Final Cut, the French remake of writer/director Shin’ichirō Ueda’s highly acclaimed Japanese zombie comedy One Cut of the Dead, made its world premiere as the opening night film at the Cannes Film Festival back in May, then received a theatrical release in France in June. All these months later, we finally have some news about the film’s U.S. release. Variety reports that Kino Lorber has picked up the U.S. distribution rights to Final Cut, with their plan being to give the movie a theatrical release sometime in the summer. That will be followed by a digital and home video release on all major platforms.
Known as Coupez! in its home country, this remake of One Cut of the Dead was written and directed by Michel Hazanavicius, the Oscar-winning director of the Best Picture-winning silent film The Artist. (Hazanavicius also received a Best Screenplay nomination for that film.) Starring Romain Duris, Berenice Bejo, Gregory Gadebois, Finnegan Oldfield, Matilda Lutz, Sebastian Chassagne, Raphael Quenard, Jean-Pascal Zadi, Lyes Salem, Simone Hazanavicius, and Luana Bajrami, Final Cut is set against the backdrop of a B-movie shoot that is descending into disaster, Duris plays the director who seems to be the only one invested with the necessary energy to keep the low-budget zombie film afloat. As he tries to gee up jaded technicians and uninterested actors, shooting is disturbed by the arrival of authentic undead.
Final Cut is produced by La Classe Americaine, Getaway Films, SK Global Entertainment, and BlueLight. France 2 Cinema is co-producing. The film is also supported by Canal+, France Televisions, SOFITVCINE 9, and Cine+. Wild Bunch International is handling distribution in France and the international distribution sales. Japanese companies Enbu Seminar, Hairu Entertainment, and Gaga serve as executive producers on the project, and Gaga is the distributor in Japan.
One Cut of the Dead was inspired by Ryoichi Wada’s play Ghost in the Box. Shot on a budget of just $25,000, Ueda’s film earned more than 30 million dollars at the global box office, and was featured on a memorable episode of The Last Drive-In with Joe Bob Briggs.
Kino Lorber’s Wendy Lidell had this to say about the distribution deal: “Final Cut is the perfect film to bring people out to movie theaters: a hilarious, in-your-face, genre twisting romp that demands the big screen treatment. Over-the-top gore even for the squeamish, and slapstick comedy even for the sophisticate, Final Cut has it all. I hope audiences will have as much fun watching this film as we will have releasing it.“
Hazanavicius added that he was “absolutely delighted that Final Cut is being released in the US, and so proud to be working with Kino Lorber. I love American audiences – I’ve always found them very happy to laugh! So, enjoy the show, guys!“
Are you looking forward to Final Cut, and are you glad Kino Lorber is bringing it to the U.S.? Let us know by leaving a comment below.