Hollywood remakes, are film makers out of ideas?

[David LaPell]

Ok, how many more film remakes do we need? Think of all the movies coming out soon or just released and how many of them are retreads? We just had Arthur and soon we will get another Red Dawn, Conan the Barbarian, When Worlds Collide, Gremlins, Rise of Planet of the Apes (basically a remake of Conquest of the Planet of the Apes), Fright Night, Straw Dogs, The Thing, The Three Musketeers, Footloose, Forbidden Planet and Westworld. Is there any new ideas out there?

 

[VAdoublegunner]

I don't know, but there are a lot of movies that could be remade that have the potential to be decent, especially those that are effects heavy e.g. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Jason and the Argonauts, Outland, Night of the Comet (zombie movies are hot right now), Forbidden Planet (I think that's a good one to re-do), as long as they stay away from some contrived 'messages' about global warming, etc. That and bad casting ruins a lot of the remakes. Whomever cast Will Smith in Wild Wild West should be held personally responsible for the loss to all the backers of that debacle. Except for his scenes, it could have been decent. I actually liked the recent True Grit and 3:10 to Yuma
better than the originals, although I am reluctant to call either remakes but rather new adaptations of the novels.

 

[RonJ]

They're remaking When Worlds Collide?

 

[VAdoublegunner]

And one more...someone should really make a decent movie based on Allan Quatermain. Except for the original King Solomon's Mines, which was a B+ at best, everything ever done featuring Quatermain is a disaster. The books were great stories! Someone please give us a decent film with his character instead of killing off everything ever associated with the name Quatermain for all eternity!

 

[sipowicz]

Studios don't do remakes because they are out of ideas...there is a plethera of writers with great original scripts....studios do remakes because they are in business to make money and remakes have built in name recognition....they also do $250M sequels like Spiderman 4 because they already have built in brand recognition.

 

[dinkytheman]

The last movie that really stood out to me as not needing to be remade was the Karate Kid. Replace Ralph Machio and Pat Morita with Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan. YUCK. What a bunch of garbage. Why can't new audiences just go to the video store and rent the original?
But I guess younger people want the story told in a modern way. I just hope they don't remake Goonies.
They are seriously remaking Gremlins? Sad.

 

[Road Rat]

Hollywood only has FIVE scripts.

They change to lead actors and the locations....a little new dialogue here and there....add some "special effects" and there you go.

There has not been an "original" idea out of that place in decades!

 

[sipowicz]

I think it's time....

 

[BLACKHAWKNJ]

There have been a couple of remakes of "Miracle on 34th Street" all of which lacked the charm and magic of the original.

 

[John Eilertson]

I think there are more than 5 scripts to start from, but also wish Hollywood would make more effort to give us more original ideas. Obviously, even a sorry retread that makes money will get the green light over something new or untried. A good part of that lies in the fault of your average moviegoer today, who will utterly FLOCK to see whatever latest version of what-have-you is up to. They are made for 2 basic reasons, I believe: making money ALWAYS being #1; and audience enthusiasm being secondary.
There have been a few genuinely new ideas seen on film in the last decade or two, but most studios don't want to risk the money loss of such a gamble. For those seeking new notions onscreen, maybe independant films are the answer. They're typically cheaper to make, usually have no large stars in them, and get fewer theater opportunities. But, if you can find somewhere that has them they may look better than the too often tired Hollywood flicks. Absolutely, there are and will be many Tinseltown movies that will be treasures, but the percentage is lower than it was when there were (possibly) better ideas. It won't ruin us, but it would make the cost of an average theater night less aggravating--give the viewer something to talk about besides how much better one version was than another!
But, never forget--it's too often all about the DOLLARS...

 

[Shooting Padre]

Hollywood possibly has more than five or six scripts. Maybe they have as many as nine. I generally do not watch remakes of movies. Usually they are ruined the second time around, not always, but mostly. What was originally a well done acting job with the plot held together with great dialogue, becomes nothing but scene after scene of violent action, foul language and the obligatory nudity. I gave a friend of mine a film, "Mr Roberts" which I considered one of the best movies made. He returned it stating that after ten minutes he turned it off because it didn't have enough action. He never discovered what the movie was about, and didn't see half the actors in it. All because someone wasn't blown away in the first ten minutes or didn't have sex. Anyone familiar with this film knows the top notch cast and great story line. Modern film has ruined the quality of well done movies. Just my opinion. Living in the past I guess. But as far as dollars, I believe that's true, but they aren't getting mine.

 

[bitstream]

The thing I have never been able to figure out is how some of these movies and TV shows ever get a green light. I mean, seriously, just reading the plot description is all I need to know it will be terrible. How can a dolt like me outpredict the "experts" in Hollywood?

 

[sipowicz]

When it comes to Hollywood, there is an old saying by legendary screenwriter William Goldman..."nobody knows anything"...why is a moronic square sponge living on the bottom of the ocean with a pet snail named Gary the biggest thing in kid's TV? Sure, it is pretty funny, but it first had to be pitched and some exec had to say, "I love it."

 

[truckemup97]

Didn't the Duke remake his OWN movie? I seem to remember that, and they were both good....

Hey Sip, maybe you should write a script about a Hollywood writer/actor who is conservative and into guns and his trials and tribulations in life. As they say, "Write what you know."

 

[bummer]

I think it's time....

Muppets for the win.

 

[sipowicz]

Didn't the Duke remake his OWN movie? I seem to remember that, and they were both good....

Hey Sip, maybe you should write a script about a Hollywood writer/actor who is conservative and into guns and his trials and tribulations in life. As they say, "Write what you know."

Now that would be a hard sell in this town...uness I bring it to Robert Davi or Kelsey Grammar...

 

[jdesro1911]

Didn't the Duke remake his OWN movie? I seem to remember that, and they were both good....

Rio Bravo and El Dorado were essentially the same film, both starring the Duke, and both directed by Howard Hawks.

Hollywood has been remaking movies as long as there has been movies and Hollywood. Alfred Hitchcock himself made The Man Who Knew Too Much twice.

But they seemed to do it better back then. The remakes were often an improvement on the original. Now, not so much it seems.

I'm only 40, but I much prefer the movies made between say 1935 - 1965. Many of these classics I can watch over and over again and never get tired of them. With very few exceptions, modern movies just do not impress me.

 

[P&R Fan]

I think Michael Moore should re-make "Plan 9 From Outer Space".
He could star in it as the lead actor.
Jim