Paul Schrader to pen script for Hollywood remake of "Tomie"?

by Matthew Hardstaff

I think I've mentioned it before, but I'm a pretty big Junji Ito fan, and consider "Tomie" to be a horror manga classic. It's amazing. You should read it write after reading this. Plus, I do enjoy the film series. Granted, some of the films aren't perfect, and some would be down right awful J-horror films if they weren't tied in with the Tomie mythology, but when they're done right, like Ataru Oikawa's original "Tomie" and Takashi Shimizu's "Tomie: Re-birth", they're down right weird, creepy and oddly cute. You should go out and watch those after you read this and the manga series.

So I've been pondering for half the day now, trying decide how I feel after reading over at Bloody Disgusting that Paul Schrader will be taking a stab at the Hollywood adaption of the film. For one, it says Schrader is penning it, not directing it, so hopefully we'll be spared from watching a film as dreadful as his only other real foray into horror, "Exorcist: Dominion", which I might add, he didn't write. Plus, he did write "Taxi Driver", "Raging Bull" and my personal favorite, "Mishima". But, still, "Exorcist: Dominion". He made that wretched pile of crap. He may not of written it, but he was at peace with the script enough to make it into a film.

Another think to note is that it say its an adaptation of the film, which its clearly not. There's no father-relationship in the original. Its an amalgation of a few of the stories, none of which come off as a 'supernatural Fatal Attraction'. Thats something that really doesn't sell me. If Schrader taps into the same descent into madness that is a staple of Ito's work, and a key ingredient in the "Tomie" series, it could turn out to be quite good. If it makes it deliciously bloody and evil, then it could be good. If Tomie's madness spreads, if she multiplies, then it could be good. But then, it could also end up being like "Exorcist: Dominion". We shall have to wait and hear more.