Reeves gets teeth into remake for all the right reasons
Matt Reeves claims he directed Let Me In not as a cash-in but due to echoes of his childhood, discovers Evan Fanning
By Evan Fanning
Sunday November 07 2010
Matt Reeves breezes into the room with a smile on his face. He places his bottle of Coke on the table and gets on with the business at hand. In many ways, Reeves is in a no-win situation with his latest film. A US remake of a successful European film is always going to leave a bad taste with certain people, no matter how expertly executed the resulting film may be. If it is good, it is a reflection on the strength of the original. If it is bad, then it is the work of an insensitive hack butchering someone else's work for financial gain.
Let the Right One In featured prominently on most Best of 2008 lists. A coming-of-age vampire story focusing on the unlikely friendship between a troubled boy and girl, the Swedish film, directed by Tomas Alfredson, thrilled audiences and took the already flourishing vampire story into new areas.
That a US version would be made was probably inevitable. In the hands of Cloverfield director Reeves, it has been remade sensitively and with subtlety.
Reeves decided to change the name from Let the Right One In to Let Me In, which was the title of the original US print run of the John Ajvide Lindqvist novel (though it was later changed to match the film). "I had so much respect for the original film, I just felt if we differentiated in this little way it wasn't like we were saying this is Let the Right One In Again," he explains. "It was our attempt to do another telling of Lindqvist's story."
But it was the nuances of the plot, rather than its success as a film, which really attracted Reeves to the project. "What I liked about the story is that it didn't shy away from any particular aspect of the humanity," Reeves says.
"It allowed for light and dark, and perverse and innocence. That mix blew me away. That innocent child who is also having fantasies about serial killers and revenge, and then this tender love story juxtaposed with this really quite violent and disturbing vampire story. That was the power of the tale."
Rather than adopt wholesale changes, Reeves merely transported the movie from the bleak Swedish winter to the snow and ice of New Mexico. "I fell in love with that coming-of-age story and I wanted to remain faithful to that," he says.
Short, stocky and bespectacled, if it wasn't for Reeves' expensive-looking V-neck jumper and crisp jeans, you could mistake him for a film nerd at a comic book convention. At the same time, it is probably safe to assume he has attended his fair share of them. Cloverfield would have taken care of that.
The 2008 thriller, produced by Lost creator JJ Abrams, was made on a tight budget but became one of the big hits of the year. Reeves had been known primarily as a writer, having created the TV series Felicity, as well as scripted films such as The Yards and Under Siege 2.
Let Me In is a project that jumped out at the 44-year-old as soon as he read a manuscript of Lindqvist's not-yet-published novel. The sense of isolation and abandonment the lead character feels in his life rang true with Reeves and reminded him of his own childhood in California.
"I was bullied and I grew up at that time [the 1980s] and my parents went through a very painful divorce," he says. "I identified with that sense of being incredibly confused, the sense of humiliation and the sense of isolation. There is tremendous shame with being bullied. There is a level where you think there is a reason that you are being singled out.
"As a kid, I was always mistaken for a girl. Before you reach that age where your sexuality starts to display itself, kids can look very androgynous. I guess I leaned more towards the feminine, and all of those things were very, very hard growing up, because you're trying to create an identity and yet you're feeling shameful about the one that you're making."
In Let Me In, the central character Owen finds an escape from his often traumatic existence through his friendship with a peculiar girl, Abby, who has just moved to his apartment block. For the 14-year-old Reeves, salvation came in a different way. "For me, frankly, it was making 8mm movies," he says. "[They] became the tool with which I could make friends. Because I was too painfully shy under other circumstances, I would say, 'Hey do you want to make a movie?' And then we would make a movie and that's how I made friends. And it was also my escape. In the movies, I was James Bond."
Reeves blurts all this out at a frantic pace, barely pausing to take breath as he runs through the traumas of his childhood. Alongside him, his young leading man, 14-year-old Australian Kodi Smit-McPhee, seems a lot more laconic. The teenager is part of a select group of child stars who appear in heavyweight projects. It's basically made up of him and Kick-Ass star Chloe Moretz, who plays Abby in Let Me In.
Having previously played Viggo Mortensen's son in John Hillcoat's adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's The Road, Smit-McPhee knows all about taking on traumatic and intense parts. When Reeves cast him, the director had yet to see The Road (or Kick-Ass, where Moretz famously used the c-word, sending the Daily Mail into a won't-somebody-please-think-of-the-children moral panic). "Kodi was in almost every scene and I know the shoot wore on him tremendously," Reeves says.
"I was really worried, because it's such an adult story and I thought, will we be able to find young actors who can handle this kind of emotional complexity? Adults have to relate to what's going on in the story, which means they have to express themselves in a way that is advanced for their age."
The excitement in advance of the release of Let Me In shows Reeves and his team's mastery of creating hype -- Cloverfield was one of the most highly anticipated movies of recent years thanks to viral marketing campaigns and online "leaks" of storylines and teaser trailers.
A deleted scene from Let Me In -- the so-called "rape scene" involving Moretz -- didn't make the final cut of the movie, but Reeves released it online last month, and, if it was an attempt to create advance anticipation for his movie, then it did the trick.
But Reeves denies that he took the harrowing segment out of the movie because he was concerned it would reflect badly on the film. "I cut that scene because it didn't work in the flow of the movie," Reeves explains. "One of the reasons I put it on the internet is that they were so great in the scene that I wanted people to see it. It was absolutely not because it wasn't palatable to the audience. It just didn't work in the flow. It was no attempt to soften the movie."
Having run the gauntlet by taking on a remake, Matt Reeves doesn't seem like the type of man to worry about placating an audience.
'Let Me In' is showing in cinemas now
Matt Reeves Interview w/ Irish Times
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/mag ... 30739.html
Elias Koteas InterviewA plot in the dark
INTERVIEW: Nothing upsets film fans more than an unnecessary remake but director Matt Reeves is confident that his new vampire film will work. But then, this is the man who managed to scare the pants off Steven Spielberg, he tells DONALD CLARKE
A LOT OF PEOPLE have it in for Matt Reeves. Nothing more vigorously stirs the ire of a movie fan than an unnecessary remake. When it was announced that Let the Right One In , Tomas Alfredson’s extraordinary 2008 Swedish vampire drama, was to get an American makeover, the internet immediately caught a case of violent dyspepsia.
Based on a novel by John Ajvide Lindqvist, that film – after a slow start – eventually emerged as one of the most acclaimed of the past decade.
We all knew what was about to happen. This eerie, restrained film, in which a bullied boy develops an affection for an undead neighbour, would be transformed into a clumsy, noisy, flashy shock-fest. Reeves, eventual director of the new project, understands the cyber-suspicion.
“Oh, when I was shown the film I told them they shouldn’t remake it,” he laughs. “On the other hand, it reminded me of a TV pilot I had written some time before. And this was my life. Like the kid in the film, I was bullied and I was often mistaken for a girl when I was a child.
“It was a piece of genius: a coming-of-age story hidden in a vampire tale. I immediately wondered if we could turn it into an American story without stepping on the original’s toes.”
To most everyone’s surprise and delight, the eventual film, retitled Let Me In , turned out to be an impressively nuanced and thoughtful piece of work. Set in Los Alamos, New Mexico (in winter, as snowy as Sweden, apparently), Reeves’ picture retains much of the original’s frayed atmosphere but, taking place in the early 1980s, it also insinuates subtle musings on America’s post-Watergate neuroses.
So, how did he manage it? Let Me In was not produced on an enormous budget but the independent studio was still risking several million dollars on a comparatively recherché project. There must have been pressure to soften the material. Few recent American films have been quite so nihilistic.
“There wasn’t really much pressure,” he says. “There was briefly a question as to whether we would age them up. I was dead set against it. It is a film about that particular time in life. Strangely, the success of Twilight actually helped us. Suddenly they wanted to differentiate themselves from that – make it different. The kids being younger actually helped in that way.”
Reeves may not be a household name but he is already an experienced director. A close colleague and friend of JJ Abrams (he of Lost and the recent Star Trek film), Reeves helped develop the series Felicity and has directed numerous episodes of other popular shows.
His break into movies came with an impressive, faux-handycam, giant-lizard thriller named Cloverfield . You remember. That was the film with the extraordinarily effective teaser trailer during which the Statue of Liberty’s head bounced across Manhattan.
“That was a new way of promoting movies,” he says. “I shot the trailer, which is unusual for a director. The marketing became a cultural experience in itself. It created this environment that made the film a hit. But it also created false expectations about the movie. It was always supposed to show you the story from the character’s perspective – with all those limitations. People wanted all these answers and some were disappointed when they didn’t come.”
As well as breaking new ground in marketing, Cloverfield , in which some huge beastie chews up most of New York, also helped formalise the first-person video as a mainstream genre. Whereas Blair Witch was shot with a tiny crew, Reeves’ film, despite being largely made on humble consumer equipment, was a huge Paramount production.
“We were making a garage-band version of a big movie. I kept expecting Paramount to arrive and say: ‘What are you doing? Make a proper film.’ What I was doing was closer to the old Super-8 films I did as a kid.”
Yes, Matt Reeves, a polite guy with a sober manner, was one of those kids who lived life through a viewfinder.
Born on Long Island, he acquired an old wind-up Super 8 camera and began pointing it at anything that moved. When still a teenager, he met JJ Abrams – also a keen amateur auteur – and they embarked on a partnership that has endured. It’s hard to imagine either of them living any other sort of life.
“To make it you have to be just a little insane,” he says. “You have to want it too much. I can remember my father saying: ‘What if you don’t make it?’ And I would say: ‘I’ll keep at it until I do.’ ‘But what if you don’t make it?’ ‘I’ll keep at it until I do.’ ”
Reeves does seem to have made it. Cloverfield was a huge smash and Let Me In – though it performed disappointingly at the US box-office – is one of the most positively reviewed films of 2010. One imagines that the young Reeves would be pleased with how things have worked out.
He remembers sitting in the cinema when ET came out and wishing that he could become friends with the director. Sure enough, following the release of Cloverfield , Steven Spielberg sought him out.
“He was on the set of Star Trek and asked if the guy who directed Cloverfield was about,” he says. “So I had to shuffle on over and get myself introduced. ‘Congratulations,’ he said. ‘You scared the hell out of me.’ ”
Some critics have seen parallels between Let Me In (not to mention Let the Right One In ) and Spielberg’s ET . “ ET with teeth,” one writer ventured. The tones could not be more different but both films deal with children from broken families discovering very weird friends.
Both feature hugely impressive juvenile performances. (Chloë Moretz from Kick-Ass plays the vampire. Kodi Smit-McPhee is the bullied boy.)
“Steven said: ‘It’s important for you to remember what life was like when you were 12. But remember these kids actually are that age. Use that. They have gold for you that you could never discover on your own.’ ”
Dark gold. Very dark gold indeed.
http://www.iconvsicon.com/2010/10/03/el ... much-more/
Exclusive Interview with Simon Oakes, CEO of Hammer, on Let Me In, Daniel Radcliffe and The Woman In BlackElias Koteas is part of a rare breed. It seems that he is one of the few actors in Hollywood today who is fearless when it comes to taking risks and seeking out challenging roles, all for the love of his craft. A veteran of stage, television and film, he is well into his third decade in his creative journey. In his latest film, Matt Reeves’ ‘Let Me In,’ Koteas plays an unnamed policeman who slowly discovers that he may be investigating a string of murders by no less than a vampire. Alongside newcomers Chloe Moretz and Kodi Smit-McPhee, Koteas breathes life in a character that could come across as two dimensional in less than capable hands. Icon Vs. Icon’s Jason Price recently sat down with Koteas to discuss his career, his experiences while working on ‘Let Me In’, the process of bringing a character to life and his upcoming projects!
Tackling a career in the entertainment industry is not for the faint of heart. When did you decide to pursue a career as an entertainer as opposed to going in a different direction?
Elias Koteas: I used to watch a lot of TV and I was a huge horror movie buff growing up. It wasn’t like I excelled in school, so it was either that or end up as some kind of thief somewhere! [laughs] I don’t know, man. I was just lucky that God bestowed upon me the gift that he has. It was kind of like, “Here is what you should go do.” So I just followed that path. I don’t know if there was a moment that it all sparked but I just feel so blessed that I have had the opportunities that I have had and that I found that path early enough, ya know.
Growing up, and even today, who are some of your influences?
Elias Koteas: As far as in the movie business, I was, and still am, a huge Nick Nolte fan. Watching him on ‘Rich Man, Poor Man’ was probably the reason I wanted to become an actor. As a young acting student, you would see all of the guys from the ‘70s and I love Laurence Olivier and Montgomery Clift.
What was it about the script or the character in particular that drew you to your role in ‘Let Me In’?
Elias Koteas: Well, I could really relate to Owen’s character, being bullied at school and trying to cope with that and his dysfunctional home life. I think that is universal for a lot of us. I just really feel in love with that journey. I thought that Matt Reeves captured it beautifully in that script and I just really wanted to be a part of it.
You mentioned that you are a horror fan. Were you familiar with the book and the original film before filming?
Elias Koteas: No, I was not. I am going to try and catch it at some point. I hear that they are great and equally great in their own way. I hope that the fans of the original film are open enough to receive a different version that is equally as soulful.
For someone not familiar with the other incarnations, what can you tell us about your character?
Elias Koteas: I play a sort of broad strokes police officer who is investigating some very bizarre murders that begin to happen in his town suddenly. He is a little bit over his head perhaps. He has never seen anything like it. Metaphorically, he could be anything — perhaps a moral conscience of it slowly coming towards these to kids and what is happening to them.
With a role like this, what is your process for bringing a character that could have much less dimension in someone elses hands and make it jump from the page to the screen incorporating some of your own essence along the way?
Elias Koteas: That is a good question. What started occurring to me because the character, for all intents and purposes, could be taken out of the movie in some way, except for the last scene of the movie, and the narrative still happens. Over time, he very much started feeling like a ghost to me. This just has to do with my personalizing of things. In a lot of ways, I feel like he has gone back in time and is trying to retrace his steps to discover where he went wrong and is somehow baring witness in a very compassionate way, not only to the people around him but to himself as a soul. I started thinking of it in those terms and it started making sense to me and added relevance to me being in the room. You may or may not see that in the script, but it added a certain sort of weight to being there for me.
You mentioned the director, Matt Reeves. There is quite a buzz about him and the film itself. What was it like working with him and what do you think he brought to the project?
Elias Koteas: I have known Matt for a while. We worked together on a pilot years back. He is such a lovely soul. He is very inclusive. He has his ideas and is completely open to yours. He makes you feel that you can keep trying different things and the more the better. He created an environment that his actors could feel safe in and try a lot of different things. As an actor, that is all that you can ask for. He loved the project so much and believed in it. I think that he related the the journey of this boy as well and you knew you were in the hands of someone who had the right sensitivity for the story. It doesn’t get better than that. He is just a lovely human being.
You are also surrounded by some great young talent who play some dark roles in this film. How would you describe your experience performing with Chloe Moretz and Kodi Smit-McPhee?
Elias Koteas: You know what, I feel like kids have a real “bullshit barometer”. You can’t fool them, ya know. The kids were great. All I can do is learn from them because they are just so present. It is not like they are doing any acting because they are so young and they are so soulful that they can really imitate what they see and play. As an actor, with my so-called experience, that is really the state that I want to be in at all times. So, I had a lot to learn from them. At the end of the day, when I felt accepted by them, I felt like I had accomplished something. It was me who was humbled by them. They were effortless. Working with them, you can’t help feeling very protective of them because you are watching them at a time in their lives where they are going to change, in the film they will be forever 12 years old and it captures their essence that way. It is really something profound.
As an actor, what was the biggest challenge in making this film?
Elias Koteas: It may sound simplistic but to me sometimes just being present. I am a bit of a helium balloon and I tend to just kind of fly off, so to be in a room and be grounded and to look at things and observe them in a non-judgemental way with a passionate eye, all of those things were a challenge to me.
You have been in several films in recent years that have supernatural overtones. Being a fan of the horror genre, what has it been like for you as an actor exploring that genre?
Elias Koteas: Listen, man … I grew up watching all sorts of horror films! I could not get enough of them. I would be in front of the television as a little kid with the TV Guide in hand, just waiting for something to come on! ‘King Kong’ was my favorite. ‘Dracula,’ ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame,’ ‘Frankenstein,’ ‘The Wolfman,’ ‘Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,’ you name it! Vincent Price, Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee, Boris Karloff, Lon Chaney, he was amazing in ‘Phantom of The Opera.’ All of these guys, what they have in common is that they have so much soul that you can see their soulful struggle and somehow be part of their world. I love it! If I could fill Vincent Price’s shoes I would be a happy camper! Or more likely Lon Chaney and what he had to endure with the character he created, I love it. Not just for the sake of just slasher and horror films, you want these films to have soul. That is what I think these films have had and that is what I think ‘Let Me In’ has — a timeless soul, the need to just belong and to be a part of this world and somehow make sense of your life or why you are here. If I could carve my own little niche that way, I would be very lucky! [laughs]
You have played so many different roles throughout your career. Is there a particular type of film or genre that you are anxious to tackle in the future?
Elias Koteas: I don’t know how to answer that, man. That is a really good question. I don’t know. Just recently I just spent some time in South Africa playing in a movie called ‘Winnie’ which is based on Winnie Mandela’s life. I never in my wildest dreams thought that someone would wake up and say, “Ya know who we need to play the South African leader of the apartheid army? We need Elias!” The fact that somebody thought that is a good sign because I never thought someone would have cast me in that. It was a great time and a huge learning experience that challenged me, ya know? If more people think of me for parts like that, parts that you wouldn’t expect to see me in, that would be a blessing! I am open to anything, comedy, horror, drama, as long I feel that the character is something that I could help contribute to the storyline.
What is the best piece of advice that you have for anyone who would like to get involved in the film industry?
Elias Koteas: That is a great question. I just think that, not to be simplistic about it, you should live your life as fully as you can. Absorb and observe what is going on around you. Read voraciously. Learn an instrument. Learn as many different things as you can because the more you know about what is going on around you, the more you know about what is going on inside your heart, the fuller your instrument will be to draw from if acting and sharing a part of yourself with people is what you want to do. In retrospect, that is the biggest thing that I could say. Live your life with an open mind and a curiosity. The more the better!
I wanted to ask you about one of your early roles. You played Casey Jones in the ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ movie which is celebrating it’s 20th anniversary this year. Can you share any thoughts on your experiences with that franchise and was it as much fun as it looked?
Elias Koteas: It was a lot of fun, man! You know, you show up and you put on this outfit and you become a superhero that is talking to these Turtles! The people behind it, the creature shop, it was such a great experience. The people were so talented and friendly! At the end of the day you had to pinch yourself because you were working with these brilliant artists that were bringing these phenomenal beings to life! Seeing them brought to life was an amazing experience! I can’t believe it has been 20 years!
Well happy anniversary!
Elias Koteas: Thank you! It’s amazing!
What other projects do you have coming up that we should be on the look out for in the near future?
Elias Koteas: In addition to ‘Winnie’, there is a picture called ‘Dream House’ which is directed by Jim Sheridan and stars Daniel Craig. It is a great film that we just finished up. I will also be in ‘Harold and Kumar 3’. That was a lot of fun and it will be in 3D.
It seems you continue to have a full plate, which is great! Thanks for talking with us, Elias. We really look forward to seeing what you have in store for us in the future!
Elias Koteas: Thank you, man. It has been a pleasure talking to you!
http://www.heyuguys.co.uk/2010/11/03/ex ... -in-black/
This week sees the release of Let Me In, the Matt Reeves directed adaptation of John Ajvide Lindqvist’s novel starring It-Girl Chloe Moretz and Kodi Smit-McPhee. It is the first major release from the rejuvenated Hammer, a name synonymous with cinematic horror. Fans of the much loved Tomas Alfredson adaptation of the novel may have their concerns about the new film but it gets a lot right and sets the tone for a new direction for Hammer, and we sat down with CEO Simon Oakes to talk about the legacy and the future of Hammer – including The Woman in Black, starring Daniel Radcliffe.
HeyUGuys:
Hammer has an enormous and important legacy, and Let Me In represents a new direction for you, what’s your take on the future of Hammer?
Simon Oakes
I’ve been on the record as saying that when we bought Hammer we knew we had this great brand with which audiences had a nostalgia love affair, the British particularly, and a lot of people have been influenced by and referenced Hammer, like Tim Burton. I felt we had to reposition it and ask ourselves ‘What would Hammer be doing today?’ If Hammer had carried on through the 80s and 90s, what films would it be making? When I bought the company a question I was asked constantly was ‘Are you going to be remaking the classic Hammer horror films?’ and we thought about it, it couldn’t really be done – they had been old fashioned, they were in a house style that was brilliant and unique but got overtaken by the Urban Myth films that came out of America in the late 70s, The Omen and The Exorcist. Hammer had done vampire films, sci-fi films like Quatermass, The Mummy, psychological horror films, like mini-Hitchcocks and so we wanted to have films which were a contemporary expression of that and that’s when we found Let Me In.
HeyUGuys:
And what drew you to the story?
Simon Oakes
We’d seen the book and some of the early footage of the film and saw that it was a different take on the vampire mythology, we didn’t know it would become this huge arthouse classic. We’re real fans of the original, but we were committed to doing it and we knew Matt Reeves had a take on the material and as he says, it’s his version, it’s not a pure remake. There are things which are really honoured, some scenes that are almost shot for shot because they can’t be bettered, they just have a slightly different style and there are some new scenes. Only in a Swedish film can you have a police officer come into a school and say, ‘Someone’s been killed, it may be a vampire,’ and that’s it…
HeyUGuys
What else are Hammer working on?
Simon Oakes
We’ve got a psychological thriller called The Resident coming out in March, there’s a small film called Wake Wood, which is more of a homage to the past, it’s something in the tradition of The Wicker Man, and of course we’re shooting The Woman in Black from Susan Hill novella. So, we’re taking steps to re-brand the brand.
HeyUGuys
And that will include Novels put out under the Hammer name I understand, with Jeanette Winterson already signed up, are any other authors on board?
Simon Oakes
We’re looking a number of different writers, and the idea is that everyone has a horror story in them and it would be great to get authors who don’t often write in that genre. There are obvious ones, like Rankin, Gaiman and Will Self we’d love to have write for us…
HeyUGuys
And these are all established authors…
Simon Oakes
Yes, all established authors. The imprint is going to have six to eight books a year which will be made up of novelisations of the back catalogue, novelisations of films that we make and then new novels by well established authors.
HeyUGuys
Any plans to do any anthologies?
Simon Oakes
Well, yeah, I’ve been thinking about doing anthologies on TV, but perceived wisdom is that anthology TV doesn’t work anymore, and my reaction is immediately – ‘Let’s do it’, go against the grain. It’s a question of would you want to see a sixty minute Hammer film on TV each week, or would you want the continuation of character? That’s where we are right now, and it may be that an anthology would work, but perhaps with characters intertwining. Tales of the Unexpected was the last anthology series which worked, but that had Roald Dahl behind it. We’re still trying to find our path in terms of TV.
HeyUGuys
Would Hammer look to use the internet for distribution?
Simon Oakes
The problem is that no-one knows what the economical model for that is yet, really. We did a thing called Beyond the Rave which is an internet film and we released it in ten minute episodes, but the fact of the matter is that for horror you’re likely to get a 15-rating or over and for something like Beyond the Rave you need mobile phone sponsorship and you couldn’t because of the content and the rating. You have to design specific internet material, and digital marketing is incredibly important, social gaming is incredibly important and we’re beginning to move in that direction but it’s important to get the movies out first, we are a film company first.
HeyUGuys
The Woman in Black is going to be a really important next step for you. It’s a very well known story, Jane Goldman adapted it, Daniel Radcliffe is in it, and it’s a popular stage play, how are you planning to make it a Hammer story?
Simon Oakes
We bought the novella and what Susan does is, very much in the style of the Wilkie Collins, M.R. James pastiche, less is more, it’s imagined – very much like The Innocents. So what Jane Goldman has done is taken out these imagined moments and thought ‘What could actually have happened?’ and ‘What is the Woman in Black’s curse?’, and there are some big set pieces and Jane has just run with her imagination. We’re got this young director, James Watkins who did Eden Lake, who really understands the genre, so our approach was to let Jane go crazy, and its really properly frightening.
HeyUGuys
Daniel Radcliffe will bring in the Harry Potter fans, though I suspect he’s moving away from the role?
Simon Oakes
Yeah, he’s lived with Potter all his life, and this is really his first grown up role and he’s in every frame of the film. It’s great because he’s an old fashioned English romantic lead now. And in this film he’s got some great actors around him, Ciarin Hinds as an example, but it’s Daniel’s film.
HeyUGuys
This is a strange time for British film right now and you’re setting up shop with a huge legacy, what’s your take on the Industry at the moment?
Simon Oakes
As far as the UK Film Council is concerned, I’m certainly no privy to the discussions going on, but I think it’s a watch this space moment. It was a PR mistake to say we’re getting rid of the Film Council without saying what will replace it. I believe it will exist in some form, possibly with even more money but made more cost efficient. There are some really talented people, who really care about film, and understand the balance between commerciality and cultural diversity, but it needed a shake up.
HeyUGuys
And technology wise, are you looking to make use of 3D?
Simon Oakes
Everything finds its feet eventually. Nine months ago, everything had to be made in 3D and the technology will get better and become more manageable, the cost of making a film in 3D won’t be 20-25% more, so your decision to make it has another economic imperative behind it. I think we’ll find the right film to made in 3D and films not suited to 3D won’t be made in 3D.
HeyUGuys
Let Me In is one of those films, was there any pressure to upconvert to 3D?
Simon Oakes
No, it wouldn’t have benefited from that and it’s the same with The Woman in Black. Having said that we have a number of properties that would absolutely be made in 3D. It’s no longer a gimmick, it’s immersive and I think it can make the film a lot better.
HeyUGuys
Finally, returning to the Hammer Vaults – are you planning to reissue the old films?
Simon Oakes
Yeah, some of the films we’ll be looking to release in box sets and on Blu-ray, the ownership issues are a bit of a mess, but that’s where we’re heading.
Hammer rises from the grave with release of Let Me In
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-11686734
Fred Malmberg InterviewAfter a hiatus of more than three decades, an iconic British horror brand is being resurrected on the big screen. Audiences for vampire movie Let Me In - out on Friday - will notice the word HAMMER in huge letters in the opening titles. It has been a while since that happened: Hammer's last horror movie was 1976's To the Devil a Daughter, starring Christopher Lee and Nastassja Kinski. Let Me In is a remake of a Swedish arthouse hit, and signals a rebooted Hammer for the 21st century. As Hammer chief executive Simon Oakes points out, the days of heaving cleavages in the Home Counties - spoofed in films like Carry On Screaming - have been staked through the heart. “I'm not going to make velvet-caped, heaving-bosomed kitsch Hammer films.” "Early on when we bought the company, I was asked questions by journalists: 'Are you going to remake the old Hammer films?' I said, 'You know I'm not going to do that!' I'm not going to make velvet-caped heaving-bosomed kitsch Hammer films, because that was then, and this is now." Hammer was founded in the 1930s but it was not until the 1950s that its name became synonymous with the horror genre. The company also produced comedies, thrillers and science fiction. Its run of monster movies included Dracula and The Curse Of Frankenstein, which made stars of British actors like Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing.
After lying dormant since the 1980s, the company and its back catalogue were bought in 2007 by a consortium, with Simon Oakes as CEO. One clear sign of Hammer's new direction is the choice of director for Let Me In. Matt Reeves made his name on Cloverfield, the 2008 monster movie that grossed more than $175m (£108m) worldwide. Reeves remembers seeing Hammer films as a child. "It's exciting to be part of that tradition," he tells the BBC. "It's the kind of movie that scared me when I was a kid, I would close my eyes and watch them late at night on TV. "The original Hammer films were very lurid and gothic and wonderful, but this is a bit more naturalistic, so maybe it's a new page in Hammer horror." Let Me In is based on John Ajvide Lindqvist's bestselling Swedish novel Lat den Ratte Komma In (Let the Right One In) as well as the Swedish film of the same name. Hammer fought off fierce competition to acquire the rights.
Chloe Moretz (Hit Girl in Kick-Ass) stars as Abby, a mysterious 12-year-old who moves next door to bullied loner Owen, played by The Road's Kodi Smit-McPhee.
Owen forms a bond with his new neighbour, but soon comes to realise that her strange behaviour masks a darker secret. One noticeable difference to the Swedish film is that Reeves has upped the gore and the use of CGI. "Lindqvist's novel is like a great Stephen King book," observes Reeves. "It's about coming of age, but specifically about how coming of age can feel like a horror story, and so in ramping up the horror aspects I was really trying to get deeper and deeper into Owen's story."
So how important is Let Me In to Hammer's resurrection? Simon Oakes: "There is a massive amount of goodwill, not only in the film community globally, but in Britain particularly, around the brand. It's important that we recalibrate or reboot Hammer in a way that's relevant to a contemporary movie audience." He says of Let Me In: "It has all sorts of levels in it, that I think rises above the normal vampire fare." An important name from Hammer's past - Christopher Lee - returns in the release next year of thriller The Resident, with Hilary Swank in the lead role. The studio is currently filming a new adaptation of supernatural novel The Woman in Black, starring Harry Potter actor Daniel Radcliffe. And Hammer recently announced that it will be be moving into the literary arena with new horror novels and adaptations of classic films. The first commission is a novella from Jeanette Winterson. Oakes acknowledges he has a big responsibility looking after the Hammer brand. "The most important thing is that Hammer has somehow managed to stay alive, with a very low heartbeat for many years, and so it's our job to actually make sure that it lasts another 50 years. "Yes, it's a responsibility. I had a sense of its potential when we acquired it, but I never thought there was quite the amount of goodwill and energy that this whole venture seems to have been given us. It's amazing."
http://www.dreadcentral.com/news/30983/ ... ght-one-in
Drawing on Your Nightmares: Let the Right One In
A few months ago I was in a meeting with my colleagues at Paradox Entertainment to talk about the direction of the Robert E. Howard properties that they own, including Solomon Kane, which I write, and Conan and Kull, on which I consult.
Pigeons from Hell (click for larger image) We also did Pigeons from Hell with them, a Joe Lansdale adaptation of the REH horror yarn. Fred Malmberg, the guy at Paradox with whom I’ve worked from the beginning, back in 2003, comes from a Swedish gaming company, which has grown into a production company in Los Angeles. They’re developing the Howard properties for film, and they’ve got their hands in a few other things. Even knowing that, I was shocked when Fred told me he was producing the American remake of Let The Right One In (review). It completely derailed our Howard meeting, because I couldn’t stop talking about the Swedish film. I decided I needed to exploit my connection with Fred for the betterment of my fellow horror geeks at Dread Central. This short interview does not answer all your questions, but hopefully it’s good for a little fresh information.
SCOTT: The novel is a lot more involved than the film—a lot had to be left out. Will you bring anything from the novel that wasn't in the Swedish film? Is it an adaptation of the Swedish film, or the novel?
FRED: It is a remake of the Swedish film, with an eye on the underlying source material. There are some great back-story elements and mythology, which fans would really enjoy. So if those could be hinted at in the film, I think it would be great.
SCOTT: Why make an American version?
FRED: That was decided upon even before the Swedish film had premiered. The book is so great — it is a fresh take on vampire mythology and it deserves a big audience. No matter how successful a sub-titled film is in the U.S., the potential will always be minor compared to an English-language film.
SCOTT: It is a rare U.S. remake that pleases fans more than the original foreign edition. What can you bring to this film that will expand on the original?
FRED: In the U.S., Tomas Alfredson's film is considered an art-house picture. Mostly because it is a foreign language film, but also because of his directing style; he is a very Nordic director with lingering shots, camera work, music and so forth. I love his work, as does everyone I have encountered in this process. I don't think you should compare the two films, they are aiming at different audiences. Matt Reeves is a very, very talented director who comes from another angle, he has a great sense of where the young audience is today. I hope he will retell the tale so that it can capture a much wider audience yet remain faithful to the core concepts of Ajvide's book.
SCOTT: Are either the Swedish writer or director going to be involved?
FRED: No they are not. I know Tomas Alfredson and doubt he is even interested in the project. He made his version of Ajvide's tale and it is already a classic.
SCOTT: How do you think Let The Right One In fits into current trends in horror in the U.S.?
FRED: The timing is perfect. Ajvide's book is a metaphor for being an outsider, being weird, the pains of growing up, and fantasies of revenge.
SCOTT: Will the relationship between the vampire and the live boy be played more romantic, a la Twilight—like every other U.S. vampire story since Buffy?
FRED: No, this is a tale of a very innocent boy, pre-pubescent, it is romantic but in a wholly different way since these kids are much younger than those you mention.
SCOTT: Do you see any similarity between the tone of Let The Right One In and the tone of Cloverfield? What makes Matt Reeves the right guy for the job?
The Cleaners (click for larger image)FRED: Matt is a great artist and most directors approach each project from a different angle. I think Cloverfield was a very good film for what it set out to be. I feel confident that Matt will deliver a film that will be different enough from the Swedish, and yet careful with the source material.
Outside of the interview, Fred and I talked off the record about the project a little more, and according to current plans, the small ways in which they expand upon the story are true to the spirit of the Swedish film. I was concerned about how they might develop the characters into more traditional U.S. horror movie roles, and it doesn’t seem like that’s happening. I’m optimistic. I’m watching a screener copy of the film again as I write this, and Oskar is about to whack Conny in the face with the red stick. Oops, there he goes. Not gonna mind if Matt Reeves is a little nastier with that, but I sure hope he doesn’t rob Oskar of his one real moment of his own.
I’ll throw out one small Dark Horse plug to wrap it up — check out The Cleaners, a new miniseries currently underway written by Mark Wheaton, the writer of the recent Friday the 13th(review). I know feelings are mixed around here on the film, but this comic is unique and very interesting. It’s had me on the edge of my seat, and I’ve resisted the urge to pump editor Shawna Gore for info, glad to have a horror comic that I don’t edit that keeps me in suspense and waiting to see where the blood-soaked plot is heading.