I was really, and I mean REALLY excited for the Ghostbusters remake. It wasn’t for the progressive movement it was seemingly taking, but because I was excited for a new cult fan base that I, and a lot of people my age, can be a part of because of the fact we weren’t around for the first time. I was skeptical when the trailer came out, but I had high hopes that the entire movie wouldn’t reflect a four minute trailer, no matter how bad it seemed. Now this is the part when I come clean: Ghostbusters was not good. Not only was it ‘not good,’ it was terrible. It was rushed, poorly written and an overall unfunny movie.
Many people aren’t surprised though, due to the fact that more often than not remakes, sequels, and spin offs are terrible. But why? They have an original work to look off of and take the elements that made the original good and push it to new heights. In theory, EVERY remake, spin off, and sequels should be better than the first. But as we all know, that is nowhere near the case. Why couldn’t movies like "Ghostbusters" (2016), "Fantastic Four" (2015), "Carrie" (2013), or "The Karate Kid" (2010) be as great as their predecessor. Now obviously every movie remake can’t be "Ocean’s Eleven," but why can’t they be at least bearable to watch? I think the answer is pretty simple: they don’t think they have to. In all honesty, any remake could be made of any cult classic ever and no matter what hype, some fans are going to see it, and the studio will make their money. They can and will ride on the nostalgia factor on that alone. Even if it’s a newer movie that has fans such as "Paranormal Activity," any movie can be made the fans will see it. If you think about every bad remake or sequel you’ve ever seen, they’ve all had the same reoccurring problems: bad script, bad production, bad acting, or all the above. These things could all be solved if the studio put more time and effort into the movie they are making. But why would they? If the algorithm is working that any remake, no matter how bad, will gain revenue because of a pre-existing fan base, why spend more money?
Spinoffs suffer the same fate, but in a much stranger way. All a studio has to do is make a movie in the same universe as another, and people will flock to it, it is such a simple algorithm they follow. Every superhero movie within the last 10 years has been able to ride off that alone (also by fans of the comics obviously but not everyone who watches reads the comics). Bad superhero movies like "Ant Man," "Fantastic Four," and most recently "Batman V. Superman" and "Suicide Squad" has gotten what the revenue they wanted because fans of the genre and of the overall Marvel and DC worlds.
How does it get fixed though? Well, that’s complicated because it might never be fixed. Unless all fans come together and say they want something better, the money will still go to the studios pockets and they will not have a need to satisfy their customers.
