French remake of Japanese film One Cut Of The Dead starts shooting

One Cut Of The Dead (2017, right), the original Japanese film by Shinichiro Ueda, was made on a budget of $33,000 and went on to make more than $40 million worldwide.
One Cut Of The Dead (2017, above), the original Japanese film by Shinichiro Ueda, was made on a budget of $33,000 and went on to make more than $40 million worldwide. PHOTO: SHAW ORGANISATION

PARIS • Oscar-winning French director Michel Hazanavicius has started filming a remake of Japanese cult zombie film One Cut Of The Dead (2017).

The French-language reboot, called Final Cut, is being filmed in the outskirts of Paris and stars Romain Duris and Berenice Bejo, an Oscar-nominated actress who is also Hazanavicius' wife. Their daughter Simone is also in the cast, making it a family affair.

Duris plays a director making a B-grade zombie flick with an unmotivated crew. The exercise seems headed for disaster when shooting is interrupted by the arrival of the undead. But all is not as it seems.

The original Japanese film by Shinichiro Ueda, made on a shoe-string budget of just US$25,000 (S$33,000), went on to make more than US$30 million worldwide and became a cult favourite.

"The brilliant concept of the original film, a dream cast, a light and highly motivated crew, all of this makes me thrilled to be making this movie, about shooting a movie," said Hazanavicius, who won Best Director and Best Picture for The Artist (2011) in 2012. The mainly silent movie, filmed in black and white, took home five awards, including Best Actor for lead Jean Dujardin. It also starred Bejo.

Hazanavicius is also known for his popular OSS 117 movies, which are in French and spoof the spy genre. He has not made a Hollywood movie since his Oscar win.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on May 05, 2021, with the headline French remake of Japanese film One Cut Of The Dead starts shooting. Subscribe