Every once in a while I use this space to tout a recently released Blu-ray/DVD that I missed in theaters but, via the magic of home video, was finally able to check out from the comfort of my couch (click here to see me gush about The Perks of Being a Wallflower). Today I’ll do the same by encouraging you to check out co-writer/director Scott Derrickson‘s horror pic Sinister. There’s nothing spectacular going on here, it’s just an effective movie with several scenes that I found genuinely frightening/disturbing. Moreover, it’s probably the last widely-released horror entry since Insidious that left me turning some of the lights on in the house shortly after it ended.

With my “Super Cool Blu-ray Pick of the Week” out of the way, this week’s Top 5 includes interviews from the set of The Incredible Burt Wonderstone, some drama-inducing first set images from The Amazing Spider-Man 2, a set visit recap and interviews for Park Chan-wook‘s Stoker, Jack the Giant Slayer interviews, and the first trailer and poster for director James Wan‘s The Conjuring. As you may expect, a brief recap and link to each of these can be found completely free of charge after the jump.

[This is a re-post of my review from the 2013 Sundance Film Festival.  Stoker opens today in limited release.  Click here to find out when the film will be playing near you.]

In Chan-wook Park‘s Stoker, the hunt is more rewarding than the kill. Park has beautifully crafted an unnerving, slow-burn mystery-thriller that delves into a bloodline destined to shed blood. In his English-language debut, Park takes his immaculate yet eerie style, and uses it to enhance a relatively simple tale of a disturbed girl who begins a bizarre and disturbing relationship with her recently-discovered uncle. Through Park’s lens and the tremendous performances of stars Mia Wasikowska and Matthew Goode, Stoker may not cut deep, but it slashes hard.

It’s a breezy fall day in Nashville, Tennessee. Leaves are falling over an expansive estate that’s as haunting as it is gorgeous, and South Korean director Park Chan-wook—the man behind Oldboy, Sympathy for Lady Vengeance, Thirst, and many others—is directing his English-language feature film debut in the country music capital of the world.

In September of 2011, Collider was invited to the set of the horror drama Stoker, which stars Mia Wasikowska, Matthew Goode, Nicole Kidman, Jacki Weaver, and Dermot Mulroney.  The production had opted to film most of the pic’s scenes in and around a rather gothic-looking estate in Nashville, so along with a small group of journalists, we were able to spend a day on set and to get a look at how Park Chan-wook was making his Hollywood debut.  Hit the jump for my full set visit report.

For his English-language debut, acclaimed Korean filmmaker Chan-wook Park has crafted Stoker, a macabre coming-of-age tale set amidst the eerie, improbable and self-contained world of the Stoker family whose quiet, secluded life is suddenly shattered by a tragic accident that reveals a dark family history and lots of bad blood.  Directed from a script by actor Wentworth Miller, this deliciously twisted psychological thriller with nods to Dracula and Hitchcock opens in theaters on March 1st and stars Nicole Kidman, Mia Wasikowska and Matthew Goode.

At the film’s recent press day, Kidman, Wasikowska and Goode talked about what drew them to play their unusual characters, their first impressions upon reading the script, collaborating with director Park, their most memorable moments during filming, and their reaction after seeing the completed film.  Park discussed what it was like helming his first English-speaking film and how his Hollywood experience compared to directing in Korea.  Kidman also commented on her upcoming role in Grace of Monaco.  Hit the jump to read more.

A new clip has been released from Park Chan-wook‘s Stoker.  The film centers on a young girl (Mia Wasikowska) who encounters her mysterious uncle (Matthew Goode) while mourning the death of her father (Dermot Mulroney).  This clip does a terrific job of showing off Chung-hoon Chung‘s gorgeous cinematography (you’ll notice how this clip is done in one shot).  I quite liked the film when I saw it at Sundance, and I’m looking forward to seeing it again.

Hit the jump to check out the clip.  The film also stars Jacki Weaver and Nicole Kidman.  Stoker opens in limited release on March 1st.

Fox Searchlight has released the first clip from Oldboy director Park Chan-wook’s English-language debut, Stoker.  The film centers on a young girl (Mia Wasikowska) who encounters her mysterious uncle (Matthew Goode) while mourning the death of her father (Dermot Mulroney).  The majority of this clip is actually silent, as we’re treated to a quiet scene between Wasikowska and Goode’s characters.  An overall air of creepiness is prevalent, and it goes hand-in-hand with Chan-wook’s precision photography.  Matt caught the film at Sundance and enjoyed it, describing it as “an unnerving, slow-burn mystery-thriller that delves into a bloodline destined to shed blood” in his review.

Hit the jump to watch the clip.  The film also stars Nicole Kidman and Jacki Weaver.  Stoker opens in limited release on March 1st before expanding in the following weeks.

Fox Searchlight has released a batch of new images from director Park Chan-wook’s (Oldboy) English-language debut Stoker.  The film centers on a young girl (Mia Wasikowska) who encounters her mysterious uncle (Matthew Goode) while mourning the death of her father (Dermot Mulroney).  These images highlight Park’s colorful yet sinister imagery, teasing the curious relationship between Wasikowska, Goode, and Nicole Kidman’s characters.  Matt caught the film at Sundance and really enjoyed it, calling it “an unnerving, slow-burn mystery-thriller that delves into a bloodline destined to shed blood.”  Count me in.

Hit the jump to check out the new images.  Stoker opens on March 1st.

In Chan-wook Park‘s Stoker, the hunt is more rewarding than the kill.  Park has beautifully crafted an unnerving, slow-burn mystery-thriller that delves into a bloodline destined to shed blood.  In his English-language debut, Park takes his immaculate yet eerie style, and uses it to enhance a relatively simple tale of a disturbed girl who begins a bizarre and disturbing relationship with her recently-discovered uncle.  Through Park’s lens and the tremendous performances of stars Mia Wasikowska and Matthew Goode, Stoker may not cut deep, but it slashes hard.

While the Sundance crowd is enjoying Park Chan-wook’s Stoker in its entirety, the rest of the internet is being treated to a new trailer.  This sixty-second cut plays up the film’s weirdness, eroticism and outright violence in time with an overt bit of music that’s just as strange.  It’s reminiscent of the trailers for Requiem for a Dream and the more recent Savages from Oliver Stone.  It’s a nice tonal introduction for a film from the director of Oldboy. 

Starring Mia Wasikowska, Nicole Kidman and Matthew Goode, Stoker opens in limited release on March 1st.  Hit the jump to watch the new trailer.

A few days ago we reported screenwriter William Monahan (The Departed, Kingdom of Heaven) was going to adapt Park Chan-wook’s fantastic 2005 film Sympathy for Lady Vengeance with Charlize Theron set to star and produce along with Megan Ellison’s Annapurna Pictures.  For those unfamiliar with the original, Lady Vengeance “is the story of a woman who for reasons of her own completes a prison term for a murder she did not commit, reemerging to punish the killer, and avenge the dead.”  The film is the final chapter in Park’s “Vengeance Trilogy” following Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance and Oldboy.

Shortly after the news broke, I reached out to Monahan to see if he could offer us any additional information about how the project came together.  In addition, we talked about whether he’s started writing it yet, if Sympathy could take place in Boston, whether it would be watered down for American audiences, when did he first see Park Chan-wook’s movies and does he have a favorite, his adapting process and much more.  Finally, as we reported earlier this year, Monahan is set to get behind the camera again with Mojave.  He told me he starts to shoot early next year and we’ll hear about casting in the coming weeks.  Hit the jump for more.

With Spike Lee‘s remake of Oldboy well underway, Hollywood is turning its eye to remaking another Park Chan-wook film.  Annapurna Pictures has sent out a press release announcing that it will remake Park’s excellent 2005 film Sympathy for Lady Vengeance with Charlize Theron set to star and produce.  For those unfamiliar with the original, Lady Vengeance “is the story of a woman who for reasons of her own completes a prison term for a murder she did not commit, reemerging to punish the killer, and avenge the dead.”  The film is the final chapter in Park’s “Vengeance Trilogy” following Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance and Oldboy.  While Oldboy is my favorite of the three, Lady Vengeance is a close second.  Theron is a strong choice for the lead role, and I’m curious to see what Oscar-winner William Monahan (The Departed) will do with the script.  The press release says he’s “adapting” the original, but that could mean he’ll serve as both writer and director or as the writer only.  He previously directed London Boulevard and will next direct Mojave.

Hit the jump for the press release along with the trailer for Park’s Sympathy for Lady Vengeance (a.k.a. Lady Vengeance).

The first trailer for Oldboy director Park Chan-wook‘s English-language debut Stoker has been released.  The film centers on a young girl (Mia Wasikowska) who encounters her mysterious uncle (Matthew Goode) while mourning the death of her father (Dermot Mulroney).  Chan-wook’s signature lush visual palette is on full display in this trailer, along with a wonderful air of creepiness and foreboding.  There’s promise of some strong performances from the whole cast, especially Nicole Kidman as Wasikowska’s wary mother, and the tone is downright chilling.  I can’t tell if the trailer gives too much away or if it’s a great tease of the film’s atmosphere, but this looks like a great way for Chan-wook to make his American debut.

Hit the jump to watch the trailer.  The film stars Jackie Weaver, Lucas Till, and Alden Ehrenreich.  Stoker opens on March 1st, 2013.

Oldboy director Chan-wook Park has been in the news quite a bit lately, attaching himself to helm a violent Western called The Brigands of Rattleborge and a 1930s crime drama Corsica 72, but his English-language debut is already in the can and set for a March 2013 release.  Stoker centers a young girl (Mia Wasikowska) who encounters her mysterious uncle (Matthew Goode) while mourning the death of her father (Dermot Mulroney).  The cast is led by Nicole Kidman as the girl’s mother, and the chilling first footage from the pic has landed online by way of an ET preview.  I expected a blend of horror and drama, and that’s exactly what Park has delivered based on this snippet of footage.  We look to be in for strong performances from Kidman and Wasikowska, and I can’t wait to see more from the film when a full trailer lands online.

Hit the jump to watch the footage.  The film also stars Jackie Weaver, Lucas Till, and Alden Ehrenreich.  Stoker opens on March 1st, 2013.

Director Chan-wook Park, who helmed the excellent South Korean revenge tale Oldboy, is looking to next tackle a 30s-set crime drama.  Variety reports that Park has been set to helm Corsica 72 based on a Black List script by Neal Purvis and Robert Wade (Skyfall, Casino Royale).  The film is based on a true story and “follows two best friends who live on the small island of Corsica where they choose different paths in life — one as an honest working man, the other as a gangster — and feud over a woman who comes between them.”

Park recently entered talks to direct another Black List script, the violent Western The Brigands of Rattleborge, but that’s film’s graphic nature necessitates a major star before it can move forward.  As such, Corsica 72 is expected to be Park’s next project.  He recently made his English-language debut on the horror drama Stoker with Nicole Kidman and Mia Wasikowska, which is set for release next March.

Having recently completed his English-language directorial debut with the horror thriller Stoker (due out in March), Chan-wook Park is now looking to take the helm on a highly coveted script.  Variety reports that Park is in talks to direct the Western The Brigands of Rattleborge.  The script by S. Craig Zahler landed at the top of the 2006 Black List, but it’s been slow to come to fruition because of the story’s violent nature.  Now the project has Park in negotiations with Red Granite Pictures onboard to fully finance and co-produce the film with Mythology Entertainment.

The pic centers on a sheriff and a doctor who are out for revenge against a group of bandits who, under the cover of a torrential thunderstorm, robbed and terrorized the occupants of a small town.  Park’s South Korean revenge tale Oldboy is a new classic, and everyone’s itching to get a look at the Nicole Kidman-fronted Stoker.  The intense violence of Rattleborge will likely necessitate the casting of a major star, but that shouldn’t be a problem given Park’s clout.  Hopefully things come together quickly so we can see Park’s take on the Western genre sooner rather than later.