The Horror Movie Watcher… peeves part II

The Horror Movie Watcher… peeves part II
MORE things that annoy me:
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What’s in a name? part I –

The never ending sequel parade. Few sequels are as good as the original. Some franchises work well as a series of movies: Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, James Bond, etc. Some do not, but that doesn’t stop Hollywood from riding the cash cow into the dirt. (Halloween, Wrong Turn, Pumpkinhead, Children of the Corn, Hellraiser, Friday the 13^th, Nightmare on Elm) Just say NO! to lousy sequels.

  
  

What’s in a name? part II –

The never ending remake parade. I can see doing a remake if a film was shot on a low budget, was in B&W, or is over 50 years old and can really benefit from an update. War of the Worlds, Ghost Ship, Willard, The Blob, and The Thing (1982), all benefited from remakes. Most movies do not. Some actually infuriated me: The Fog, Nightmare on Elm Street, The Haunting, Carnival of Souls, and Fright Night, are all unwatchable remakes. And, I won’t even mention Evil Dead 2013 again.

   

Tired old themes-

There are some film ideas that should be put to rest forever. Three Musketeers. Tarzan. Dick Tracy. Flash Gordon, Buck Rogers, Bonnie & Clyde to name a few. Early in film history, these were very popular subjects and each had several films of varying success on them. It is  – over – for these subjects. Every few years someone in Hollywood tries to resurrect these franchises. Adults would rather watch the old films and kids are not interested in these themes anymore – give ‘em up! (Although, I must say, I thought it was over for swashbuckling Pirate movies too and I was proved wrong). I would certainly put The Lone Ranger into this category. We will see if the star power of Johnny Depp can pull this tired old theme out of retirement.

       

QUESTION:
So, what tired, cliché, overused and abused themes and subjects do you think should be put to rest?

The Remake Scoreboard / Classic Sci-fi Films

The Remake Scoreboard – Horror movie remakes – the good and bad list. Thumbs up or thumbs down and a few sentences why.
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Remakes: Classic Sci-fi films

War of the Worlds (remake – 2005)
(original 1953)

Only Steven Spielberg could remake this 50’s sci-fi classic and do it justice. Great attention to detail was used in making this film and there is not one moment while I watched that I thought, this looks like CGI. The initial rise from the underground of the first tripod craft was amazing, as well as the Hudson River, Ferry Crossing scene. There was so much I liked about this film, from the look of the crafts, which were closer to the descriptions given in H.G. Wells’ original story, to the sound the tripods made, a sort of battle cry, inducing us humans to run for cover. This is my favorite sci-fi movie since 2000. I own it and watch it often!

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The Blob (remake – 1988)
(original 1958)

This is a very good remake with likable characters played by Kevin Dillon and Shawnee Smith. The film also featured some great special FX, thankfully made before the days of CGI, which portray the agile and quick moving amoeba-like creature, swallowing and digesting its human prey. Great story, excellently paced, a remake worth seeing.

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The Day the Earth Stood Still (remake – 2008)
(original 1951)

This is a near faithful remake in color. That is not necessarily a good thing, the black and white of the original just made everything seem more menacing. The film starts off well enough with interesting events taking place and some great imagery. About a third of the way through, it becomes a chore to watch as the pacing gets bogged down in a tangle of social issues that seem unnecessary. Do yourself a favor, just stick with the original!

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Planet of the Apes (remake – 2001)
(original 1968)

Firstly, there is no touching Charlton Heston’s pinnacle performance as ‘Taylor’ in the original 1968, mind-bomb. The original was laced with a myriad of allegory and thought-provoking social issues. The final scene with the half-submerged, Statue of Liberty is one of the great moments in all film history. The new one had some great looking apes but not much else.

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Godzilla (remake – 1999)
(original 1956)

Most fans were not happy with Roland Emmerich’s version of the Iguana-inspired Godzilla. However, there were a couple of things I did like about the film. Godzilla’s first landfall in NYC at the South-Street Seaport and subsequent march through the NYC streets was impressive, mostly because it was filmed from street level, a person’s POV looking upward, rather than from straight-on as most ‘Zilla films are shot. I also liked the Helicopter chase scene as the fast moving Godzilla dodged and darted missiles and gunfire. But the film is also riddled with Hollywood hokey-ness that makes it difficult to watch. The car chase scene was ridiculous and the hundreds of eggs in MSG were too far-fetched to be believable. You would be much better off, sticking to the original.

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