OXIDE PANG TALKS THE EYE SEQUELS
Fango correspondent Nicanor Loreti recently spoke with Oxide Pang, who co-directed the Asian horror hit THE EYE with his brother Danny, about their upcoming projects:
Filmmaker Oxide Pang has become one of the new enfant terribles of Asian cinema. He and his brother Danny co-directed the actioner BANGKOK DANGEROUS and then THE EYE (for which Tom Cruise acquired the American remake rights), and his last solo movie, THE TESSERACT, recently played at the Mar del Plata Film Festival in Argentina. Though its not exactly a horror film, this adaptation of Alex (28 DAYS LATER) Garlands book does include plenty of fantastic elements, and the directors impressive visual style is at its best, with breathtaking and impressive action scenes. The movie stars Saskia Reeves and Jonathan Rhys-Meyers and focuses on three people whose lives collide in a cheap Bangkok hotel; its the directors first project with an international cast.
I tried to make the action look real and interesting, Pang says. I want it to be different than the usual shoot-em-ups. I like my movies to be unique. Like other Asian filmmakers such as Takashi Miike, hes in favor of improvisation during his shoots. In THE TESSERACT, theres a little in-joke in which we see a shot of a pigs head smiling after a certain character is killed. I did not write it in the script; I got this idea when I went to see the location before filming. I get these kinds of ideas all the time. Luckily, the audience seems to like them.
The EYE sequels were announced shortly after the first films worldwide success, and now the wait is over, with a pair of follow-ups in the works. Danny and I are teaming on the new EYE movies, and well start working on the third one as soon as Im finished with my new film, he says.
In THE EYE 2, a young girl named Joey (Shu Qi of SO CLOSE) discovers that shes pregnant after a suicide attempt. Right after that, she starts being stalked by a mysterious woman, who might or might not be a ghost. Those expecting a by-the-numbers retread will be happy to hear that, according to Pang, It is quite different than the first film. People will be pleasantly surprised, because its not your typical horror movie. There will be a number of shocking images just like in the original, but this time well take it one step beyond. More info will be available soon at the films official site, www.eye2themovie.com.
The third entry will also go off in a new direction. The third EYE will be something special, Pang says. It will actually be called THE EYE 10, and it will be about 10 ways to see a ghost. It will be a pretty funny film. The director is also excited about the Cruise-produced EYE remake. Danny and I are truly proud of it, but we dont know anything about it yet. Theyre just writing the script at the moment.
With the sequels and remake in the works, 2005 will likely be The Year of THE EYE. However, Pang has more important things to worry about lately. Im currently shooting my new film, which is called AB-NORMAL BEAUTY and stars one of Hong Kongs new faces, he reports. People will be really surprised by it. After that one, well start with THE EYE [sequel] and, right after that, a big-budget movie called RE-CYCLE, which will also be co-directed by Danny. We showed the promotional reel at the Cannes Film Festival this month. Beyond that, Pang is set to collaborate with Mona Nahm on THE REMAKER, a Thai paranormal thriller about a man who survives a car accident with the new ability to dream the future, but who also becomes haunted by echoes of a past life.
Courtesy of Fangoria
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