STARS Mark Wahlberg and Charlize Theron must feel as if they're on trial. They - and the other Americans involved in new heist movie The Italian Job - stand accused of taking a cult British film and remaking it in the style of Hollywood.

In their defence, they can point to favourable US reaction and the 100 dollar-plus box-office take in the States to prove that they've succeeded.

The pair can also claim no prior knowledge of the 1969 crime caper in which Michael Caine and his gang escaped with stolen gold bullion in three Minis, only to end up in the middle of a literally cliffhanging finale. We Brits may have fond memories of the original, but the picture is hardly remembered in the US.

Theron favours the word "homage" in relation to the new Italian Job. The star of The Devil's Advocate, Mighty Joe Young and The Cider House Rules grew up in South Africa where, she says, "we were so behind in movies that I discovered it with the rest of the guys".

When she saw finally the original, she loved it. "To me, it's one of the great classic endings. When I read the script there was a nice balance between not even trying to top those moments in the original, like the cliffhanger and the car chase, since you couldn't try to redo them," she explains.

Wahlberg had other concerns. He starred in Tim Burton's Planet Of The Apes and The Truth About Charlie, based on the Cary Grant/Audrey Hepburn thriller Charade - a pair of remakes that were poorly received.

"I've been crowned the king of the remakes so the last thing I wanted to do was go down that street again," he admits. "But the script was great, and the director wanted to pay homage to the original, to do something different. I thought diehard fans of the movie would respond in a positive way."

He's worked with a number of English actors and respects their opinions. He's shown them the film and they approve, he says. A bonus is that the success of the 2003 version has brought the original to the attention of a lot of Americans.

Original star Michael Caine doesn't have a cameo role in the latest Italian Job, but is glimpsed in a scene from the first film on a television screen. Wahlberg reports that fellow actor Seth Green, who plays the computer genius in the new gang, has spoken with Caine and that the British actor gave his blessing to the project.

Theron certainly enjoyed her time driving a Mini while filming the big heist scene in Los Angeles, and gained a reputation as the best driver. "She was certainly the most gung-ho of all the cast members to get behind the wheel," admits Wahlberg. "She had some of the more challenging stunts to do. She was definitely the daredevil out of the group."

She grew up on a farm so was always a bit of a tomboy, riding go-karts and dirt bikes. At the same time, she discovered ballet when she was four. So she's happy in high heels or climbing trees.

He, on the other hand, got car sick zooming around in the Minis - "but only when I'm in the passenger seat, and it's 120 degrees and I just had lunch," he explains.

The success of The Italian Job in the States has done much to help Wahlberg finally leave behind previous incarnations as rapper Marky Mark and a Calvin Klein underpants model. He made his name on screen as well-endowed porn star Dirk Diggler in Boogie Nights but becoming a father - daughter Ella was born two weeks ago - will mean a change of image.

"There will be no more Boogie Nights or anything like that," he says. "People always say you can tell your kids that it's a movie, but they're going through school and other kids can be really tough and mean. Think what Pamela Anderson's kids are going to have to go through. It's something I'll take into consideration."

He was present for "the big event", describing it as "the most amazing thing I have ever seen - it was everything everyone told me it would be".

Charlie Croker in The Italian Job offers a more likeable character for him to play than previously. "I've played them before but never been asked to smile and wink a little bit here and there, and really play that up, which was a little scary. I see a lot of people do that and survive doing that. You have to walk that fine line without chewing up the scenery. But it was a challenge."

There's already been talk of a sequel which he says he'd do it if the material was as good as the first, as they all had a blast making the film. A follow-up to Planet Of The Apes is more doubtful. He's not a huge sci-fi fan, taking the film more to work with Tim Burton than anything else. "If they want to do another one, I said I would if Tim did. Then he said he'd rather jump out of the window than make a sequel, so I'd probably follow him," says Wahlberg.

One of Theron's next roles isn't a sequel but playing Britt Ekland in a film about comedy actor Peter Sellers. "They were married for five years and had an interesting relationship," she says. "I didn't have a chance to meet her, but the director Stephen Hopkins showed her the script and spent a lot of time with her. My research was watching her movies and looking at photos."

The Italian Job (12A) is showing in cinemas now.

18/09/2003