Home / Fall 2011 / Hollywood out of ideas

Hollywood out of ideas

“Beetlejuice 2,” “Footloose” without Kevin Bacon, “Star Wars” tweaks made by George Lucas—these are just the few of the sequels, remakes and updates to grace recent movie news.

Ultimately, Hollywood should leave most, if not all, movies alone.

You can argue maybe they do these various films to give more to their fans. The industry recognizes the huge fan following for these hits and wants to quench their thirst for more. I say they have no more original ideas. It was bound to happen I suppose; how long have movies been around now?

Still, does there need to be 10 “Halloween” or five “Bring it On” movies? At least, they haven’t made a “Back to the Future 4”…yet.

If the writers see a valid storyline for the characters, then make a sequel. However, don’t stretch the plot out so much that, after the third or fourth film, the true fans won’t even bother. For example, I had no idea that Christopher Reeves was in four “Superman” movies, until my brother, the advent Superman follower, bought the box set; even though I’m a sucker for Reeves’ blue eyes, there is no way I will watch the last two.

The “Toy Story” trilogy is pretty solid. I enjoyed all three and felt each added on to the former without overtaking the other. This is an example of how, if done the right way, sequels can work; but “Beetlejuice 2”? What’s next, “Edward Scissorhands 2”? They might work if the writers were super brilliant, and the original cast returned. Both movies, however, are over a decade old; it might be time for the screenwriters to move on.

Remakes can be enjoyable, if again, done the right way. However, movie companies face such a tricky task when they try to remake cult classics that most shouldn’t even bother; fans will always be comparing the remake to the original. Take the new “Footloose” movie. The 1984 version is a dance flick hit that many have come to love; I wonder when the 2011 version hits theatres if Kenny Wormald will dance to impress the diehard “Footloose” fans as well as Kevin Bacon did. I guess it is all about making that profit though.

With all the latest technology companies have at their disposal, they tend to get a little edit-happy. Updates are not always needed. With certain movies, the director just seems bored and wants to pick and play at his or her old project. At least that is what it sounds like when reading the changes Lucas wants to make to the movies of one of his classic series, “Star Wars.”

Let’s face it. Sequels, remakes and updates have been around almost as long as the movie industry and will never go away. Some will continue to make us cringe, while others we will accept and maybe even like. One thing is for certain: when it comes to raking in that extra billion, the industry will stop at nothing. After all, this is why “Twilight” collector dolls exist.

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