is this just a matter of intellectual laziness?
Posted by: marija at September 26, 2008 3:40 PM
Gonna start by quickly apologising to the Pajibans all upon here, as well as....most, i suppose, americans cos its not your fault;
But seriouslt what in the hell is UP with american film/tv producers remaking EVERYTHING that isnt made right there in the USA?!
The Strangers(which wasn't scary fuck damn it) was a remake of They, you have that one coming out thats a SCENE BY SCENE BY SCENE remake of the VASTLY superiou [REC] and i dont usually pass judgement before i've seen a film...but ive seen the trailer and....ach
You do it with TV shows too, Spaced, Life on Mars(which from what i've heard about the series has...just wildly and totally and completely missed the point of the original series) The Office, Worst Week....
When will your media moguls learn it is RARELY if ever succesful?!
Dont get me wrong, The Office has been a runaway success but....well Gervais still writes it so thats not exactly a singular american success( i should point out, ihated the british Office and im not mad about the american one)
The only US remake i've ever liked was Touching Evil which was fantastic thanks mostly to the mind blowingly good Jeffrey Donovan
I swear, the fact your Meguls(MEdia Moguls combined, saves time) haven't tried to make a US version of Doctor Who and Torchwood is nothing short of a miracle.
I wish i was joking when with more than a few shows the last few years, that have come out of america? I've stopped and tried to remember if i'd heard of them before, either in the UK or any other country around the world.
I mean....maybe its a compliment to the original creators that some one has thought their work was SO brilliant that it deserved wider praise...but its gotta be a kick in the teeth to not just the original creators but to YOU the american audiences that the people who control what you see tend to think 'the average american is far to dumb for this' or even 'foreign languages and READING scare people, we must remake this in full american style with stupidly good looking people who have no readable depth and so are totally impossible to connect with but are still expected to be rooted for'
I mean I dont always hate that you ADAPT books, comics etc cos mostly you all do extraordinary jobs and it shows if nothing else ( especially in the more visually dazzling cases) that your film auters have wonderfully artistic vision(sometimes) but when you take stuff that...well already exists and just remake it, usually with tragically inferior results....its makes me sad and angry
Now, I'm not saying we dont do the same, sometimes...but more often than not we simply ship your content in and have the faith that our audiences will be able to follow it.
Like i say, im not bitcing out pajibans, or most americans, just the guys in charge who see stuff like this and dont say 'right, lets get this, as is, into every cinema in the country and just watch the horror unfurl' but rather have the thought 'this looks great, i want to remake it with less dirty foreign devils and more explosions and pretty people'
Gah.
Rant over.
Posted by: nadine at September 26, 2008 3:43 PM
I read somewhere that the war classic "Tora Tora Tora!" was a very shoddy remake of an Argentinian silent flick titled "Tango Tango Tango!"
True Story
Posted by: BarbadoSlim at September 26, 2008 3:55 PM
No effing way yo
Posted by: Nadine at September 26, 2008 4:08 PM
Wow finally an interesting looking vampire film! I can't wait to see it! (I am not watching the U.S. one UNLESS it gets rave reviews like the original either!)...
Posted by: ph at September 26, 2008 5:04 PM
After this movie screened at Austin, legions of people logged on, blogged, etc. and raved about it. I haven't seen one single negative comment about this film.
I'll likely not get a chance to see it in a theater, but it's going on the queue, and then it's getting moved to the top.
Posted by: Jerce at September 26, 2008 6:50 PM
I would have to physically assault... to death..., has just been added to my vocabulary.
Thank you very much, BSlim. That phrase incurred an incredibly loud overreaction that may have woken everyone within a 30 yd. radius of my humble abode, and yet I'm content.
Posted by: Kash at September 26, 2008 11:58 PM
QUICK question - is the creep in the picture holding Lumpy? As in, the heffalump from one of Pooh's adventures who excruciatingly cannot find his 'roar' and when he does and some largish particle of dust lodges into your eye causing some excessive tearing that is in no way related to the emotionally moving ending??
Posted by: Kash at September 27, 2008 12:02 AM
Looks like the Swedish film might be a good bit better than the excrement being thrown at us by Hollywood these days. I've had the Lindqvist novel on my list for a few weeks, now; awaiting my next Powell's shopping spree.
Posted by: Rykker at September 27, 2008 4:51 AM
Am I the only Swedish person reading this? Either way, the novel the film is based on is brilliant, and I've been waiting for the film ever since I first laid my hands on the book.
For the record, the director of the film is not Russian, he's Swedish as well, and the author of the book was very involved in the screen writing. For another record, I'd like to say that remakes are generally dumb, and this idea saddens me quite a bit. Besides, there are plenty of good things to come out of Sweden. Alexander Skarsgård is just one of them, and no one here wants to remember Ace of Base either.
Posted by: Soda at September 27, 2008 5:02 AM
Huh. Turns out the author's a big Smiths fan and it's a deliberate paraphrase of Morrissey's "Let The Right One Slip In". Thought I was just projecting!
Holyshitthisissoexcitingihopeitcomestoaustraliaicantbelievepajibaisfinallycommentingonthisfantasticbook/film and I'm now going to use spaces because that hurt my brain.
Read the book! It is such a totally unexpected mindfuck that leaves you unable to deal with the sheer awesomeness of the climax. Seriously, anyone who's ever been bullied as a kid/teenager/whateverager should read it. Anyone who likes vampires but thinks recent 'vampire fiction' *cough*Twilight*cough* is shit should read it. Anyone who has two eyes, is not illiterate and is not a fuckwit should read it. And John Lindqvist is so wonderful! He came to the Brisbane Writer's Festival last year to speak for a panel about horror writers, and he was just such a nice, funny (used to do stand-up) guy. And then I read the book and it was just "..."
Did. Not. Expect. That.
And now the trailer has conjured up all the most bone-chilling, under-the-skin-crawling moments of the book...I did not need to remember Håkan and all those awful, awful things before bedtime. Fuck you very much Pajiba.
(Still excited!)
Posted by: Cookie at September 27, 2008 11:06 AM
Thanks for the recommendation. I'll go looking for that book. Then, if I like it, I'll try to find and watch the film. And then I'll avoid the remake.
_______
Besides, there are plenty of good things to come out of Sweden. (Posted by: Soda)
I agree. Lots of kickass metal bands, and Ingmar Bergman, and The Pirate Bay, and they have to put up with a lot of Chileans too. And they gave the world Dolph Lundgren.
Posted by: JC at September 27, 2008 3:17 PM
The land that produced Abba and Ace of Base and shitty meatballs. ...no one here wants to remember Ace of Base either.
Fie on thee, heathens! All That She Wants is one of my go-to karaoke songs. And I still whip out the Happy Nation cassette (that's right, bitches. Cassette) when I need some early 90s synth-pop. I will hear no more Ace of Base bashing!
Eep, I'd never really thought of it like that before, but that's actually a very interesting defense of re-makes. Kudos.
Topic: Movie looks creepy as hell - pre-pubescents sure can bring the scary. They're like clowns, only shorter, and without clown make-up, but still inscrutable and weird and potentially violent.
Posted by: Shay at September 27, 2008 4:57 PM
Eh, basically all stories are remakes. I'll try to catch this if it comes to Dallas and if the U.S. remake gets decent reviews, maybe I'll watch that too.
U.S. remakes of foreign TV shows and movies are all about marketing. TV shows/movies with somewhat recognizable American actors get bigger ratings/make more money than foreign versions with mostly unknown (to U.S. audiences) actors. And subtitled movies never do as well as English-language movies.
Posted by: Slash at September 28, 2008 2:24 AM
What's up with the Ace of Base haters?? They're on my iPod. Classic awesomeness from when I had teased bangs.
Posted by: popejenn at September 28, 2008 10:36 PM
I saw this at Fantastic Fest in Austin last week, and it's very good. It's not as creepy as the trailer makes it seem, the film's more about the relationship between the boy and the vampire girl than about scaring the audience.
I would like to see this, please.
Thank you.