What is wrong film companies making all these remakes.... Just leave alone.

Milord V

New member
MGM have just announced that they are making a few remakes including Robocop and Poltergeist. My question is WHY? Have film companies got no original ideas anymore? Why can't they just leave the original versions alone and come up with new exciting ideas.

Alos today I've just read that MTV is going to remake the Rocky Horror Picture Show. No doubt like all British made films it'll be Americanised that much that it'll be crap. Prime example Get Carter.
 
I don't think Robocop is a full on remake, they are taking a very different direction with it apparently. I also read that Darren AfronRABky(sp?) is going to direct it, and that's good!
 
Yeah I just read that about Aranofsky. I was skeptical of it before but i'm quite excited now - it'll be interesting to see how he handles it.

It's a sequel also.
 
poltergeist?? why oh why????? its a classic and should never be made.

heather would be turning in her grave if it got remade, plus the original film triology was cursed, why kill more people
 
That's what I've read to,it's a semi sequel/reboot.
The more I think about,the more I'm for a Robocop reinvention because to me,the new Batman movies have shown that remakes can be great as long the material is very much character driven (and the director/writers have an original vision too).
 
The reason why we are subjected to so many remakes is because Hollywood refuses to invest in anything new anymore, it's too big a gamble, so they're sticking to the 'tried and trusted'.

Not just the film industry that takes this opinion either, its the same story everywhere these days. Nobody is willing to invest in something 'different', 'different' is dangerous and far too risky.
 
Annoying as remarks are (for us film buRAB :D), do they have any value?

What are the pros and cons of a remake?

To be honest I can't think of any pros, really.
Unless it's an exceptionally well made remake that has the ability to eclipse it's predecessor both critically and commercially, I can't really see the point of remaking a film.

I mentioned in my previous post about how they were almost 'money back guarantees' for the industry but I no longer believe that this is the case (I may well be wrong).
I mean, did the recent version of 'Halloween' make more money at the box office than the original? Did it make a vast amount of money at all? Do mediocre remakes (like The Fog) get bums on seats at the end of the day? I haven't got a clue

So, you hear that your favorite film of all time is gonna be remade into a multi-million pound Hollywood blockbuster. 'Great!' you think, 'maybe no everyone will realise what a great film the original was!' No chance.

It's almost like the industry tries everything it can to bury the original under the carpet. As much as I loved there make of Dawn of the Dead, did it really bring a new audience to the Romero films? I doubt it.

John Waters sums it up best, he says that when he's doing public appearances now people come rushing up to him saying how much they love his films (ie. Hairspray). He says 'Really? You like my films? Did you actually enjoy Pink Flamingos? I don't think so!'. His new found audience hasn't got a clue about John Waters.

Occasionally some remakes are very good and will no doubt become classics in their own right but they are few and far between. And with many of them pretty much now going straight to DVD, how much long can Hollywood flog this dead horse?
 
Halloween 2007 made good money,it cost under 20 million and grossed over 50 million in the states alone.
Basically if a film is adequate enough it will make a decent profit but if one is just beyond dire
(i.e Get Carter,Psycho,The Wicker Man,Hitcher,The Fog),then it will flop at the box office.
If a remake is crafted from a famous brand (i.e Halloween,Texas Chainsaw) it is almost guaranteed to make money.
That's why Hollywood is urgent to get remakes of Nightmare on Elm Street,Hellraiser and Poltergeist made.

A remake toned down to PG13 also creates a guaranteed money maker.
 
Hang on. Hollywood doing a new adaptation of a musical that's been successfully performed in many countries across the world for decades is a project doomed to failure? Never mind that the 1975 film version was made in the US!
 
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