As our economy spirals into the abyss of recession with no hope of returning to good health any time soon, everyone is cutting their budget.It’s the perfect time for Hollywood directors to start economising too. Not on film quality, but on choice of protagonists. Where they can’t afford the original A-lister, there’s a number of cheaper alternatives for them to choose from.

From horror flicks to romances, Hollywood owes some of its most original film ideas to the Asian film industry, and has done for the past 40 years. And why not? Remakes of Asian films offer a cheap and market-tested method of reaching audiences and earning big bucks. But simply buying the rights does not always a smash hit make.