Sunday 15 April 2012

General: Remakes

Most people groan about remakes, whether they're an old film being remade or a recent foreign film being remade in English. As I write this one of the most successful films in English cinemas is "Contraband", a remake of the 2008 Icelandic film "Reykjavík-Rotterdam". Some remakes are so bad that they're universally panned. Others are good, but they're still a subject of controversy, with fans of both versions arguing which is better. And then there are remakes which people don't realise are remakes, so they're blissfully enjoyed on their own merits. How many people know that "City of Angels" is a remake of the 1987 German film "Der Himmel über Berlin"? How many people know that "Cruel Intentions" is a remake of the 1959 French film "Les Liaisons Dangereuses", which had already been remade as "Dangerous Liasons" in 1988 and as "Valmont" in 1989?

My question to my readers is: what films would you like to be remade? I can think of a few.

1. "The Final Programme" (1973). The novel of the same name by Michael Moorcock is one of my favorite books. The film is good, but it's so far from the original that it's almost a different story. Much like Stanley Kubrick's "The Shining", which was so unlike Steven King's novel that King tried to prevent its release. A more accurate remake would be in order.

2. "Invasion of the Bee Girls" (1973). A good film that would profit from a bigger budget.

3. "Faster Pussycat Kill Kill" (1965). Ever since Quentin Tarantino dropped hints that he might remake this classic I've been praying that he will stop hesitating and get on with it. In the hands of a director of Tarantino's stature the remake could be even better than the original.

So, my faithful readers... please tell me which films you'd like to see remade, and why.

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