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Theo Van Gogh Remake Trilogy Finishes with John Turturro

by Alex Billington
May 16, 2007
Source: Variety

I was first introduced to a trilogy of great remakes (for once, they're actually good remakes!) at Sundance when watching a movie titled Interview, the character drama directed by the one-and-only Steve Buscemi. After the film, Steve stayed around and did a Q&A along with the producers, where they talked a brief bit about this trilogy of films, something that I had never heard of until then but have become very interested in given how great Interview turned out.

Theo Van Gogh (pictured), a talented Dutch director and activist, was murdered in late 2004 by a terrorist, and a group of producers decided to remake three of his films to pay homage to a little-known-in-America but very talented filmmaker. The first was Interview, based off of Van Gogh's film of the same name, which premiered at Sundance, and following that are two more, one directed by Stanley Tucci and the other John Turturro.

Here's a quick look at the three films in the remake trilogy:

1. Interview - Directed by Steve Buscemi; Based on Van Gogh's Interview (from 2003)
The story is about a journalist who is sent to interview a big female celebrity and ends up spending an evening in her studio apartment.

2. Blind Date - Directed by Stanley Tucci; Based on Van Gogh's Blind Date (from 1996)
The story is about a couple who have lost a child that try to rebuild their relationship by pretending to be other people meeting on blind dates.

3. 1-900 - Directed by John Turturro; Based on Van Gogh's 06 (from 1994)
The story is about two lonely souls who meet through a sex chat line; the title refers to the numbers required to dial such lines.

Next up is Blind Date, which starts shooting in a couple of weeks. And last is 1-900, directed by John Turturro. Initially Bob Balaban was attached to direct, but as of today, it's confirmed as Turturro instead. Each film is a character drama that focuses on the relationship between two people, and usually stars only just two people. With Interview, you would have never imagined you could enjoy a film about a journalist interviewing a celebrity in her apartment for two hours, but they pulled it off brilliantly and it's quite more than just that.

I suggest if you're a fan of art films or independents or are just looking for some of the best filmmaking on the planet, keep an eye out for this trilogy of remakes. I've already seen Interview and would certainly suggest seeing it, and besides that, I'll be anxiously looking forward to both Blind Date and 1-900.

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