Tag Archives: remake

Girl With The Dragon Tattoo: Don’t Take The Kids!

  By Juliet E. | December 21, 2011 - 01:11 | Movies Leave a comment

dragon tattooDaniel Craig plays investigative journalist Mikael Blomkvist in the latest Hollywood adaptation of Swedish author Stieg Larsson’s best-selling thriller, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. The book sold tens of millions of copies worldwide, and, in 2009, was made into a Swedish film.

The movie has already had its global premiere in London.

Craig, 43, is stressing that this is a grown-up flick (it has an R rating), which pulls no punches. “This is one where you pay the babysitter,” he told reporters. “Don’t take the kids.”

But the James Bond hunk has also insisted that the graphic scenes were true to the blockbuster novel’s theme of violence against women. Craig, who normally likes to work out to maintain his finely honed physique, had to skip the gym and put on a little weight for the role, but says he didn’t mind!

Directed by David Fincher, the story follows Blomkvist as he retreats to an isolated northern Swedish island, where he becomes drawn into researching the killing of a young girl some four decades previously.

He is thrown together with Lisbeth Slander, a tattooed, loner punk character played by Ronney Mara, and whose job is as an investigator at a high-tech security company.

Mara, 26, who dazzled and looked gorgeous at the premiere, told journalists: “I think everyone can relate to that feeling of being outcast or misunderstood at some point in their life.”

This adaptation is the latest in a string of Scandinavian crime fiction doing incredibly well in the English speaking world.

See it and decide for yourself! The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is in theaters from December 21st

Photo © LordNikon – Fotolia.com

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“3D Titanic” Trailer Released

  By Juliet E. | December 1, 2011 - 01:10 | Movies Leave a comment

TITANIC OCEAN-LINERPrepare to weep once more at the ill-fated romance of star-crossed lovers Jack and Rose! James Cameron, legendary director of the equally legendary 1998 multi-Oscar-winning romance Titanic, is working on a 3D version of the box office shattering epic which was the second highest grossing flick of all time behind that other Cameron special, Avatar.

Get ready to see the iceberg looming up out of the screen, relive that classic iconic pose of the central couple on the prow of the ship, and watch Leo’s breath freeze in the air so that you can almost touch it.

Titanic in 3D will be in theaters next spring, to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the real ship’s sinking. Actress Gloria Stuart, who played Rose as an old woman, celebrated her own 100th anniversary just last year, weeks before her death on 26 September 2010. She was the oldest person to be nominated for a competitive Oscar, at the age of 87, for that role.

Of course, it’s not possible to see the 3D features unless you are actually in the movie theater, but, given Cameron’s prowess with the technology, it’s all set to look pretty special. And you can still check out the trailer online anyway.

Even if you dismiss the remake as a cynical, money-making ploy, or find the movie’s description of itself as “the world’s most beloved and acclaimed film” a little too much, you may find yourself secretly looking forward to seeing that awesome collision sequence in three dimensions. Our hearts will indeed go on …

Photo © Catmando – Fotolia.com

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Dirty Dancing Remake Scriptwriter Announced

  By J. England | September 5, 2011 - 01:02 | Movies Leave a comment

dancersThe writer on the Dirty Dancing remake is to be Maria Maggenti, who wrote the Selena Gomez vehicle, Monte Carlo, has penned an adaptation of Before I Fall, and is finishing work the on romantic saga, My Name is Memory.

The man behind High School Musical, Kenny Ortega, who choreographed the 1987 Dirty Dancing original, is to direct the remake, announced this summer by Lionsgate.

By any standards, it’s a brave decision to try and improve on such a popular classic picture. The frequently improvised scenes between stars Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey had a special magic, and the whole movie’s spontaneity and warmth made everyone fall in love with it. So it’s going to be hard to capture even a fraction of all of that charm. The original, which defined dancing for an entire generation, has armies of fans worldwide, who will surely be waiting to pounce and criticize.

Unsurprisingly, Lionsgate begs to differ. The studio’s Joe Drake said: “We believe the timing couldn’t be better to modernize this story for the big screen, and we are proud to have Kenny Ortega at the helm.”

For his part, Ortega, who also directed posthumous Michael Jackson film This is It, said the project would be “like returning home.” He added: “I am looking forward to putting together a great creative team and an exciting cast to bring Dirty Dancing to a new generation.”

The original picture starred Grey as Frances“Baby” Houseman, with Swayze as working-class dance teacher Johnny Castle, on whom the teenager develops a crush. A 2004 prequel, Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights, was widely slated by critics.

The DVD of the original has since sold over 10 million copies, while the movie’s Facebook page has more than nine million fans. It was this enduring popularity that inspired the remake.

It’s not the only film from that decade to have been remade. The horror flick Fright Night, also originally from 1987, is on release, while last year saw recreations of The Karate Kid, the 1984 martial arts drama, and 1981’s Clash of the Titans.

The 1990s could be next. Colin Farrell is poised to take the role of Schwarzenegger in a fresh version of Total Recall in 2012.

Photo © Ivan Grlic – Fotolia.com

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