Now that I’ve had a few weeks to get into the goings-on, I’m going to add a new kind of post. Basically, every week (most likely Wednesdays) I’ll take a closer look at something that has to do with the subject post from that Monday. This week, we talked about concepts. So it seems fitting to go into discussion about reboots and the like since they seem to be popping up every month. So let’s get going!
First we should define what each of these things are.
REBOOT – Reboots are strange creatures. Some can be good, and some bad. A reboot seems to be a kind of “clean slate.” Most of the time, reboots happen within an established series. Studios demand a reboot when a movie in the series doesn’t do as well as they had hoped–critically or financially. So they commission somebody to write a new origin story for the series. So it’s just to start over.
REMAKE – A remake differs from a reboot in the sense that the movie being remade doesn’t have to be part of a series. It could be it’s own thing that had potential (or didn’t) and somebody thought they could update it. That’s all well and good…if it’s pulled off correctly.
RE-IMAGINING – The most creative of the three R’s, the re-imagining is a new take on an old story. Certain elements might be adjusted to create a “fresh” new look to a familiar story. Re-imaginings also tend to take more creative license with the source material.
The three R’s have become increasingly popular lately for different reasons. As mentioned above, studios get to choose what they want rebooted. They tend to make a choice based on financial or critical success, which makes sense to an extent. Robocop, Godzilla, The Dark Knight Trilogy are recent reboots that were hit or miss successes, chosen for whatever reason. But sometimes there’s a franchise that could use a fresh start. Like Star Trek (2009; Directed by J. J. Abrams). Here is a franchise that was 40 years old that spanned something like ten films and several television series. The last “canonical” film was called Star Trek: Nemesis and was kinda disappointing to even hardcore fans of Star Trek. So then it became time to revitalize the series. Give it some fresh faces…younger faces. This example, however, kinda falls in a gray area of reboot and re-imagining. If you are a fan of the original Star Trek series (before some of your times, I know), then you’ll know what I mean.
Then we get into reboots like Sony’s Amazing Spider-Man series. I should preface this section with a disclaimer that I am a huge Spider-Man fan. I know all the characters and their stories motivations and such. That said, I hate the Amazing Spider-Man series. The original trilogy, directed by Sam Raimi, was wonderful. It remains one of my favorite series and there aren’t many superhero movies that can top Spider-Man 2. But the series was rebooted just 5 years after the original trilogy. Sony owns the film rights to Spider-Man, the character. They have a contract that states, generally, that if they don’t make a Spider-Man movie every two years or so, the rights revert back to Marvel. And studios are only interested in making money. Hence the quick reboot. But other than that little thing, the special effects were poorly done (see the picture to the right. If you get the reference, you’ll never be able to un-see that), the story was falsely advertised as the “untold story,” Uncle Ben’s storyline was dropped halfway through the movie, and the 3D was used to create the cheesiest ending of any superhero movie.
Remakes are a bit more intriguing. Sometimes a movie being remade deserves it. Other times it doesn’t. It is interesting to note that there are so many remakes of horror movies. My Bloody Valentine, Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm Street. Whether they deserve it or not depends on if you liked the originals. I never saw the original My Bloody Valentine, but I like the remake. It’s up to you, the viewer, to decide. But then there are the head scratchers, like Red Dawn or Evil Dead or the supposed remake of Highlander. The Evil Dead remake was well received, but personally I feel like it didn’t live up to the same standards as the original. Some fans like it, some don’t. Again, it’s up to you. But sometimes it’s just one of those things that is hit or miss.
Finally, we come to re-imaginings. This trend has become increasingly popular with movies like Maleficent (which is a good movie, by the way), Snow White and the Huntsman, or the upcoming Cinderella. These are the most creative of the three R’s, I believe. Giving us a different angle on a familiar story actually brings us deeper into that world, I think. Without spoiling the movie, Maleficent actually told a story that made sense and gave us justification for our “villain.” The oddity with re-imaginings is that we know the story and expect a certain ending. It should be noted that most of these re-imaginings nowadays are, in fact, Disney movies or characters that appeared in those fairy tales. Perhaps fairy tales are more flexible in that sense. Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters took the original story then built upon it. Sherlock Holmes (2009) is another example that takes an established characterization and gives it a new twist. Most of the earlier adaptations had Watson as a sidekick with no purpose other than relating the story to the viewer/reader (if you read the books). These new movies actually give him a purpose and make him out to be more of Holmes’ brother type. It adds a level of depth to the character and allows for more dynamic interactions between the two characters.
So what is the point of this article? Well, as stated earlier, this has to do with concept. Reboots, remakes, and re-imaginings all share a common thread: They are old ideas that are revisited for various reasons. Sometimes it’s because of a lack of creativity. Sometimes it’s because you hate to see a series die. Whatever the reason, I don’t think they are going away anytime soon. But audiences are being reintroduced to some great characters. They may not be handled well each and every time, but they get attention.
So remember: If ever you feel like your idea isn’t original enough, just look at all the reboots, remakes and re-imaginings coming out. Then think about how original your idea is compared to those we’ve already seen!