new/rented movies: DEVASTATOR!!!!!

[The Paragon of Virtue]

Re: new/rented movies: DEVASTATOR!!!!!

Whoever thought remaking Psycho was a good idea should just give up the film career altogether by the way. I mean come on.

I don't think remaking it was the issue in and of itself. But doing a shot-by-shot remake is pointlessly stupid.

There's always the possibility of doing something new and creative with the source material. If they had focused on the book (which I haven't read) more than the movie, they could have found a new and interesting hook, though Psycho may not be the best example since there aren't a lot of differences from book to movie.

[Slap Shot]

Re: new/rented movies: DEVASTATOR!!!!!

There's always the possibility of doing something new and creative with the source material. If they had focused on the book (which I haven't read) more than the movie, they could have found a new and interesting hook, though Psycho may not be the best example since there aren't a lot of differences from book to movie.

Firestarter for instance. Great, sinister and a gut-wrenching book. The movie was a limp biscuit.

[ScoobyDoo]

Re: new/rented movies: DEVASTATOR!!!!!

Firestarter for instance. Great, sinister and a gut-wrenching book. The movie was a limp biscuit.

Agreed, and this brings up another interesting point. It seems that Hollywood is more willing to remake classics that should never be touched, then to try to remake a dud that should have been a good film, into a really good film.

[Kepler]

Re: new/rented movies: DEVASTATOR!!!!!

2. Remaking classic horror films is a bad idea.

99% of the time, certainly. The Thing is a glittering exception -- the remake is excellent in an entirely different way (the original is about an external threat, the remake is an internal threat and oddly it is much closer to the original short story Who Goes There?).

Remaking Nightmare and Halloween is ridiculous -- those are seminal horror movies with amazing things going on in them, and the remakes by definition lose all that. Remaking F13 is forgivable -- it was a pretty brainless and undeemable throwaway movie and it itself was a ripoff of Italian giallo of the 70's.

[The Paragon of Virtue]

Re: new/rented movies: DEVASTATOR!!!!!

99% of the time, certainly. The Thing is a glittering exception -- the remake is excellent in an entirely different way (the original is about an external threat, the remake is an internal threat and oddly it is much closer to the original short story Who Goes There?).

There's also The Fly.

[Kepler]

Re: new/rented movies: DEVASTATOR!!!!!

There's also The Fly.

I guess. I'm not a big fan of either version. I do like Return of the Fly (1959), because it's much more of a gearhead "hard" sci-fi movie than either the original or its remake. I never saw the sequel to the remake -- the "delivery" scene from the trailer was enough to convince me it was dreck, which is grossly unfair but, I'll bet, vindicated.

[Handyman]

Re: new/rented movies: DEVASTATOR!!!!!

99% of the time, certainly. The Thing is a glittering exception -- the remake is excellent in an entirely different way (the original is about an external threat, the remake is an internal threat and oddly it is much closer to the original short story Who Goes There?).

Remaking Nightmare and Halloween is ridiculous -- those are seminal horror movies with amazing things going on in them, and the remakes by definition lose all that. Remaking F13 is forgivable -- it was a pretty brainless and undeemable throwaway movie and it itself was a ripoff of Italian giallo of the 70's.

Yes F13 the original sucked and was one of the worst of the series which is odd cause usually the original is the BEST of the series.

There have been attempts to remake movies and keep them closer to the source material but they usually fail because people don't accept the changes. I remember when one of the networks made a Mini Series for The Shining that was supposed to be way closer to the book than the Jack Nickelson version and it was panned pretty badly IIRC.

Plus anyone other than Robert Englund as Freddy Krueger just won't fly...he was beyond fantastic in the character especially early on in the series. He made you love Freddy even though he was the sum of evil...he was so funny and sadistic it was perfect! If you ever have a chance watch the extras with the behind the scenes stuff it is awesome! Wes Craven was/is a genius!

I heard they are remaking Hellraiser too...how much would THAT suck! (unless Clive Barker is involved)

[ScoobyDoo]

Re: new/rented movies: DEVASTATOR!!!!!

I heard they are remaking Hellraiser too...how much would THAT suck! (unless Clive Barker is involved)

Wow. That's another one that really does NOT need a remake.

[The Paragon of Virtue]

Re: new/rented movies: DEVASTATOR!!!!!

I remember when one of the networks made a Mini Series for The Shining that was supposed to be way closer to the book than the Jack Nickelson version and it was panned pretty badly IIRC.

It was way closer to the book since King wrote the teleplay and didn't like Kubrick's version for all the liberties taken with the story. I don't recall it getting panned per se; I recall mediocre to good reviews and ratings and still being considered inferior to Kubrick's. It certainly had its problems, such as the kid playing Danny and the ending, but Steven Weber was very good and I enjoyed Rebecca de Mornay much more than Shelley Duvall, who was my least favorite part of Kubrick's by a country mile.

[Handyman]

Re: new/rented movies: DEVASTATOR!!!!!

It was way closer to the book since King wrote the teleplay and didn't like Kubrick's version for all the liberties taken with the story. I don't recall it getting panned per se; I recall mediocre to good reviews and ratings and still being considered inferior to Kubrick's. It certainly had its problems, such as the kid playing Danny and the ending, but Steven Weber was very good and I enjoyed Rebecca de Mornay much more than Shelley Duvall, who was my least favorite part of Kubrick's by a country mile.

I need to watch it...I love Weber and De Mornay

[unofan]

Re: new/rented movies: DEVASTATOR!!!!!

I don't know if this is the appropriate thread or not...but the reaction by the Hollywood (and worldwide) artistic elite to Roman Polanski's arrest is absolutely twisted.

I hadn't realized that it wasn't "just" statutory rape involved, but forcible (via drugs), non-consensual rape; they just pled him down to statutory to save the victim from having to testify. Then he jumps bail and leaves when he realizes the judge is going to scrap the plea agreement and he's going to see actual jail time

And people are saying this fugitive should go free because he's won an Oscar and "paid his due" by having to live in Paris for 30 years? Really?

I haven't seen a disconnect like this since the OJ trial; only instead of racial lines, it's celebrities vs. everyone else. Polls here and in Europe show the vast majority (75%+) want him extradicted.

[The Paragon of Virtue]

Re: new/rented movies: DEVASTATOR!!!!!

And people are saying this fugitive should go free because he's won an Oscar and "paid his due" by having to live in Paris for 30 years? Really?

Such as?

[St. Clown]

Re: new/rented movies: DEVASTATOR!!!!!

I don't know if this is the appropriate thread or not...but the reaction by the Hollywood (and worldwide) artistic elite to Roman Polanski's arrest is absolutely twisted.

I hadn't realized that it wasn't "just" statutory rape involved, but forcible (via drugs), non-consensual rape; they just pled him down to statutory to save the victim from having to testify. Then he jumps bail and leaves when he realizes the judge is going to scrap the plea agreement and he's going to see actual jail time

And people are saying this fugitive should go free because he's won an Oscar and "paid his due" by having to live in Paris for 30 years? Really?

I haven't seen a disconnect like this since the OJ trial; only instead of racial lines, it's celebrities vs. everyone else. Polls here and in Europe show the vast majority (75%+) want him extradicted.

Such as?

"Front" page of CNN's site: http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/Movi...est/index.html

[The Rube]

Re: new/rented movies: DEVASTATOR!!!!!

It's more of a "who gives a crap anymore" type of thing, but it's amazing how he hasn't been "caught" before, given his status in life.

[Handyman]

Re: new/rented movies: DEVASTATOR!!!!!

I saw The Informant! it was alright...not great but not horrible. Damon is awesome and who doesnt love Scott Bakula but overall it just wasn't that great.