Dramabeans » remakes

Kim Haneul and TOP are top contenders for Absolute Boyfriend

javabeans — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 08:25:12 +0000

javabeans: Wait so Kim Haneul is doing You’re My Pet remake AND the Absolute Boyfriend remake?

girlfriday: What’s Absolute Boyfriend?

javabeans: It’s another Japanese manga that’s been adapted over and over again and is up for a K-drama remake. The heroine has a robot boyfriend. Literally a robot.

girlfriday: Does not compute. He’s a robot? Like a cyborg? This is the premise?

javabeans: She orders one to her specification, and then he develops some sort of AI form of emotion, so that he’s got his “own” thoughts and feelings.

girlfriday: Am I supposed to find this creepy?

javabeans: No, but you probably should.

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Read the rest of Kim Haneul and TOP are top contenders for Absolute Boyfriend (512 words)

© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2011. | Permalink | 171 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: conversation post, Kim Haneul, manhwa adaptations, remakes, TOP

Temptation of Wolves to become a drama

javabeans — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 04:46:51 +0000

Another remake is in the works, this time from film to drama, with the adaptation of popular youthful romance Temptation of Wolves. The movie starred Jo Han-seon and Lee Chung-ah, but is perhaps most famous for catapulting a young Kang Dong-won to stardom.

The story premise is fairly straightforward, as a coming-of-age story about a country girl moving to school and ending up in a love triangle with two popular high school boys. The movie was itself an adaptation of a hit internet novel by the same name. At the time of publication, the book set sales records by selling 500,000 copies and was one of those early success stories of internet writers hopping into the mainstream when their online projects took off in popularity.

(Writer Guiyeoni has had some criticism for the literary quality of her works, but I can see how she became such a huge success if she was able to put out projects with strong narrative appeal. And they must’ve had enough of that, since she wrote a few more novels that were turned into well-known movie projects, like He was Cool with Song Seung-heon and Do Re Mi Fa So La Ti Do with Jang Geun-seok.)

The project has been licensed for adaptation by JS Pictures, which produced a number of successful dramas like Giant, New Heart, and Piano. Apple Tree Pictures is co-producing the project, and has titles like Time Between Dog and Wolf, Bottom of the 9th with 2 Outs, and The Man Who Can’t Marry under their belt.

Well, I’m always up for a witty, sensitive teenage romance, and if the drama can do what the movie did, hopefully that’s what we’ll get. And the question on everyone’s minds: Who will be the next Kang Dong-won?

Via TV Report

Hollywood to remake Hello Ghost

girlfriday — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 13:07:12 +0000

Looks like Hello Ghost is on a roll. The dark comedy starring Cha Tae-hyun as a suicidal man who gets saddled with a couple of invasive ghosts was a huge box office success in Korea, selling over 3 million tickets in two months. And after being exported stateside, it’s already been snatched up for a Hollywood makeover.

Chris Columbus (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Home Alone) is set to direct and produce the remake with 1492 Pictures. What, am I gonna complain? The man wrote The Goonies, for crying out loud.

Columbus is reportedly a fan of Korean cinema, and told Deadline: “After watching Hello Ghost I was immediately struck by the film’s ability to mix comedy, drama and complex emotional themes. Its strong universal storyline translates to any culture, and I’m looking forward to bringing a version of this wonderful story to the English-speaking audience.”

Jang Kyung-ik, VP of Hello Ghost‘s distributor Next Entertainment World, said, “We have gladly accepted his offer knowing that he is the guru of family comedy films, and someone who has a solid fan base throughout all ages.”

I’ve been dying to see this for the last two months, but just haven’t gotten there yet. Perhaps if I had a ghost or two on my back about it, I’d get on it. Wait. That wasn’t an invitation!

Via Star News, Deadline

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© girlfriday for Dramabeans, 2011. | Permalink | 40 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Cha Tae-hyun, Hollywood, remakes

Comrades remake attracts interest from Hollywood

javabeans — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 17:29:11 +0000

Park Yong-ha‘s next drama is based on the 1996 Hong Kong film Comrades: Almost A Love Story (aka Tian mi mi) and has taken on a new title: Love Song (which is still a working title). And according to production company Verdi Media, Hollywood studio Warner Bros. (which owns the rights to Comrades) has already made an offer to buy the U.S. and Chinese broadcast rights for the drama.

The original story follows its couple from mainland China to Hong Kong and later New York in an epic romance spanning a decade. Remake Love Song will be set in China, Korea, and Japan and plans to begin filming in July, aiming for a projected Korean broadcast later this year. The show has not yet cast its female lead.

I’m intrigued, but I have no idea what to make of Warner Bros. acquiring the broadcast rights to a kdrama. It could either be a pretty big deal (aside from Asian-specific cable channels like AZN, Korean dramas don’t have a broadcast presence on American television), or an oddly exaggerated report. Hm. Could be interesting.

Via Newsis, 10 Asia

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Drama version of Civil Servant in the works

javabeans — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 04:10:55 +0000

The hit action-comedy movie Level 7 Civil Servant (aka 7th Grade Civil Servant aka My Girlfriend Is An Agent) is getting remade into a drama series, and is currently in the planning stages with Apple Tree Pictures, which produced comedy series The Man Who Can’t Marry and thriller drama Time Between Dog and Wolf.

This news had actually been floated about a year ago, but it looks like producers are jumping on it now to capitalize on the success of Chuno, whose writer, Chun Sung-il, also penned Civil Servant. Chun will also write the scripts for the television adaptation, which means he’ll be mighty busy in the coming months, as he has already signed on to write Rain’s comeback drama Runaway (which, by the way, also happens to be described as a spy drama, although chances are it’ll be more serious than Civil Servant). Runaway is being planned for later this year, while the Civil Servant drama will follow next year.

With the success of IRIS, we’re about to get a rush — dare I call it a glut? — of spy-oriented drama series. There’s IRIS 2, the spinoff series Athena, and Runaway. And now Level 7 Civil Servant. However, the one thing that sets this apart is its strong comic angle; the movie was lots of zippy fun.

The movie’s plot centered around a woman (Kim Haneul) who hides her spy identity from her slightly bumbling but well-meaning boyfriend (Kang Ji-hwan). When her stories don’t add up and he gets tired of being shoved aside for odd reasons, he finally leaves her and goes abroad for his job. A few years later, he comes back as a rookie agent and runs into her again, much cooler now but not without a trace of his former dorkiness. (LOVE him!) But of course, neither can let on that they’re both spies, and moreover, their respective teams are working on cases that bring them repeatedly in contact with each other. The plot didn’t always convince — bioweapons, Russian baddies, blah blah — but the humor and the two leads made for an entertaining ride.

There have been a few instances of movies being turned into dramas, which include the recent Friend, Our Legend and 2008′s Gourmet. The success of the drama will hinge on who they cast for the two leads, because Kang Ji-hwan and Kim Haneul had tons of chemistry, so I’ll be very keen to know who they end up picking.

Via Hankook Ilbo

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Chae Rim returns to All About Eve in special appearance

javabeans — Sat, 29 May 2010 03:00:43 +0000

The role that made Chae Rim a star was the 2000 Hallyu hit All About Eve, which is now getting a Chinese remake starring Chuno‘s Jang Hyuk, and she’ll have a special appearance in the new drama as well.

The Korean miniseries was a huge hit and paired Chae Rim with Jang Dong-gun, while pitting her against devious rival Kim So-yeon, the latter of whom knocked it out of the park portraying the quintessential backstabbing second lead in the role based on Eve of the original Hollywood film. Jang Hyuk will take the Jang Dong-gun role — a gentle Prince Charming of a PD who was Chae Rim’s boss at the broadcast station where they worked — while the rest of the cast will be played by Chinese actors. Chae Rim’s role has been cast with Zhu Dan; Kim So-yeon’s will be played by Cheryl Yang.

It’s not yet clear what kind of character Chae Rim will play in her cameo (I’ll bet it’s an anchor at the broadcast station, but that’s just a guess). China’s version of All About Eve will air in September.

Meanwhile, Chae Rim just wrapped up her latest drama, the feel-good Oh My Lady with Choi Siwon in which she played an ajumma who works for (and eventually develops a rapport with) a spoiled top star. She has not yet announced a follow-up project.

Via BNT News

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© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2010. | Permalink | 29 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: All About Eve, Chae Rim, Jang Hyuk, remakes

Park Yong-ha signs on to new drama

javabeans — Wed, 26 May 2010 18:45:28 +0000

Park Yong-ha will be returning to television screens in a drama remake of the popular Chinese film Comrades: Almost a Love Story (aka Tian Mi Mi, or 첨밀밀 in Korean), which starred Maggie Cheung and Leon Lai. This makes it a year since Park’s last project (and one of my favorites), Story of a Man.

Writing will be Oh Soo-yeon of Winter Sonata (which catapulted Park to fame) and Autumn Love Story; directing is Ji Young-soo of Oh! Pil Seung Bong Soon Young. According to producers, the drama plans to begin filming in July, after they have cast their female lead. They are aiming to premiere the show by year’s end.

Comrades, described as an epic love story, enjoyed tremendous popularity in Asia and was the most successful foreign movie of 1997 in Korea. The story spans ten years and features two people who move to Hong Kong from mainland China, and find love and comfort in each other while living in the lonely city. Their relationship withstands a separation and continues when they reunite in New York, again immigrants in a big city.

I have no idea how this will translate to kdrama form, but it should be interesting? Too bad I didn’t like either Autumn Love Story or Winter Sonata, but I’m willing ti give this one a try.

Via Star News

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Jang Hyuk picks next project with All About Eve

javabeans — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 03:39:31 +0000

Hot on the heels of his latest success playing slave hunter Dae-gil in Chuno — which ended this week — actor Jang Hyuk has announced his follow-up project: a Chinese remake of the Korean drama All About Eve, which was a hit back in 2000 when it starred Jang Dong-gun and Chae Rim (and Kim So-yeon as a scene-stealing second lead, playing the ultimate villainess role).

According to Jang’s management Sidus HQ, he will take the role initially played by Jang Dong-gun. The series is set in the broadcasting industry, and the original had Chae Rim and Kim So-yeon as rival rookies, while Jang Dong-gun played an experienced PD. The character played by Chae Rim will be portrayed by singer-actress Zhu Dan, while her backstabbing rival will be played by Taiwanese actress Cheryl Yang.

The series is planning for a September premiere on Chinese television.

I don’t know the actresses involved so I can’t weigh in on them (anyone?), but I’m a bit wary of an All About Eve remake. Unless they rework the story a lot, doesn’t it seem rather old-school? (Bad girl schemes to one-up good girl whom everyone loves, particularly the handsome, rich, and senior colleague who rides to her rescue. It’s the classic Cinderella tale, but without a clever or modern twist.) Jang Hyuk had been planning to make his entry into the Chinese market with a television series, which he gave up to do Chuno, so I guess he’s eager to get back on that horse now that he’s free again.

Via TV Report

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Hyun Bin and Tang Wei wrap filming on Late Autumn remake

javabeans — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 16:45:17 +0000

Hyun Bin will no longer be in Seattle, as filming has wrapped on Late Autumn, the remake of a ’60s classic that co-stars Tang Wei.

The film had begun shooting in the Seattle are on January 12 (where Hyun Bin’s girlfriend, Song Hye-gyo, reportedly visited him). The film wrapped with its epilogue March 1, which was shot on Whidbey Island, which is part of Puget Sound and located 30 miles from Seattle. Although Hyun Bin wasn’t featured in the last shoot, he stuck around while his co-star filmed her final scene, and the crew toasted the end of production with some champagne.

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Read the rest of Hyun Bin and Tang Wei wrap filming on Late Autumn remake (116 words)

Seo Woo faces off against Jeon Do-yeon

javabeans — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 18:13:15 +0000

Jeon Do-yeon, Seo Woo

It was with particular interest that people took notice of Jeon Do-yeon‘s next film project, as it teams the Cannes Best Actress winner (for Secret Sunshine) with award-winning director Im Sang-soo (A Good Lawyer’s Wife) in a remake of a classic movie largely regarded as the best Korean film of all time, 1960′s The Housemaid. (Read more about The Housemaid.) Now Seo Woo has been cast opposite Jeon Do-yeon, and the two will face off in a suspenseful battle of wills.

This is quite a coup for Seo Woo, who is still a newbie in the film world. She has, however, already received ample recognition for her acting skills and her career has gotten off to a brilliant start: She won a newcomer award last year for Crush and Blush, gained greater public recognition from the mania drama Tamra the Island, and is garnering strong buzz for her role in the thriller film Paju.

In the original film, a housemaid works for a middle-aged married couple, has an affair with the husband, and starts acting out in bizarre ways. The wife tries to reclaim her place in the household, and a series of shocking, suspenseful events unfolds. The remake recasts the married couple as a younger pair; the older Jeon Do-yeon plays the seductive and manipulative housemaid to Seo Woo’s younger wife character. The husband is still being cast.

Sounds fascinating, and I for one am really looking forward to seeing these two actresses duke it out onscreen.

Via Arts News, Today Korea

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© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2009. | Permalink | 15 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Jeon Do-yeon, remakes, Seo Woo