As certain as we are that movie remakes are not going away anytime soon, Israeli filmmakers Navot Papushado and Aharon Keshales are re-emerging once again to verify that fact. The two received notable praise from moviegoers and the press as they toured the festival circuit last year with their latest murder mystery interrogation thriller, Big Bad Wolves. The film eventually earned its share of accolades last year with mostly positive reviews before releasing earlier in North America courtesy of Magnet Releasing.
Well, it appears Papushado and Keshales clearly presented just the kind of tone and vision that could appeal to a broader audience. Alas, leave it to the folks at Sony Pictures who are now reported to grant the two filmmakers their Hollywood debut with another noteworthy thriller, essentially remaking the 2009 Hong Kong-French-produced thriller, Vengeance. Starring Johnny Hallyday, Anthony Wong and Simon Yam, the film was then produced and directed by Johnnie To with a script by Wai Ka-Fai about a chef on a desperate mission with three local hitmen to avenge his daughter and her murdered husband and two children.
Michele and Laurent Petin also produced the 2009 film under their ARP Sélection banner with To, which earned its share of praise from film critics at the time, including the now late Roger Ebert who called the film, “a formula thriller done as an elegant genre exercise.”. The Petins’ will return to produce the remake as well for Sony with producer Matt Tolmach.
H/T: Deadline