Week 13 - What's Old is New Again
Remakes - we see them more and more frequently. Taking an old movie and completely reshooting it with a new cast, new effects, new styles and even new genres can be a hit or miss proposition. This summer we've seen several remakes already, from The Stepword Wives (
original and
remake) to The Manchurian Candidate (
original and
remake), plus there's even an Alfie remake in production (
original and
remake).
1) What is your favorite remake of an older film? Did it actually improve on the original?
I'm not a huge fan of remakes, though I have to admit I did enjoy A Perfect Murder a few years ago which is a remake of Hitchcock's old Dial M For Murder. That said, the original Hitchcock film is better. Also, the master wasn't above remaking his old films--he did that with The Man Who Knew Too Much. I haven't seen the original version made in the 30's but I do like the Jimmy Stewart version. I think when it comes to remakes, the first question should be--why are we doing this? Another remake that I really enjoyed was the Thomas Crowne Affair a few years ago. That one was pretty good, but again, I've not see the original Steve McQueen movie it was based on so I can't really compare much there.
2) What remake was handled so poorly even if the original was not great it would've seemed Oscar-worthy?
What I still don't understand is why they bothered to redo a classic like Pyscho a few years ago. Sorry, but the original was pretty much perfect the way it is and I still scratch my head going--what the heck were they thinking?!? Especially since it was pretty much a shot-for-shot remake of the original film. It's on DVD and VHS, so why did we need a new version, I ask you?!?
3) Are there any classic films you feel would cause the fabric of space/time to rip apart were a remake made of it?
Gone With The Wind, The Searchers, North by Northwest, Casablanca, It's A Wonderful Life. Those are just a few that come to mind. They should NEVER EVER be remade.
BONUS) What film would you most like to see remade, and what would be your dream cast?
As a Buffy fan, I'd like to see the original film remade with the cast from the TV show and no one interfering with Joss Whedon's vision. (Oh wait, we had that for seven years!) I will admit I'm intrigued to see more of the Pink Panther remake with Steve Martin in the Peter Sellers role. But as for one film I'd like to see remade, I can't really think of one.
(Man those remakes are everywhere...)
posted by Michael Hickerson at 8/12/2004 11:56:00 AM |
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