As my first official post, I thought it would be appropriate to address my number one pet peeve as of late when it comes to modern hollywood: The Remake(cue dark, sinister, and forboding music).
In an industry where fresh ideas are dwindling as much as legitimate music related material on MTV, and adaptions are the only source for new material, it seems as though Hollywood is more than ever relying on the remake. Television shows are being remade, classic movies are being remade, movies are being re-released in 3-D(another issue entirely), and foreign films are being remade as, usually, second rate English rehashings. So I ask, is the remake ever really as good as the original?
There is a reason that I tend to prefer the indie movie genre above the tyical blockbuster released every friday, becuase they serve fresh, meaningful, and reflective ideas that haven't yet been raped to the point becoming painfully mundane. Don't get me wrong I enjoy the latest Michael Bay blow 'em up with a J.J. Abrahms twist as the next much as the next droll peon, but that's just because I have such a wide array of interest in movies. I do not however enjoy a remake of a movie from 10 or 15(sometimes longer) years ago, which the "horror"(read: gore) genre is becoming notorious for. I do not enjoy seeing a movie which I was quite fond of as a child being re-released just so the bloodthirsty creator can try and milk it's teet for a few drops more using modern technology( George Lucas I'm referring to your latest 3-D venture). And I especially do not appreciate seeing wonderful films, as much works of art in some cases as cinema, from around the world being rewritten, recast, and remade, with English speaking actors in American Hollywood(i.e. Let The Right One In, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo).
It is this last point in which I will address with the most fervor as it has become increasingly annoying to me as of late. Let me start by saying, for those of you who don't know, the recent(and fairly unsuccessful as of yet) release, Let Me In, is a half assed attempt for hollywood to cash in on an international hit, Let The Right One In, based on a novel by the same name, written by the Swedish author, John Ajvide Lindqvist. If you have never seen the original Swede version of the film, which I'm guessing a fair share of people probably haven't, it is one of the most beautifully disturbing movies I have ever had the pleasure of watching. The book for those of you who might be interested is even better than the movie. In a sub-genre of "horror", that has been polluted with sparkly high school studs who make the panties of teen girls melt, this movie provides a refreshingly traditional take on the vampire myth, staying true to the legends, while inserting itself into modern society. Let me add also that I admittingly did read the entire Twilight series, I have seen, and will continue to see each movie once and only once, and I fully admit I enjoyed the books and the movies are shit, judge me as you will, I have heard it all. But back to my point. Let The Right One In, is of course filmed in Sweden there for is only availabe with English subtitles. Too many people are turned off by the fact that they might have to read a movie for an hour and a half, because, "Hey, why would I read a book, that's what movies are for." As a result movies such as this are remade as English movies and in my opinion lose a fair share of their impact as a result. American standards on movies are much more watered down as restrictions become harsher and harsher defining what is "socially acceptable" to be viewed. God forbid little Johnny's mom neglect to tell him that it's a movie and not real life, that just not be as simple as editing all the meaning and depth out of a movie. Foreign cinema still retains a much higher acceptability of what can and can't be included in a movie, and that's where I think it scores over ours. Gore, Nudity, Profanity, and Content are not splashed in overabundantly for the sake of a few more teenagers going to see a crap movie. On the contrary they are tastefully done in an almost understated way to further along the real depth of a film. When you take a movie that is, in my opinion, damn near perfectly made, such as Let The Right One In or The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, and ship it overseas to the good old "US of A", it loses everything that it had going for it and becomes the sparknotes version with some tits and blood.
I argue to instead, expose more people to the original which are in general very well recieved, apart from by those "too good for subtitles" stereotypes. Watch the movie with substance before stating how much you want to see a movie that you didn't even know was stoled in the first place. Watch the original of a movie that was filmed 20 years ago, instead of rooting for the same movie filmed with better technology. Don't endorse a remake, which there are a few, but I stress few, good ones made, before you see the original and can intellegently compare.
From The Rambling Mind Of A Closet Geek,
Entertainment Rees-earcher, Josh
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