Apart from Nurse Betty, of which I'm surprisingly fond, I was not a huge fan of Neil LaBute's early work. But he had an undeniable cinematic vision, even if it was, to my mind, a somewaht misguided one. I confess I haven't seen either of his last two films--the by-most-accounts-mediocre Lakeview Terrace and the by-all-accounts-atrocious remake of The Wicker Man--but despite the evident slide, I was a bit surprised to see that he's now set to direct a remake of Death at a Funeral.
What's that you say? The original just came out barely a year and a half ago, was in English, and was plenty good the first time around? Sadly, yes, but such are the depths of the imagination deficit currently plaguing Hollywood. In his (limited) defense, LaBute will be directing a mostly black cast--and potentially a very good one, featuring Chris Rock and Tracy Morgan, among others. Still, if his current trajectory is not somehow arrested, the onetime auteur may find himself directing a remake of Paul Blart: Mall Cop for 2010.
--Christopher Orr