So let's begin, shall we?!
5. The Ring
Back in 2002, Gore Verbinski's remake of the Japanese film Ringu was released and it managed to frighten a whole new section of the world, who would usually avoid a film with subtitles, such as 14-year old me. I often would argue that "I don't want to read a film, I'm there to watch it!" and I still hear this argument to this day. However, this film was my first taste of Japanese horror and films that are inspired by them.
I was simply petrified by this film. The atmospheric music and sparse imagery embodied the film with an intensely creepy sensation and many set-pieces certainly stuck with me. The image of "the Ring Girl", Samara, in a bright white dress and sitting in the middle of a pure white room with the only thing black being the thick hair covering her face is simply iconic today, and this is the film that really started it all. Remakes of Japanese originals such as The Grudge, Dark Water, The Eye and Shutter all followed on from The Ring and since most of been critical failures, many film critics argue that it should have stayed in Japan.
4. Funny Games
I rented the original Funny Games back in 2005 as I was trying to broaden my horizons with European cinema whilst studying film in college. I had heard it was an intense watch but definitely worth it and I was not disappointed. Funny Games concerns a small German family who are terrorised by two local teenagers, making them play sadistic and pain-filled games just because they can. It was incredibly brutal and terrifying, using very subtle and subversive methods including breaking 'the fourth wall', all of which have become synonymous with the director Michael Haneke.
Two years later, I learnt that Haneke was remaking his own film, but this time in the English-language. This perplexed me, as remakes are usually handled by a different director, allowing the chance for a new interpretation of the same material, so I approached the American remake with some trepidation. However, the film was pretty much the exact same, with some sequences even shot-for-shot similar, but just with Naomi Watts and Tim Roth instead of their German originals. The same menace and sadistic streak ran throughout the film and it was still an uncomfortable film to watch. In a good way, of course.
3. Let Me InThe Swedish Let The Right One In was released back in 2008 and centred on a young frail boy who is often the victim of the local school bullies. He soon develops a friendship with a vampire child, Eli, who lives in the same apartment block and he learns the courage to stand up for himself. The entire film treads a fine line between heartfelt drama about childhood friendship and the horror of a vampiric life, especially when you appear to be a child.
Most fans of the film opposed the very idea of remaking of the Swedish original, but upon watching Matt Reeves' re-imagining, I honestly didn't mind it. I even preferred some sections to the original. The choice of the ever-impressive Chloe Grace Moretz and rising star Kodi Smit-McPhee as the main two leads really added depth to their friendship and special bond. The increased budget also allowed the director to utilise special effects to show off Abby/Eli's vampire abilities, such as climbing buildings with ease and impressive amounts of strength. Despite how well the transition may be, the film's focus switches depending on the country of origin; Let The Right One In is a story about childhood friendship, and it happens to feature vampires. Let Me In is a story about vampires, who happen to share a childhood friendship. I find the former a much more interesting narrative.
This Academy Award-winning crime-thriller from 2006 was adapted from the originally titled Infernal Affairs, made in Hong Kong back in 2002. Infernal Affairs was considered a 'box-office miracle' when first released and seen as an indication of a resurgence in Hong Kong cinema, remaining the highest-rated Hong Kong film on the list of IMDb's Top 250 Films Of All Time. I wasn't aware of the original film when seeing The Departed in the cinema, but I was blown away by the storyline and the performances by stalwart actors Leonardo DiCaprio, Jack Nicholson, and even Mark Wahlberg steals the show!
The film surrounds the Boston police department and the local Mob, ran by boss Jack Nicholson. To infiltrate the police, he persuades his protege, Matt Damon, to join the police department to keeps tabs on their Mob investigations. Little does he know that the police are doing the same thing to him. Leonardo DiCaprio is an undercover policeman monitoring the crime boss and begins to rise through the ranks in his organisation, despite it taking a toll on Leo's mental state.
Infernal Affairs was noteworthy due to the intricate story of loyalty and betrayal, as well as being beautifully shot. Scorcese successfully manages to translate every slight nuance and every tense stand-off into an outstanding Hollywood thriller that rightfully earned him his first Best Director Academy Award.
Now whilst this is a fantastic film and an incredible adaptation, there is still a film adaptation that impresses me more...
1. Twelve MonkeysHowever, the top spot has to be given to a film that I didn't even know what an adaptation of a foreign film, let alone a French short film. The French short in question was a 28-minute black-and-white film called La Jetée, made in 1962 and constructed simply of still photographs. The short featurette's plot consists of a prisoner in the aftermath of a Third World War who becomes the subject of time-travel experimentation in an attempt to discover secrets of the past. Change the event of a Third World War to a virus outbreak, and this plot is obviously Terry Gilliam's 1995 sci-fi Twelve Monkeys, so much so, the film even honours La Jetée in it's opening credits.
The film has been praised as one of the greatest science fiction films of all time, and I can't help but agree. I would attribute this to Gilliam's surreal direction, the cinematography of Roger Pratt, the powerful and mesmerising performances of Bruce Willis and the Oscar-nominated Brad Pitt and the plot twists sprinkled through the film. It is a wholly melancholic film and I love watching it again and again. It has become a cult hit within certain film circles and rightfully so.
If you have yet to see this twisted and impressive time traveller, I highly recommend it.
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Thank you for reading guys and girls, I hope you enjoyed my list. If I missed out any entries, please feel free to comment in the section below!
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