Korean zombie epic Train To Busan was one of the most highly buzzed horror films of the year, getting a great response at festivals and fantastic reviews when it hit general release (although we’d have liked to have seen a wider UK release, but that’s not what this is about). So it’s not too surprising to hear that the movie is getting a remake.
Variety reports that Yeon Sang-ho’s film, which was set on the high-speed train between Seoul and Busan, is being getting the English language version treatment, as the original’s production company has struck a deal with Gaumont, who apparently beat out US studios like Fox and Sony. The “zombies on a train!” high concept pitch could work in any language, but there’s obviously more to the original film than that and we’ll be approaching it with all due caution.
The film was Korea’s top-grossing movie of the year, and it was seen by many as a political allegory. There’s nothing confirmed about the remake currently in terms of cast, writers, directors or any of that good stuff.
One film that does have some new talent confirmed is the US remake of Housebound, which is set up at New Line. Gerard Johnstone’s nifty horror-comedy-family drama was one of the big hits at FrightFest in 2014 (read our review here), telling the story of a young woman who is forced to live with her mum while she’s under house arrest. Once she’s back in her family home with no possibility of leaving, she starts to become convinced that there’s something in there with them…possibly some kind of unquiet spirit…
The Tracking Board reports that writer Chris Borrelli has been brought on for the reboot, which everyone is assuming is basically the same story but set in the US. Borrelli wrote last year’s exorcism horror The Vatican Tapes, which was directed by Mark Neveldine, as well as upcoming chiller Eloise, which stars Eliza Dushku and Robert Patrick, and action-thriller Wake.
We loved the way that Housebound managed to consistently wrong-foot us, but we’d argue that the biggest part of its charm was in the mother-daughter relationship that was beautifully played by Morgana O’Reilly and Rime Te Wiata. It’s not easy to see what would be gained by relocating the story from New Zealand to the US, but if the remake is going to work, it’s going to need to get those two characters right.
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