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Re-Makes: Hollywood's New Golden Ticket
By: Shawn Shapiro Hollywood has always been one to look to trends and the "old" when making movies! From novels, to old television shows to comic books Hollywood has been great at recycling ideas and churning out an abundance of films. More recently though, Hollywood has found a new recycling method—the remake! In their eyes it's a surefire hit- take an old concept, gear it to a hip new generation, give it a hard hitting cast and ready, set, go. The problem is they are not fool proof. For every hard hitting and interesting remake ("Gone in Sixty Seconds"-2000 ; "The Italian Job"-2003 ; "The Manchurian Candidate"-2004 ; "3:10 to Yuma"-2007), there is a longer list of bombs ("Alfie"-2004 ; "Invasion"-2007 ; "Sleuth"-2007) that just did not capture the heart or soul of the original. So here for good measures are 5 remakes I conceived that I think the public would like to see. Hollywood answer our prayers: 1.) Ghostbusters: Now with the huge technological advantages we have, this flick could be more CGI induced and full of scarier ghouls and ghosts. Previous director Ivan Reitman is getting a little old, so why not pass on the remake to uber Director/Writer/Producer Judd Apatow ("Knocked Up"/"40-Year Old Virgin"). The man knows funny and it would be truly intriguing to see what he could do a with a broad science fiction comedy. Also he could bring his key players along. Imagine Jack Black as the sour Peter Venkman, Will Ferrell as the loveable Ray, Ben Stiller as the nerdy Egon and Chris Rock as the subtle Winston. Toss in Jonah Hill as the dorky sidekick Louis and you have a winning comedy flick. 2.) To Sir With Love: The original had probably one the most iconic theme songs of its time (From the beautiful vocals of Lulu) and cemented Sidney Poitier as a major draw. Four decades later Denzel Washington could suit up in the old role of the teacher and Naomi Watts as the British teacher helping him. Throw in some of the Harry Potter kids and "21's" Jim Sturgess as students and you have a film. Theme song wise it is Dido's turn to shine! 3.) Neverending Story- In 1984 a small multi-country produced family science fiction film premiered. It may not have had tons of fan fare, but for what it was it offered a lot. It has become a classic and thanks to CGI and the magic of "High School Musical's" Zak Enfron as Warrior Atreyu it is time for this film to shine. 4.) The Rocky Horror Picture Show- This one is simple film logic. Take the #1 cult classic of all time revamp the story a bit with Justin Timberlake and Beyonce as Brad and Janet, throw in Johnny Depp as the transgender doctor and let Tim Burton direct. 5.) Mighty Ducks- The beauty of the original was that they took no name kids and threw them in with a once popular 80's teen star growing up in the 1990;s. So would it not be fitting to have a 90's teen star having growing pains in the 21st century? The lead could be Freddie Prinze Jr. and the Duck's will fly again. |