I saw the original film a few months ago. I quite liked it. It was
dark, and well made. Spent time to show you the real angst of the
characters, especially the one imprisoned.
This Spike Lee remake takes the story, changes it up a bit, and then
tries to execute it too quickly. I just didn't feel the time spent with
Brolin in the apartment prison was long enough.
His relationship with Olsen's character seemed too forced. The fight
scene in the apartment complex with all the goons seemed like a very
crappy version of The Raid. The copycat style just didn't work for this.
If you're going to do a remake, then take the story and completely
immerse it into a new world. But, instead, we've got dumplings as the
food again, and some asian influences? Why bother with that? Is it a nod
to the original?
Brolin himself is decent enough, but I think the torment was better
displayed in the original. The villain himself seems almost comic like
in this. I don't know if Sharlto was right for it. Olsen is fine
herself...she's got great boobs!
I just think that overall, this is a bit of a half hearted rehash.
The effort is just not there, to take something that is considered a
cult classic, and do it justice. For a great example, see Infernal
Affairs, and then the remake of it The Departed. That's how you do it!
In the end, I thought, on it's own, if the original didn't exist,
this would be a good film - i did enjoy it. But, because it is
essentially nothing new, and lazy, it is disappointing.
Rating:
2.5 out of 5.
No comments:
Post a Comment