Zhang Yimou promises some comedy in his remake of Blood Simple, which will hit theaters in China on December 11.

In an interview with the Chinese web portal Sina.com, subsequently translated by the Associated Press, the director of Hero and House of Flying Daggers described his film as starting off as a comedy, then gradually morphing into a thriller.

"The audience is watching the movie happily, laughing out loud, then it slowly changes, but the transition has to be funny," Zhang said. "That's very hard to do. I think I did a decent job. This is the first time I tried to bridge the two styles."

The film, called San Qiang Pai An Jing Qi in Chinese, centers around a noodle shop owner who plans to kill his cheating wife and her lover. As was the case in Blood Simple, the plot spirals out of control; however, the original revolved around a Texas bar owner.

Blood Simple, which was released in 1984, helped launch the careers of then-fledgling filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen. Zhang’s film sounds like it will contain more nonsensical humor, a la Stephen Chow, the comedian behind the international hits Shaolin Soccer and Kung Fu Hustle, but only to a certain degree.

"There are some parts where we go crazy like Stephen Chow, but we don't go as crazy," Zhang said.

Another big difference is the new film was shot in digital format. The upside to this, said Zhang, who is being closely watched after directing the elaborate opening and closing ceremonies for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, is his actors were free to experiment more since he didn’t have to conserve film stock.

Early in his career, Zhang was known for making art-house films, but has switched to more commercial, special effects-laden fare, which has garnered criticism from some of his peers. For his part, Zhang said China’s expanding film market needs more diversity.

"We can't attack directors for making commercial movies. We can't only promote those artistic works. We can't be pious," he said. "The next 10 years are key. If China has strong movies in different genres, these 10 years will be glorious."