Funny Games U.S. (2007)

Director:

Michael Haneke

Writer:

Michael Haneke (written by)

Release Date:

27 March 2008 (Greece)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

Shall we begin?

Plot:

Two psychotic young men take a family hostage in their cabin.

Plot Keywords:

Violence | Death | Hostage | Remake | Serial Killer

Awards:

3 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Naomi Watts	...	Ann Farber
Tim Roth	...	George Farber
Michael Pitt	...	Paul
Brady Corbet	...	Peter
Devon Gearhart	...	Georgie Farber
Boyd Gaines	...	Fred Thompson
Siobhan Fallon	...	Betsy Thompson (as Siobhan Fallon Hogan)
Robert LuPone	...	Robert
Susanne C. Hanke	...	Betsy's Sister-in-Law (as Susanne Hanke)
Linda Moran	...	Eve

Also Known As:

Funny Games (USA)
Funny Games U.S. (France)

MPAA:

Rated R for terror, violence and some language.

Runtime:

111 min

Country:

USA | France | UK | Austria | Germany | Italy

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Ireland:16 | UK:18 | Canada:14A (British Columbia/Manitoba) | Canada:18+ (Quebec) | Canada:18A (Ontario) | USA:R (certificate #43792) | Denmark:15 | Norway:15 | Singapore:NC-16 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Finland:K-15 | Sweden:15 | France:-16 (with warning) | Germany:18 | Netherlands:16 | Italy:VM14 | Ireland:15 (video rating) | Hong Kong:IIB | New Zealand:R18 | Australia:MA | Austria:16 | Japan:PG-12 | Brazil:16 | Portugal:M/18 | Argentina:16 | Iceland:18 | South Korea:18

Filming Locations:

Broadway Stages, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Celluloid Dreams

Trivia:

The production crew used the blueprints from the 1997 original. The set of the house in the 2007 American remake has the same proportions as that of the 1997 set.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Paul "rewinds" the film he presses the Volume Down (-) button on the remote control rather than the Rewind button.

Quotes:

Peter: [to Anne] Would you be so kind as to go and make us something to eat?

Movie Connections:

References A Clockwork Orange (1971)

Soundtrack:

QUINTETT FOR CLARINETT VIOLINS, VIOLA & VIOLONCELLO

An intriguing exercise in copying one's self.

I saw this at the London Film Festival and found it to be exactly what I expected: an English-language facsimile by Michael Haneke of his 1997 German film of the same title. Not that this is a bad thing. It is a testament to Haneke's artistic ability to replicate perfectly his previous film shot-by-shot with equal effect, tension, and intrigue even as one knows what to expect--although it might also say something about Haneke's ego that he doesn't feel that he needed to change or add new material for audiences who've already seen the original. The performances are overall well-executed, especially by Naomi Watts, an actress who has proved that she will still take risks despite the fact that she has made it both in the art-house scene and in mainstream Hollywood.

Haneke wanted to replicate the original film for American audiences since he has considered the story closer culturally to American society. That is a noble effort, but I am not sure if it required him to remake an exact replica of one of his earlier works, nor am I sure that it will have quite the impact he wants since the American audiences he is targeting might avoid it all together (as it might be seen as too art-house or extreme) or be completely turned off by its content and artistic approach. Nonetheless, it is interesting to witness as an exercise in a film artist revisiting his earlier work, even if he didn't bother changing anything.