There’s been a lot of hype recently about the upcoming “Ghostbusters” movie and “The Mummy” reboot with a female mummy. Although some are excited, I’m also hearing a lot of hate from die-hard fans about making these reboots/remakes. It’s an age-old question (at least in this age): Should reboots or remakes exist?
There are so many classic movies that we grew up with and love that it makes it harder to envision different actors portraying our favorite characters with a completely different take on the stories we love. I remember "The Karate Kid" trilogy and "Annie" growing up and how much I hated the recent remakes of both of those movies. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that all remakes are terrible. Some people actually seem to forget that some of our best movies are remakes. “3:10 to Yuma,” “Ocean’s 11,” “Scarface,” and even “The Departed” are all remakes and were done masterfully.
So to answer the question, it’s really a risky subject matter. On the one hand, we might get an amazing film that was beautiful in both cinematography and acting, all the while filling us with nostalgia. On the other hand, we might get a pile of crap due to poor producer/director decisions that strayed too far from the source material, thereby ruining the movie for everyone.
It’s really just a matter of finding the right script, the right director, and the right actors, and we’re in business. It shouldn’t be impossible to do remakes. After all, we see them happen all the time in theater, when someone decides to bring back a certain show to Broadway, a small town, or even a school. “Jersey Boys” has been done over and over again with a different cast each run, but is still one of the best shows out there. If we can remake theatrical performances, who’s to say we can’t do film? It’s especially useful if the original movie did not meet audience standards.
If you want my personal opinion, I’m not particularly excited for either “Ghostbusters” or “The Mummy” because I am one of those die-hard fans, but I am open to other movies being remade. Here are some suggestions that I had, in no particular order:
"The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen"
I’m a comics fan, and this was one of Alan Moore’s finest. You may recognize his name from comics-turned-films such as “V for Vendetta” or “Watchmen.” This was about a group of classic characters from 1800s literature such as Captain Nemo, Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde, The Invisible Man, Captain Alan Quartermaine, and Mina Harker fighting evil for MI5. The original movie, starring Sean Connery, was a total failure because they strayed too far from the source material and added new characters that nobody liked. If they give this another try, I bet they can get it right. This was too good a comic to fall from grace.
"The Warriors"
This is an old movie from the late 70s that actually wasn’t bad and was really memorable. In a dystopian New York City, the streets are ruled by teenaged gangs in each district or neighborhood, and one particular gang, the Warriors, are trying to fight their way home after being falsely accused of murdering a beloved gang leader. This was an amazing story about strength and survival as a team, and the plot was genius. I’d love to see stars from “Hunger Games” and “Maze Runner” duke it out on the streets of NYC.
"Eragon"
Don’t you hate it when a beloved book series gets a horrible adaptation on the big screen? "Eragon" suffered that fate, which was unfair due to how well received the actual book series was. Set in a land of fantasy, Eragon finds a dragon egg and hatches it, making him the first Dragon Rider in decades and he goes off to fight a tyrannical king and his villainous cohorts. Yeah, I’ll admit this isn’t exactly an original storyline, but I’d love to see “Eragon" done right.
“Highlander”
Another old film from the 80s, this fantasy tale was about an immortal Scottish swordsman who had to fight other immortals in duels for the ultimate prize. This wasn’t necessarily a bad film, but it didn’t age very well and its sequels did no favors. We’ve already gotten a few showdown movies, but who wouldn’t want to see immortal warriors fight to the death?
“Mortal Kombat”
I know there isn’t much faith in video game adaptations, but hear me out on this one. The original 90s flick based on the classic fighter game franchise was a bit flaky, but not horrible. The story follows several fighters from Earth (Earthrealm as it’s called) who must fight to the death in a tournament to save their world. The story and acting were a bit shaky, along with cheesy dialogue, but if they were able to reboot the gaming franchise recently, who’s to say they can’t do the film?
