It’s been over a year since Spike Lee signed on to helm a remake of Park Chan Wook’s Korean thriller Oldboy, which eventually took a backseat to his now completed Baptist church drama Red Hook Summer. The only three confirmations we have on the film so far came when Josh Brolin signed on as Oldboy‘s vengeful protagonist, followed by District 9 star Sharlto Copley accepting antagonist duties and Elizabeth Olsen stepping into the lead female role.
Quiet for some time on how Lee’s adaptation would be envisioned, Comic Book Movie is now reporting Sharlto Copley has hinted that the US remake will be “very true to the spirit” of Chan Wook’s wildly entertaining original.
During an interview with MTV News at the San Diego Comic Con, Copley had this to say about Oldboy‘s atmosphere:
They’ve been very true to the spirit of it. It’s dark, it’s gritty. They’re not sort of softening it, which to me was important. And I’m very excited about that movie. I’m very excited about working with Spike and with Josh. I think it’s going to be a film that is really worth redoing and make that idea that is such an unbelievable story accessible to maybe more people than it was originally.
The original Oldboy runs a tad bit long, but exists as a deeply involved ride of action and intrigue. Not exactly something that Lee is familiar with, right?
Steven Spielberg and Will Smith were supposed to team up for a stateside blockbuster remake back in 2008, but when Spike Lee took over in 2011 there was a bit of head scratching concerning his involvement. Lee is most famously known for his racially charged urban-based cinema such as Do The Right Thing, not big time action romps.
Sharlto Copley assumedly dropped those comments to win over some of the original fanboys dismissing Lee’s remake from the start, but it’s hard to get excited with nothing but a quote to go on.
News that Lee and writer Mark Protosevich will attempt to channel the dark world of Wook’s interpretation should ease the minds of some, but you can expect true lovers of the original to hold out final judgement until seeing actual footage.
Do you think Spike Lee can do justice to an Oldboy remake? Or will his final product be just as confusing as the director’s involvement?
Published: Jul 26, 2012 09:21 am