How the Remake is Killing Hollywood – Boycott The Theaters!
By Krystal Clark
Recently, a mysterious epidemic has been sweeping across Hollywood. At first, this illness was seen only a few times a year, but now it has become a full on plague within the industry. I’m referring to the disease that causes studio executives to “remake”, “re-imagine”, or “update” older films for a new generation. Don’t get me wrong, remakes are as old as the hills, they’re nothing new, but the motivation behind them, as well as the quality of their content has changed dramatically. Remakes used to be a means of improving on the original, but at some point they became the industries crutch for easy money.
It seems like every five minutes there’s an announcement that a horror flick, action film, or slap stick comedy from the ’70′s or ’80′s is getting remade. Fans get annoyed but they deal with it, because their considered “campy” or “cult” favorites, and secretly you want to see how a new director will butcher them with their vision. But, what happens when studio’s begin to run out of modern material to feed their remake machine? What happens when they begin to turn to films that are considered “classics”?
I will make this known now, I have a soft spot for my oldies but goodies. A lot of the films that were made in the golden age of cinema are some of my all time favorite movies. Therefore, when I hear about one of them being remade one question always pops into my head, “why?” Don’t get me wrong they’re are a lot of classic films that are remakes themselves, including my personal favorite, The Ten Commandments. A lot of people think the 1956 version is the original, but it’s not. Director Cecil B. DeMille produced the first Ten Commandments in 1923, and then remade it again 33 years later. In DeMille’s circumstance, he was the original director, and he actually made an improvement on the first. That used to be a huge part of Hollywood’s reasoning for remakes, they wanted to use the more advanced special effects and camera techniques to make a good film great.
The reason for remaking a classic film today is financial: whether it be top line – capitalizing on the success of an existing property with name recognition to ‘guarantee’ an immediate audience, and/or bottom line – saving the cost it takes to find and then acquire new stories. The skeptical among us wonder whether the goal is ever to improve upon the asset, trying to make something better vs. just exploiting it for a new audience – that may never have seen the original product or has an aversion to watching old B&W movies (e.g. even if they’re made available on DVD).
When I read that the 1955 Elia Kazan classic, East of Eden was being re-imagined for the 21 century, I almost lost it. Those involved with the pending project continue to push the notion that the film isn’t a remake, but another adaptation of the James Steinbeck book. Let’s be real, when you hear East of Eden you think of James Dean. In my opinion, to this day, that film still stands up in terms of its performances and visual quality. No remake needed. According to Den of Geek, there are planned remakes for the Fritz Lang classic Metropolis, Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds, George Cukor’s My Fair Lady, and even Akira Kurosawa’s Rashoman. Just the thought of Metropolis being remade is terrifying! I understand that we’re in an economic crisis, and everyone is looking for a sure thing, but to remake Metropolis? How are they going to pull that off, without butchering the moral that the film teaches us?
My main gripe with remakes, has to do with their quality. The majority of the time the newer version doesn’t hold up to the original. It’s as if the essence of the film gets lost in translation. Several films illustrate this example such as 1998′s Psycho, 2006′s All the King’s Men, 2002′s Mr. Deeds, which was Adam Sandler’s take on the 1930′s Frank Capra classic Mr. Deed’s Goes to Town. None of these films hold a candle to their original counterparts, so what was the point of making them? Studios want to get rich off of the built in audiences that the original films earned, but they don’t want to put in the effort to produce them correctly.
I don’t mean to take away from the talent of anyone, but there can only be one Hitchcock, one George Cukor, and one Frank Capra. They brought their perspective to the screen, and that’s what made their films good. How can you present the perspective of one director, through another director, 50 years later, and not expect for something to go terribly wrong? Great films should be preserved and used as examples of what good filmmaking is and can be. They shouldn’t be used as financial cushions in times of a creative drought. What’s stopping producers from revamping Rebel Without a Cause, On the Waterfront, or even The Godfather?
The sheer laziness, and lack of effort has to be stopped. This epidemic will bring an end to the very thing that’s made the film industry so successful in the first place, it’s originality. My biggest fear is if Hollywood continues its focus on remaking classic films of the past, we won’t have any new ones to show for in the future.
So who is with me? The only way to stop the madness is to stop going to the theater and paying for more remakes. Don’t give into the “they might be okay” thoughts you’re having. Boycott the remakes and watch the original!
What classic films are you willing to stand up for not being re-made? Leave a comment and let us know!
Wednesday, January 21, 2009 9:04PM
Hollywood is not the great innovator. Was it ever?
Isn't there even supposed to be a studio solely dedicated to remakes now or was that just a rumor?
The major studios do not realize it but they are the masters of their own demise, not the downloaders whom they falsely accuse of this. The tripe they continue to churn out is execrable.
Personally I hope that the movie industry as it currently exists very soon ceases to exist.
I hope that independent filmmakers will thrive and prosper while maintaining their integrity, as Hollywood has never done.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009 9:50PM
Theres only one way to stop the flow of crappy remakes, don't go see em. Unfortunately, the mouth breathers out there just eat this crap up. They wouldn't be doing this if there is no money to be made right?
Wednesday, January 21, 2009 9:52PM
Theres only one way to stop the flow of bad remakes, stop going to them. Stop the flow of money to this crap and it won't be profitable. Unfortunately, the general public loves this junk, because its so familiar to them probably. Sigh.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009 11:00PM
Whoops, sorry for the dupes!
Wednesday, January 21, 2009 11:26PM
Hollywood needs to die anyway. Originality only seems to come from indy films where the people making a film are making it for the sake of making money from good work.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009 4:31PM
[...] but let’s face it folks, sequels/prequels are just as dangerous to the film industry as remakes. Take Star Wars for example – we were all sad about those prequels. But Star Wars didn’t have [...]
Thursday, January 22, 2009 9:20AM
i would pay anything just to STOP the Karate Kid remake
Tuesday, January 27, 2009 9:02AM
[...] Duff has signed on to star as the legendary bank robber Bonnie Parker. Oh no, another classic remade, and with a Disney star! I know, I can’t picture it either, but the film’s producers [...]
Thursday, January 29, 2009 1:01PM
[...] remakes, remakes!! According to Variety, another version of the horror classic The Thing is in the works. There have [...]
Wednesday, February 4, 2009 11:37PM
[...] Forget about remakes, let’s talk about things that shouldn’t be made into movies. They’re actually [...]
Thursday, February 12, 2009 12:30PM
[...] With the release of the new Friday the 13th set to hit theaters this weekend, New Line Cinema has fast tracked the production process for their revamp of Nightmare on Elm Street. According to THR, the studio has found a director for the project, and could start principal photography as early as this spring. Samuel Bayer has been attached to direct, and will be making his feature film debut with the remake. [...]
Saturday, June 6, 2009 10:00AM
It's not just the remakes of the classics. Films are being made based on tv shows, video games, books, and if they are feeling particularly lazy can always steal the script of a foreign film.
Actually I really would not mind the remakes at all if we had a choice! Unfortunately original films are being choked out of theaters by nervous investors. Unless a movie has an industry powerhouse behind it (such as disny/pixars Up) or the movie is completely non-threatening family comedy and usually rendered insipid (such as paul blart or beverly hills chihuahua) noone wants to touch it!
There are original films out there, often released in only a handful of theaters, waiting to become the new classics. Do your research and march down to your local theater to request an original movie by name. Get your family and friends to do the same thing. Spread the word. Let those nervous investors know there is a market for original, creative, REAL film.
Tuesday, December 29, 2009 12:18AM
I agree 100% with this article. I am sick of all these people that I talk to, who claim to agree as well with my own distaste towards hollywood remakes. Yet people, friends included continue to go see them, and continue to be dissapointed. I am proud to say that this matter is important to me (I LOVE film) and I have done my part by refusing to pay or watch for any remake or reimagining.. but sometimes it seems like an uphill battle. Hollywood is dying and these are the last death throws.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010 6:02AM
[...] this project had died a horrible death, but it’s back! Development talks for the big screen adaptation of the 1980’s TV show, The A-Team, are pressing on. According to Variety, they’ve [...]
Wednesday, January 13, 2010 6:02AM
[...] this project had died a horrible death, but it’s back! Development talks for the big screen adaptation of the 1980’s TV show, The A-Team, are pressing on. According to Variety, they’ve [...]
Friday, March 5, 2010 11:02PM
I think hollywood is running out of its own ideas so they butcher the shit outta old movies
DAMN REMAKES
Saturday, March 13, 2010 1:43AM
I gave up on Hollywood years ago. The last movie I saw in a theater was Rainman.
Monday, December 13, 2010 1:46AM
Self-cannibalism is the last resort of a desperate creature that has nothing left to eat.