THB #271: A Man Called Otto

It’s a funny thing, remaking a movie for America that was a wonderful discovery in another language. For those who have loved the original, the idea of a remake seems unneeded and likely to be inferior, not unlike a book you love converted into a movie.

But we have been very fortunate in this regard this year. First, we got Living, the remake of Kurosawa’s classic Ikiru, moved to England of the 50s in a screenplay by the great Kazuo Ishiguro, directed by Oliver Hermanus and starring the impeccible Bill Nighy.

And now, a remake of A Man Called Ove, the Swedish comic drama from 2015. That film ended up twice Oscar nominated for International and Hair/Make-up. It ended up grossing $3.5 million for Music Box in America and $27 million in the rest of the world. You can stream it on Prime right now.

The director and the star came to my kitchen for a rollicking chat (in which you can see how they transformed Rolf Lassgård and got that nom)…