[...] Becker on December 5 at an undisclosed location in Seoul. (They were in the country to announce the Phone remake at a press conference on the [...]

I watched Drag Me To Hell and REALLY liked it. I think it’s because of the comical elements (the old gypsy lady bobbing in her dug-up, rain-filled grave, the car fight scene, even the talking goat …) interwoven with the “horror”. Really … not a true horror flick, but it was just something different.

@ amy (28)

Perhaps you’re thinking of “Chakushin Ari” (“One Missed Call”), which was indeed a Japanese production. But “Phone” came out in 2002. “Chakushin Ari” in 2003 and remade by Hollywood in 2008.

“Horror movies often work better with lower budgets and cheaper effects, because horror works on the principle of incomplete information.”

Excellent point. You are right as always. I think that could be one of the main reasons why I prefer Asian horror over Hollywood horror; what you *don’t* see is what scares you!

Slightly OT here, but I watched Drag Me To Hell a couple of weeks ago and am totally bewildered as to how that’s considered the best horror in 2009? I know it’s not supposed to be taken too seriously, but when the blood started spraying out of her nose and then later when the goat started talking…wow, what a total joke. This is why I always come back to Asian horror.

“Both of them did indeed suck, but so did the Japanese sequels to those movies. It’s just a case of sequels sucking in general, rather than who was directing.”

Nah, it’s because when the two directors went to Hollywood, they mostly abandoned the low-budget idioms they actually employed in both horror franchises and fell in love with CGI and helicopter landscape shots and all that good ol’ Hollywood stuff . . . which BTW KILLS HORROR FILMS. Horror movies often work better with lower budgets and cheaper effects, because horror works on the principle of incomplete information. If you don’t have CGI, don’t have 30 cameras set up in a room, don’t have infinite time to do postproduction on gore makeup and effects, you have to get by on really, really thinking about how the person watches your movie and how you have to circumvent their ability to predict and understand. Meaning . . . you have to intellectually press their primal button, instead of indulging in gore candy.

Guys like John Woo and even Wong Kar-Wai have done films here too . . and hasn’t been great. The fact that they’re hiring the original Korean director, actually makes me question even more whether it’ll be comparable to the original.

“Speaking of remakes, I’m still waiting with baited breath for the Hollywood do-over of Oldboy. Last I heard, Spielberg will be at the helm and Will Smith as either the main or supporting man. I just can’t take Will seriously and I know he has improved a lot with roles in Seven Days and I am Legend, but his character in Prince of Bel Air is still…um, Fresh on my mind (pun clearly intended).”

Will Smith is the African American Ben Affleck. Can you see Ben Affleck doing Oldboy? Exactly. Also, Steven Spielberg has never done and never proven he can do true black humor in a drama. Heh.

Love to see the American remake of Chaser though. Starring Lil Wayne.

I consider this movie one of my favorite horror films, and I greatly respect it and the people behind making this movie. I really hope that Hollywood does not end up making a mess out of the remake of this movie. Even though it sounds kind of creepy, this movie is the reason why I had started listening to classical music, and it is also because of this movie that the “Moonlight Sonata” came to be one of my favorite pieces. Also, this was one of the very first Korean movies that I saw back when I was still in high school together with A Tale of Two Sisters. I would even consider this movie an unforgettable one because of how it impacted my life at that time. Getting dramatic here, but it’s true. In my opinion, this is such a (creepy) good and memorable movie. So, I’m hoping (wishing) with all of my heart that Hollywood does not ruin this movie for those people who have not seen the original version yet.

Both of them did indeed suck, but so did the Japanese sequels to those movies. It’s just a case of sequels sucking in general, rather than who was directing.

Speaking of remakes, I’m still waiting with baited breath for the Hollywood do-over of Oldboy. Last I heard, Spielberg will be at the helm and Will Smith as either the main or supporting man. I just can’t take Will seriously and I know he has improved a lot with roles in Seven Days and I am Legend, but his character in Prince of Bel Air is still…um, Fresh on my mind (pun clearly intended).