S
shrrshrr
Guest
We used to have a thread on this topic but I couldn't find it...
Most of you who know me know how much I despise remakes. I don't see the point, especially if the original version was really good. I don't care if the movie people want to "update" a movie to make it more relevant to the current times because somehow they usually lose something in translation.
I especially don't care for US remakes of foreign films. I can't even think of a single movie off the top of my head that fits into this category that was even remotely good (with the major exception of Tortilla Soup, but that's a personal view). This is frequently because the originals are set in a cultural context that the US version just can't quite capture.
Recent examples of this are Insomnia and The Ring - the original versions are FAR superior than the remakes, and even better - they make sense! Why? Because in these two cases the story is set in a very specific cultural context.
Insomnia deals with climatic elements of living in northern Europe, and The Ring falls in the tradition of classic Japanese ghost stories. They just don't work translate as well.
Now, that being said, I have to admit that I actually like foreign versions of US films! I don't know why this is - call it a weird personal quirk, but weak stories are frequently fun as foreign remakes.
Why is that? I'm not sure - I'll let you know if I come up with an explanation.
What brought this on? The Grudge, which is again a remake of a Japanese ghost/horror story, Ju-On. It probably won't translate as well in the US version, but I acknowledge that I might actually see this one before I see the original.
Why? Because I know that the story probably won't make a lot of sense, and I know the US movie cliches for horror films, so I'll know what to expect. And I have to do this - because the commercials alone are freaking me out! The girl who crawls down the stairs? *shudders*
And I know the original Japanese version will be so much more scary - because it'll make sense.
Make sense?
So what do you think - I'm especially interested to hear views from people outside the US as they're likely much more exposed to foreign remakes...
Most of you who know me know how much I despise remakes. I don't see the point, especially if the original version was really good. I don't care if the movie people want to "update" a movie to make it more relevant to the current times because somehow they usually lose something in translation.
I especially don't care for US remakes of foreign films. I can't even think of a single movie off the top of my head that fits into this category that was even remotely good (with the major exception of Tortilla Soup, but that's a personal view). This is frequently because the originals are set in a cultural context that the US version just can't quite capture.
Recent examples of this are Insomnia and The Ring - the original versions are FAR superior than the remakes, and even better - they make sense! Why? Because in these two cases the story is set in a very specific cultural context.
Insomnia deals with climatic elements of living in northern Europe, and The Ring falls in the tradition of classic Japanese ghost stories. They just don't work translate as well.
Now, that being said, I have to admit that I actually like foreign versions of US films! I don't know why this is - call it a weird personal quirk, but weak stories are frequently fun as foreign remakes.
Why is that? I'm not sure - I'll let you know if I come up with an explanation.
What brought this on? The Grudge, which is again a remake of a Japanese ghost/horror story, Ju-On. It probably won't translate as well in the US version, but I acknowledge that I might actually see this one before I see the original.
Why? Because I know that the story probably won't make a lot of sense, and I know the US movie cliches for horror films, so I'll know what to expect. And I have to do this - because the commercials alone are freaking me out! The girl who crawls down the stairs? *shudders*
And I know the original Japanese version will be so much more scary - because it'll make sense.
Make sense?
So what do you think - I'm especially interested to hear views from people outside the US as they're likely much more exposed to foreign remakes...