Movie Makeovers: How do we tell Hollywood No Thank You?

[cardero]

I just got done watching the remake of DAWN OF THE DEAD, I was really looking forward to it too. I am a big fan of the original (actually I am a tremendous fan of George Romero) and I am sad to say the remake wasn’t really that interesting or innovative.



Why does Hollywood take the great films that we love and remake them?



Is it a generational marketing ploy? (For example there were many younger people who I asked about Dawn Of The Dead and they enjoyed it but confessed they hadn’t seen the original).



If the original is not broken why fix it?



Does anyone here know of any remake that was actually better than the original?



Can the money that it takes to produce the films be applied to more original movies ideas and concepts or has Hollywood really run dry of ideas?



What if they took your favorite film and remade it…..badly?



Is there any older film that you can think of that needs a generational/technological facelift?



Even if a movie company is passionate about re-making a classic should this movie company have the right to bring it a theater near you? Should we be offended if it is not even a good film? Or should we just say “Oh well, they tried?”

 

[linwood]

I won`t even go to see a re-make especially if an original movie I liked.

 

[cardero]

Linwood writes: I won`t even go to see a re-make especially if an original movie I liked.

I wish I had that kind of determination. There is a part of me that is intrigued, especially with the advances of technology or the budgetary aspects of a movie project. It makes me curious enough to wonder what exactly is going to be new and exciting that they are going to bring to the table and then there are films like the Stepford Wives that makes me wish I didn’t spend the time or money.

 

[linwood]

I wish I had that kind of determination. There is a part of me that is intrigued, especially with the advances of technology or the budgetary aspects of a movie project. It makes me curious enough to wonder what exactly is going to be new and exciting that they are going to bring to the table and then there are films like the Stepford Wives that makes me wish I didn’t spend the time or money.

Oh I`m still intrigued when they come out expecially if it is a flick I really liked but I`ve just seen too many that had no purpose other than making a buck off the originals name.

For example the remake of the Exorcist done recently .
I didn`t see it and I won`t because I wonder why they even made it.
What was wrong with the original?

It was one of the best horror flicks ever made.

Why mess with it?

One area where I may do a 180 in my opinion of remakes is sci-fi and b horror flicks to a degree.

I was a big matinee lover when I was a kid and we used to see all these old movies on the big screen.
I loved them even as I laughed at the horrid effects.

I might be persuaded to go see a remake of one of these with todays effects capabilities .

Just for fun.

 

[Circle_One]

Ok, I've got a lot of thoughts about remakes, so this is a good topic for me. Let me begin. First, I should say that I am a HUGE Romero fan as well and Dawn is my favorite in the dead trilogy and it was because of this that I haven't seen the remake. From the moment I heard it was being redone, I said I was boycotting it completely and have stuck to it. I will never watch that new one and it is mostly because I am a huge Romero fan, but also because Dawn didn't need to be remade.

Why does Hollywood take the great films that we love and remake them?

I think it's about the money. Notice how most of the movies being remade are horror movies: Dawn of the dead, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Thirteen Ghosts, The Haunting, House on Haunted Hill, etc. Kids today love horror movies, but I'd say 80% of them haven't seen these originals and so directors, IMO, think that by remaking these old classics they will 1)Be bringing these movies to a younger audience and 2)Making tons of money off these kids who wait and wait for a new horror movie to hit the theatres.

Is it a generational marketing ploy? (For example there were many younger people who I asked about Dawn Of The Dead and they enjoyed it but confessed they hadn’t seen the original).

I think it is, for sure. (See above). Do you know how many people I know who claim that Thirteen Ghosts is their favorite horror movie, but then have no clue that it was a remake?

If the original is not broken why fix it?

This also falls in with my previous thoughts. Personally, I don't think any movies should be remade. This is including remakes like Ju-On: The Grudge and The Grudge. While they were both done by the same director, I think that the original Japanese version was a million times better than the Hollywood Blockbuster-esque English version.

Does anyone here know of any remake that was actually better than the original?

Right off the top of my head, I can't think of any, but I must confess I haven't seen all of these remakes done in recent years. I often refuse to see them because I hate remakes.

Can the money that it takes to produce the films be applied to more original movies ideas and concepts or has Hollywood really run dry of ideas?

This is a good question, personally I dislike "new" horror movies, ie. horror movies made in recent years, because of the money they put in them. Remake or original idea, IMO these blockbuster horror movies put too much value in the amount of money used for the CGI and not enough into the ideas to actually make the movie scary. Older movies, to me anyway, are way better because they didn't have the money (or the technology) to use all this CGI. They, instead, had to focus on making the movie psychologically creepy rather than just using CGI to make that 5 second "jump" scare that new horror movies are known for. This results in the older movies having a lasting under-your-skin effect and the "frights" of the new movies being over as soon as the skeleton goes back in the closet.

What if they took your favorite film and remade it…..badly?

Well I think that if anyone ever remade Spider Baby into a blockbuster horror movie, I would lose my mind.

Is there any older film that you can think of that needs a generational/technological facelift?

No, not at all, but perhaps my opinion on this is biased because no matter how unscary or cheesy they are, I always prefer old horror movies.

Even if a movie company is passionate about re-making a classic should this movie company have the right to bring it a theater near you? Should we be offended if it is not even a good film? Or should we just say “Oh well, they tried?”

Well, I think they have the right to put it in any theatre and to remake any movie they can get the rights for, but anytime a movie is remade (especially horror movies, as they are my passion), I get deeply offended (even if they are an extremely good movie, which off the top of my head I cannot think of any remakes that I would consider good) and never, ever say "Oh well, they tried."

 

[jewscout]

Even if a movie company is passionate about re-making a classic should this movie company have the right to bring it a theater near you? Should we be offended if it is not even a good film? Or should we just say “Oh well, they tried?”

I think if it looks like they really gave it a try then there shouldn't be a big stink about it...if it looks like they slapped it together to get the money then someone should be drug out into the streets and shot

Personally i liked the new Dawn of the Dead, i've seen both and i thought the second was a good version...though you could tell they geared it for this generation.

just a side not Romero is doing another Dead movie..."Land of the Dead" i think it's called to "complete" the series

 

[Circle_One]

just a side not Romero is doing another Dead movie..."Land of the Dead" i think it's called to "complete" the series

I think Land of the Dead is just a working title, though I could be wrong. I know it was originally supposed to be called "Dead Reckoning" but he recently changed it. He started working on it either last year or the year before, but couldn't get enough funding to continue it until just recently. I can't wait for it to come out.

 

[meogi]

I don't mind remakes... I love movies and I love watching them. I generally take each remake as it's own entity, because honestly, nothing is ever gonna take the nostalgia from a movie you love away... and in no way does watching a new version of it, ruin your love of the original. I'm a huge Romero fan, and I really enjoyed the remake... it was a fun 'modern' interpretation. I got a kick that the the guy on the TV that says "When there's no room left in hell, the dead will walk the earth" is the same actor who said it in the origional.

As for:

If the original is not broken why fix it?

I don't think they're trying to 'fix' it. Try not to think that they are.

What if they took your favorite film and remade it…..badly?

I'd take it as it is, judge it based on that, and watch the original again

For example the remake of the Exorcist done recently .

They remade The Exorsist!? Bah, where am I and why havn't I seen it! I only know of the new exorcist movie (deals with origins or something of the like) and I'm not sure if that's out yet or not (sucks being in Japan sometimes, but not often )

 

[painted wolf]

Ok, I have to say that I enjoyed the Dawn remake. Much as I loved the origional there are things that I liked about the way the plot progressed in the remake. (also it reminded a lot of a game of "all flesh must be eaten" a zombie survival RPG that I played a few years ago. I built that RV damnit!)
It was definatly geared to todays generation, but that is to be expected. They kept the spirit of the Romero univerce...ie you are screwed... and made it feel more claustrophobic and helpless.
(on a side note it had the best cover of 'sickness' ever!)

for the most part remakes can be hacked... Time Machine. The best re-makes are actually more like tributes. "Oceans 11" for instance was a nice remake.(as was The Italian Job) At best it will make people curious about the origional and maybe get them intersted in older movies. As a Godzilla fan one of the best things to happin in the US was having such a bad US Godzilla movie. It actually got fans angry enough to demand the Toho 90's-00's movies be released in the US and got "Godzilla 2000" into the movie theaters in my area.

With any type of movie, the re-make has its good and bad examples. I can't fault the whole idea for a few bad apples.

wa:do

 

[Circle_One]

"Oceans 11" for instance was a nice remake.(as was The Italian Job) At best it will make people curious about the origional and maybe get them intersted in older movies.

Alright, so I do have to agree that Oceans 11 was a good remake. But I have to slightly disagree with the part about remakes making people curious about the older movies. The way I see it, alot of the kids that go to see these movies don't even realize that they are remakes, as I said earlier about the Thirteen Ghosts thing.

 

[fromthe heart]

I really don't like remakes of movies or the majority of the oldies song rerecorded by a more modern singer...if I liked the original why mess with sucess. To me it comes down to a lack of people being able to come up with something on their own. When you redo something that has been done well it seems to take something away from how the original felt....just my opinion.

 

[cardero]

And now we have the up and coming Willy Wonka movie coming up. Who ordered this film? Why must we endure a remake of this film? Wasn't the first one incredible enough?

 

[cardero]

Meogi writes: I don't think they're trying to 'fix' it. Try not to think that they are.

There was a time that I was watching the movie that I tried to think okay let me just perceive this as the same time/different mall kind of perception. It helped somewhat but I think that directors and producers should have shared this same perception. In other words base the movie on the time and circumstances but give us a different set of survivors and how they would handle the situation instead of using the backdrop of the mall. Change the title if you had to.

SPOILER:I thought the ending was sort of a nod to the original Night Of The Living Dead in that all the survivors go through the all the trouble of escaping only to taste the irony of death at the end. I think I would have appreciated an ending where they escaped but you did not know if they actually survived like the original Dawn Of The Dead. Call me sentimental but I often wonder how those people made out even to this day.

 

[Master Vigil]

I dunno, I am looking forward to the new willy wonka. Just because I love Tim Burton. And I am excited to see what he does with this film. Some remakes I like, others I don't. If they can make it better with new technology and graphics and such, I will like it. If they try to change the plot, make it better, whatever, well that will depend on how good the writer is. It will differ for me.

 

[cardero]

I am wishing for a darker Wonka at Tim Burton's hands as well but I cannot help wondering if it is an offense or a compliment to the original cast's performances.

 

[Master Vigil]

I don't think so. I think if Burton does a good job. It will compliment the original performance. I'm sure Gene Wilder will love to see hsi character in a different light.

 

[Quoth The Raven]

I am wishing for a darker Wonka at Tim Burton's hands as well but I cannot help wondering if it is an offense or a compliment to the original cast's performances.

I think that's the thing with this Wonka...rather than remaking the original movie with it's slightly off centre but lovable Wonka they're making a film more closely based on the book, in which he's a little less of the 'eccentric but basically good' kind of odd, and more of the 'please don't follow me down this dark alley cos ya freak me out' kind of odd.

 

[painted wolf]

oopa loompas were not ment to be orange! That having been said, I find movies that work tword being closer to the book a good idea. I would love to see an immediate remake of 'I Robot' and this time useing more of the book than the title!
If you are going to make a movie based on a book and ignore the book, why make the movie?
Like a Huck Finn movie without Jim as a Slave, or I Robot with big explosions, robot armies and witty banter.

wa:do

 

[cardero]

A friend of mine were discussing (yes sometimes I bring in RF discussions to work) that instead of doing a remake of Willy Wonka they should have worked on the sequel, Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator. This would be money well spent. Also does anyone remember the remake of Night Of The Living Dead? What were your feelings on this remake?

 

[Master Vigil]

I would love to see Charlie and Great Glass Elevator!!!!!!!! You are right, that would have been much better.