There’s been talk of a Martyrs remake for quite some time now. Back in 2010, Daniel Stamm (The Last Exorcism) was attached to direct, but according to a photo the folks from Fantastic Fest snapped at the European Film Market in Berlin, Kevin and Michael Goetz, the guys behind Scenic Route, are now at the helm.
In case you missed our Martyrs edition of “A Horrifying Education” back in October, the 2008 Cannes Film Festival selection is directed by Pascal Laugier and stars Mylène Jampanoï as Lucie and Morjana Alaoui as Anna. The two meet as children in an orphanage and Anna quickly comes to realize that Lucie was abused as a child and now is haunted by a ghost-like creature of sorts. Fifteen years later, Lucie sets out to find and kill her childhood captors and, without spoiling anything, her efforts land her and Anna in a whole new nightmare.
Again, if you read “A Horrifying Education,” you know that I don’t care much for Martyrs, but I will admit that it’s a well made film with one especially curious and highly disturbing scenario at the core. I’d like to bet an American remake won’t go as far as the original in the gore department and I also suspect the filmmakers might ditch the whole creature/haunting thing and just run with the torture porn components. The two changes would certainly make the remake less memorable than the original, but they would also make the film more watchable.
A while back, Stamm spoke to Movies.com after his version of Martyrs feel apart. He called the script a “beautiful character study of how far you'll go for an insane friend.” That’s a far more effective tagline than what Blumhouse stamped on the film’s EFM poster, “The Ultimate Horror Movie.” Really? You’re going to say that before you even make the thing?
Regardless, I’ve actually got high hopes for this one. Stamm’s a strong director and I suspect he’s got an eye for winning material. Even though he’s out, hopefully the filmmakers have kept the 2010 remake idea intact because based on how Stamm described it, the project should have loads of potential.