Movie remakes

[SCcoug]

What's the deal with all of the movie remakes. Seems like every trailer I see on tv is a remake.

Here is a pretty good list of the remakes coming out:

http://lazysupper.com/?p=986

Lots of classic movies on there.

[Green Lantern]

What's the deal with all of the movie remakes. Seems like every trailer I see on tv is a remake.

Here is a pretty good list of the remakes coming out:

http://lazysupper.com/?p=986

Lots of classic movies on there.

Seems like they break down into a few different categories too. There are American remakes of highly-regarded foreign films (RASHOMON, LIVES OF OTHERS.) There are the endless remakes of horror movies, bad and good (STEPFATHER, CRAZIES, HELLRAISER.) There's the continuing trend of movies turned into musical stage productions turned back into movies (FOOTLOOSE.) Sci-fi movies that Hollywood thinks it can improve with newer special effects (FORBIDDEN PLANET, METROPOLIS.) And then there are just the damn crying shame category (THE WARRIORS.)

[Coach McGuirk]

Seems like they break down into a few different categories too. There are American remakes of highly-regarded foreign films (RASHOMON, LIVES OF OTHERS.) There are the endless remakes of horror movies, bad and good (STEPFATHER, CRAZIES, HELLRAISER.) There's the continuing trend of movies turned into musical stage productions turned back into movies (FOOTLOOSE.) Sci-fi movies that Hollywood thinks it can improve with newer special effects (FORBIDDEN PLANET, METROPOLIS.) And then there are just the damn crying shame category (THE WARRIORS.)

Add Back To School to the damn crying shame cat for me. Bastards.

[Donuthole]

Seems like they break down into a few different categories too. There are American remakes of highly-regarded foreign films (RASHOMON, LIVES OF OTHERS.) There are the endless remakes of horror movies, bad and good (STEPFATHER, CRAZIES, HELLRAISER.) There's the continuing trend of movies turned into musical stage productions turned back into movies (FOOTLOOSE.) Sci-fi movies that Hollywood thinks it can improve with newer special effects (FORBIDDEN PLANET, METROPOLIS.) And then there are just the damn crying shame category (THE WARRIORS.)

Don't forget the Disney Cartoon turned action movie.

[il Padrino Ute]

It's because Hollywood is full of idiots. They can't come up with original ideas, so they decide to remake something, hoping that the general public is as idiotic as they are.

The sad thing is that too many will go see these movies and the idiots will consider it positive reinforcement and continue to be idiots.

[Pheidippides]

How dare they remake The Dirty Dozen. One of my all-time favorite WWII films, magnificent cast (Charles Bronson? Jim Brown? Telly Savalas? Donald Sutherland?), still just as good as ever. And they want to remake?

I weep for our cinematic souls.

[BigPiney]

How dare they remake The Dirty Dozen. One of my all-time favorite WWII films, magnificent cast (Charles Bronson? Jim Brown? Telly Savalas? Donald Sutherland?), still just as good as ever. And they want to remake?

I weep for our cinematic souls.

Completely agreed. Telly savalas was so creepy in taht role, he was great.

some of those remakes based on books like 1984 and Fahrenheit 454, I can kind of understand since it movies are often adapted from books and the interpretation is different. But to remake Porky's and Meatballs or even The Rocky Horror Picture Show. There is no need. You are not giving us a new adaptation of a screenplay

[dabrockster]

I loved watching Flash Gordon as a kid on Saturday's.. I am sure if I watched it now I would be very disappointed... But it is good memories..


FLASH!!! AHHhhaaaaaHHHHHH!!!!

[wuapinmon]

How dare they remake The Dirty Dozen. One of my all-time favorite WWII films, magnificent cast (Charles Bronson? Jim Brown? Telly Savalas? Donald Sutherland?), still just as good as ever. And they want to remake?

I weep for our cinematic souls.

I agree completely. Inglourious Basterds pastiche of it was about all I think it deserves as far as a retreating of it goes.

However, there are some films that, due to technology improving, or that had a great idea hampered by bad acting, could use a retelling.

I think that a modern version of Kelly's Heroes, in the proper hands, could be a blockbuster. Or, it could be a train wreck like that remake of Romancing the Stone is sure to be. Why would you remake a classic like that?

[SCcoug]

I haven't watched TV for a while until this morning for Gameday. Wall Street 2? Oh brother.

[hostile]

How dare they remake The Dirty Dozen. One of my all-time favorite WWII films, magnificent cast (Charles Bronson? Jim Brown? Telly Savalas? Donald Sutherland?), still just as good as ever. And they want to remake?

I weep for our cinematic souls.

No kidding. Lee Marvin was great. This is one of the movies that I will stop and watch no matter when.

[Sleeping in EQ]

The writer is wrong. Hollywood has not "been struggling for original ideas for decades."

There are tons of creative people in Hollywood, and there are plenty of great scripts. Go to an indy theater and you'll see big time hollywood people--including star actors--in small time, but creative and interesting projects.

The "creativity problem" in Hollywood is a suit problem. The suits only greenlight big projects that they are certain will make lots of money. Sequels and remakes are safe bets, and anything with multi-marketing and multi-media tie ins is a must.

Hollywood also has an audience problem. A disproportionate number of adolescent males spend money on movies, and so a disproportionate number of movies are made to cater to their tastes.

I don't mind the re-telling of stories as long as it is well done. There are archetypal characters and narratives that are so interwoven with human existence that it would be a shame if we didn't reformulate them into terms we can readily value. Having said that, though, Flash Gordon (1980) will be tough to top; the combination of camp, sexiness, a Queen-produced soundtrack, and cult status makes it one of the best comic book movies ever made. It might even be the best comic book movie ever made.

Go to the indy theater and you'll find plenty of creativity and even some familiar faces. The other day I watched Frozen River. Melissa Leo and Misty Upham were fantastic, and the story--smuggling illegal immigrants through a Mohawk reservation on the Canadian border--was written with thinking adults in mind. Frozen River is one moronic cop character and a few plot holes away from being brilliant. As it is, it's quite good.

[BoylenOver]

The "creativity problem" in Hollywood is a suit problem. The suits only greenlight big projects that they are certain will make lots of money. Sequels and remakes are safe bets, and anything with multi-marketing and multi-media tie ins is a must.

It seems like Hollywood execs are so worried about making money, they'd rather have a terrible movie that involves a well-known subject compared to a good/great movie with a fresh topic/approach. They'd rather remake an old movie or make a movie about a social network or board game because there's name recognition, and because audiences are so stupid, they'll say, "Oh, we've heard of Facebook or Monopoly, so we'll go see those movies!"

[wuapinmon]

The writer is wrong. Hollywood has not "been struggling for original ideas for decades."

There are tons of creative people in Hollywood, and there are plenty of great scripts. Go to an indy theater and you'll see big time hollywood people--including star actors--in small time, but creative and interesting projects.

The "creativity problem" in Hollywood is a suit problem. The suits only greenlight big projects that they are certain will make lots of money. Sequels and remakes are safe bets, and anything with multi-marketing and multi-media tie ins is a must.

Hollywood also has an audience problem. A disproportionate number of adolescent males spend money on movies, and so a disproportionate number of movies are made to cater to their tastes.

I don't mind the re-telling of stories as long as it is well done. There are archetypal characters and narratives that are so interwoven with human existence that it would be a shame if we didn't reformulate them into terms we can readily value. Having said that, though, Flash Gordon (1980) will be tough to top; the combination of camp, sexiness, a Queen-produced soundtrack, and cult status makes it one of the best comic book movies ever made. It might even be the best comic book movie ever made.

Go to the indy theater and you'll find plenty of creativity and even some familiar faces. The other day I watched Frozen River. Melissa Leo and Misty Upham were fantastic, and the story--smuggling illegal immigrants through a Mohawk reservation on the Canadian border--was written with thinking adults in mind. Frozen River is one moronic cop character and a few plot holes away from being brilliant. As it is, it's quite good.

Flash Gordon was so awesome. I still think about it all the time. If I hear someone say "flash," no matter the context, I hear "WAAA AAAAH, He'd save everyone of us....dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun." Whenever I see people arm wrestling, I think of the scorpion game. I'm always saying, "Ready my hawkmen? DIIIIIIVVVE!"

I saw it in the theater with my dad when I was six years old. I still have dreams about it, especially the "we can only offer our allegiance" and then Ming telling him "fall on your sword then."

I'll be sure to check out Frozen Rope. I watched the first half of Soderberg's Che the other night, and Benicio del Toro is such an astoundingly good actor, that I forget it's him.

[woot]

Agreed about there being plenty of good, creative movies. You just have to look for them most of the time. Some do show up in wide release though, like Inception and Scott Pilgrim, both of which are creative and original. The latter seems to have bombed, unfortunately, despite being awesome (albeit maybe 20 minutes too long). I love everything from Edgar Wright.