Movie Remakes

There are some remakes coming out soon of classic movies, which brings up the issue of remakes vs originals. I’m looking forward to seeing Russell Brand in the Drop Dead Fred remake. I like the original and I think Russell Brand will be great as the character of Fred. Brand’s humor and mannerisms in movies like Forgetting Sarah Marshall look like they’d be perfect for the crude character of Fred. I think this remake won’t be a replacement for the original like some remakes try to be, I think it’ll be a good re-imagining of the same story. I feel the opposite about the Footloose remake, however. As cute as Chace Crawford is, they can never remake something so classic as alien-faced young Kevin Bacon doing his angry dance in the warehouse. They’re going to have to change so much for it to be relevant to kids today because so much of that movies was sooooo 80’s. I bet they change the ridiculously slow tractor chicken game into a high speed sports car chicken game because every movie needs a car chase and/or crash to make any money in the box office. And that’s why studios are remaking classic movies in the first place; to make money.

I understand that producers are tempted to remake movies that have become classics because people liked them so much. However, being that the movie is so great that you want to introduce it to a new generation by remaking it, wouldn't it stand to say that it would be better to introduce the original to the new generation? Some remakes basically recreate the original movie in this time so that people now can understand and relate to it more. And if they like the movie, that could encourage them to see the original as well. As a true film lover, I'm all for getting people to watch movies that they wouldn't normally because they aren't new and mainstream.

I don’t think all remakes are bad though, I even like some better than the original. A lot of people might hate for saying this, but I liked Tim Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory much more than 1971’s Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Although, I wouldn't consider that a remake because both movies were based on the book, not the second based on the first. Compared to the colorful, vivid world that Tim Burton created, the first movie was slow and dull. Not to mention the music by Danny Elfman in Tim Burton's movie was way better than the weak little ditties the oompa loompas sang in the first. I even downloaded Willy Wonka's theme song to use as my ringtone. The first included some things from the book that the second didn’t, but Tim Burton’s colorful world and Johnny Depp’s portrayal of Willy Wonka made Charlie and the Chocolate Factory one of my favorite movies to watch over and over.