Werner Herzog may best be known as a documentarian, but his fictional films are certainly drawing a level of acclaim and attracting a fair amount of talent. His last big film, Rescue Dawn, had the benefit of Christian Bale headlining a small cast. Herzog’s next picture is a little bigger, and the cast is growing but maintaining that same level of quality.
Next up for Herzog is a remake of Abel Ferrara’s Bad Lieutenant, a drama about a depraved cop investigating the rape of a nun. The 1992 original starred Harvey Keitel, who is being replaced by Nicolas Cage for the remake. Previously announced cast members also included Eva Mendez and Brad Dourif.
Now Cage has a villain to face off against. The Hollywood Reporter reports that Xzibit will play a villain in the picture, while Val Kilmer will join the cast as Cage’s partner. Also joining the cast: Fairuza Balk, Jennifer Coolidge, Vondie Curtis Hall, Shawn Hatosy, and Denzel Whitaker.
Typically I would be opposed to a remake so soon after the original. I mean, we’re barely fifteen years from Ferrara’s original picture. Herzog has shown quite a bit of talent for a fresh retelling of a story though. Rescue Dawn was a dramatized version of his own documentary Little Dieter Needs to Fly, both of which are compelling films in their own right. I’m very curious to see what Herzog will do with a twisted police drama like Bad Lieutenant, and what he’ll do to separate it distinctly from Abel Ferrara’s version of the tale.
