“Perfect Strangers” record-breaking, over 20 remakes worldwide – Corriere.it

On January 6, the streaming platform Netflix released the rIcelandic emake. A Danish version is scheduled for the end of the year. But “Perfect strangers”the blockbuster film directed by Paolo Genovese, already exists, among others, in Greek, Spanish (“Perfect strangers” replicated the box office success of the Italian original, becoming the second highest-grossing Spanish-language film in Spain of 2017: over 20 million euros against a budget of 4 million), Turkish, Indian, Mexican, French, Armenian, Russian and Hungarian.

So much so that al blockbuster of 201630 million dollars grossed worldwide, awarded with the Donatello’s David in the Best Film category (at the Tribeca Film Festival it instead obtained recognition for Best Screenplay in the International Narrative Competition section), it took only three years to enter the “Guinness World Record” like film with most remake ever in the history of cinema: 18. Climbed to 20, as he reports “The Economist”with Icelandic and Danish versions.

What made «Perfect Strangers» a global phenomenon? The plot revolves around seven old friends — three couples and a divorced man —. Gathered for dinneron an evening of lunar eclipsethe psychiatrist of the group proposes a game: everyone will play their own phone on the table and when he receives a call, a text message, a Whatsapp message or an email, he will have to answer or read the message aloud. Everyone agreed, why didn’t they nothing to hide. Or so they claim.

Inevitably chaos breaks out and extramarital affairs, a never confessed homosexuality, an unexpected pregnancy come to light. Some themes And key messages of the film have been lost in the various remakes due to the cultural differences. But whenever someone’s phone rings or vibrates, audiences from all countries holds his breath: everyone has a hidden side and the fear that it might be discovered.

Among the many remakes, it stands out conspicuous the absence of Hollywood: There is no English-language version of «Perfect Strangers» yet. Harvey Weinstein’s film company (now bankrupt) had bought the rights in 2017. In 2019 Issa Rae, actor and producer, had announced that he was going to make the film, but nothing more came of it. A void where other storytellers have thrived.