Asian Cinema Greets Hollywood
By Tiffany Lee, Staff Writer

All you movie fans, quick: Which movie is about a videotape that kills you a week after you watch it? If you answered The Ring, then you’re right. But did you know that The Ring is actually a remake of a Japanese film. Ringu began as a novel, was scripted into a TV film, and then was brought to the Japanese big screen. The movie was such a hit, that both a sequel and prequel were made thereafter. When a production boss for DreamWorks saw Ringu, the rights to remake the film for Hollywood were bought for $1 million, (which is just about what it cost to make the movie itself!) A year later, The Ring proved to be an even bigger success than its original, making over $129 million at the box office. As a result, U.S. movie moguls have been snatching up the rights to remake more Asian films, hoping to replicate The Ring’s incredible success. With these films being remade and revamped for the American audience, they have more to offer than just American actors and subtitle-free flicks.

It used to be that trades in movies went in only one direction, from West to East, with Asian countries copying the ideas from American and European films, adapting them to their home audience. Nowadays though, the roles have reversed and now it seems that the U.S. is looking to Asia, particularly Japan, Hong Kong, and Korea, for ideas. For a while, it was the actors, directors, and behind-the-scenes crew being brought over. Take for example, these Asian imports: Jackie Chan, who has been in a handful of films since his success with Rush Hour, Ang Lee, director of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, working on this past summer’s The Hulk, and Yuen Wo-Ping, the man who taught Keanu kung fu for The Matrix trilogy. And now it’s the plots and scripts that are being borrowed.

What makes Asian storylines so intriguing results from their significantly smaller budgets, as compared with those of Hollywood movies. Rather than relying on spectacular effects, Asian filmmakers rely on clever and captivating storylines and plot twists to grab their audiences. Limited budgets increase originality, responsibility, and freedom in making films. Although they cannot match Hollywood’s costly production finesse, Asian films offer an original alternative. In addition to sequels to The Ring, Hollywood has already picked up other films, soon to go to production, including The Eye, whose remake rights were purchased by Tom Cruise’s production company, and My Sassy Girl, again by DreamWorks, the most successful comedy in Korean history.

Those of you who have seen My Sassy Girl might already have a feeling that the American remake won’t even come close to the real thing. And you’re probably right! Like most remakes, they likely won’t be as good as their originals. What these remakes will accomplish, though, is to stir up more interest in the original Asian films. Would you rather see "the most successful comedy in Korean history" or "a remake of the most successful comedy in Korean history"? With most films, what makes the originals so great is that the actors, the director, and film crew have the freedom to shape the film any way they want. They weave in their own personalities and interpret the script the way they envision the film. Since they are operating on a smaller budget, there is not a film studio molding the end production to appeal to a mass audience. When a film is remade, much of the film’s charm is lost because everyone becomes focused on sticking to the storyline.

In another sense, sticking to that storyline applies to the audience as well. It isn’t always easy to follow what’s going on in the film when you have to read the subtitles at the same time. You either miss the dialogue or the action. Since the American audience may be deterred from these original foreign films because of the subtitles or dubbing, remaking the film for American audiences does have a positive effect for Asian films. Even though the films have an American subtext, this at least gives the American audience a taste of what Asian cinema has to offer.

The trend of remaking Asian films opens more options to Asian and Asian-American filmmakers. With this new thirst for Asian material, Asian American scripts that were dismissed in the past might have a chance to get produced now. This is also profitable for Asian filmmakers and investors. The selling of remake rights will help in the funding of new films.

When it comes down to it, remaking Asian films is definitely a positive thing. The talent and creativity of Asians and Asian Americans are finally being recognized here. We aren’t just the puppets anymore; we’ve become the puppet masters. There’s now a genuine interest in our ideas, and even if films are being turned into remakes, this kind of publicity and attention will help. Although this interest seems to be specifically geared towards films at the moment, this will lead to greater things in the future.

So when the next remade film comes out, go check it out, even if you have doubts about how good it’ll be compared to the original. Supporting the film will at least help those artists in Asia who are producing the originals in the first place.