For years it always has seemed that Hollywood has run out of ideas for new movies as there are constant remakes and sequels to many popular movies. Some of the more recent remakes include Halloween, Friday the 13th and (going back to 1998) Psycho. The latter was a movie which should have never been thought of, cast, created, distributed, etc. as Alfred Hitchcock was a filmaking genius in my opinion. Remaking Psycho is like doing a re-recording of say The Beatles White Album. For goodness sakes you just don't mess with perfection.
Some of the remakes are good, some are bad but most seem to be generally be a introduction of a popular movie title to a new generation. This brings me to the point of today's posting.
I recently rented two movies from the corner Redbox (so convenient!) and didn't think about the fact that I picked up two remakes. One title was a movie I had wanted to see since it's release in later March, the other was a movie my daughter saw in the theatre and loved so I picked that one up for her.
First the movie I had wanted to see was Clash of the Titans.
This is a remake of the 1981 film that starred Harry Hamlin, Sir Laurence Olivier, Burgess Meredith and many others. I had looked forward to this movie since I saw the commercial during the NFL playoffs earlier this year.
I thought this remake was very entertaining. From stars like Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes it was very impressive. I read some message boards commenting on it and many didn't care for the CGI effects along with the lead character's poor acting. But I overlooked all of that and took the movie for what it was--a guilty pleasure. One thing that bothered me was how terrifying the 2010 Kraken was. I thought the '81 claymation version was better probably because of how cheesy it was which added to the enjoyment of the movie. Add to that a mechanical owl and other "unspecial" effects.
In the original movie the infamous "Release the Kraken" line has to be the most funniest (not intentionally) funny lines ever. I know I'm a guy and toilet humor never gets old. Also Harry Hamlin's white guy afro was impressive! See for yourself with all of the images below.
1981 Kraken (looks like Godzilla mated with King Kong :))
2010 Kraken (scary eh?)
C'mon, did they have hair product in those days?
Next we have The Karate Kid remake starring Jaden Smith (Will and Jada Pinkett Smith's son) and Jackie Chan as Mr. Miyagi. My daughter saw this movie this past summer and loved it.
I decided to pass at that time as I wasn't interested because I refused to see any of the original Ralph Macchio Karate Kid movies from the '80s (believe it or not!). I know all about the original movie that also had Elisabeth Shue, Pat Morita and Billy Zabka(!). I know all of the memorable lines ("sweep the leg", "get him a bodybag"). And I know all of the songs ("You're the Best Around" and "Glory of Love"). But I refused to see it back then or any of the multiple sequels. It was just one of those movies I avoided in the '80s (along with E.T.--wow!).
Anyway, this movie was over 2 hours long, which I'm amazed kept my daughter's attention span. However I have to say wasn't incredibly noticeable. The images of China that many of us in America don't get to see on a regular basis were pretty amazing. I thought Smith also did well in a starring role. He obviously has received talent from his famous mom and dad.
To summarize, some things can be remade well while others cannot. Its always a crapshoot with these remakes that Hollywood continues to churn out. But sometimes there are gems hidden among all of crap that has been redone.
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