Something I'm guilty of is watching a movie after loving the original foreign version only to trash it because, let's be honest, those remakes, especially when they are American, tend to be terrible. Since being less negative is my resolution for 2019, for this week's Thursday Movie Picks, the weekly series hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves, I'm focusing on good films only. Without further ado, here are my picks:
Brothers (2009)
Based on the Danish Brøde — which is still on my watchlist, waiting —, it follows a young man (Jake Gyllenhaal) recently released from prison as he tries to take care of his sister-in-law (Natalie Portman) after his Marine brother's (Tobey Maguire) helicopter is shot down and he's presumed dead. But then the brother comes back and he's haunted by the war. It's not perfect but it's quite complex and engaging, and the performances are great.
The Magnificent Seven (1960)
A remake of Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai, it follows seven gunfighters as they are hired by three Mexican farmers to protect their village from Calvera (Eli Wallach) and his bandidos. The title couldn't have been more spot on as it's truly a magnificent film. It's even more enjoyable than the original.
Some Like It Hot (1955)
Adapted from the German Fanfaren der Liebe — this one too I'm yet to see —, it follows Joe (Tony Curtis) and Jerry (Jack Lemmon), two musicians who disguise themselves as women and join an all-female band to hide from some gangsters. It's one of the best romantic comedies ever made as it has lots of romance and it's hilarious. And it has one if not the most memorable closing lines ever.
I have not seen Brothers but love Magnificent Seven which, I know shudder, I love better than the original. I did not know Some Like it Hot is a remake but a brilliant one and who doesn’t love Joe E Brown.
ReplyDeleteYou’re not alone! I also loved The Magnificent Seven better than the original :)
DeleteWe match on Brothers and Some Like It Hot today! Great films, I'm glad I'm not the only one with love for Brothers, I felt like I a lot of people didn't care for it when it came out.
ReplyDeleteNatalie Portman is the only reason I watched it the first time and having seen other mediocre movies of hers I wasn’t expecting it to be good but damn I was wrong!
DeleteI've only seen Brothers from your picks, and I haven't seen the original yet (shame on me!) but it's such a good movie! Difficult to watch at times, but so good.
ReplyDeleteI haven’t seen the original either 😅
DeleteSome Like It Hot.... ah... a perfect film.
ReplyDeleteSomeone would say, nothing’s perfect, but this film is!
DeleteExcellent choices.
ReplyDeleteThe only one that I've seen both versions is Magnificent 7 and 7 Samurai which are fine examples of good source material being reworked properly.
I've only seen Brothers the once in the theatre on its initial release. A very good film but hardly something that I'd want to revisit often.
I haven't seen the origin film for Some Like It Hot but I can't imagine anything being an improvement. So much of that is Wilder's touch but when you have all four featured roles so perfectly cast with performers working at top speed a lot of the work is done for you.
I turned a French eye on my picks for this time using the work of two masters that were redone to different degrees of success.
The 13th Letter (1951)-A study of the insidious damage suspicion can cause as a series of poison pen letters threatens to destroy a small Quebec town. Otto Preminger directs this atmospheric remake of Henri-Georges Clouzot’s 1943 film Le Corbeau with an excellent cast headed by Linda Darnell and Charles Boyer.
Human Desire (1954)-When the boorish Carl Buckley (Broderick Crawford) is fired from the railroad he persuades his sexpot wife Vicki (Gloria Grahame) to go see his boss to try and get his job back. She acquiesces and is successful but Carl becomes convinced that she is now having an affair with the man and murders him. Fed up with his loutish ways Vicki ensnares Jeff (Glenn Ford), one of Carl’s co-workers, in a plot to murder him. Darkness ensues. Fritz Lang directs this remake of the 1938 Jean Renoir film La Bête Humaine with his usual hard eyed view.
Diabolique (1996)-A pious Catholic schoolmistress (Isabelle Adjani) with a horribly abusive husband (Chazz Palminteri) joins forces with her husband’s mistress (Sharon Stone), a fellow teacher at the school and equally abused by the man to murder him and free themselves of his tyranny. They carry out the crime and dispose of his body in the school’s unused swimming pool. But when the pool is drained no body is present. What is going on? An adequate but disappointing redo of Henri-Georges Clouzot’s masterful classic-1955 Les Diaboliques with Simone Signoret and Vera Clouzet. You’d do better to track down the 70’s TV version “Reflections of Murder” with Joan Hackett and Tuesday Weld. It’s much better.
I haven’t seen any of your picks (it doesn’t surprise me) but The 13th Letter sounds very interesting.
DeleteI did not know Some Like it Hot is a remake. And I can't remember the closing lines either.
ReplyDeleteWhat? How does one forget that? Here it is :) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mHhr-aaLnI
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