The Unfettered Critic – April 2022

We mentioned “remakes” in our last column: new movies based on existing properties that inspired studios and filmmakers to wanna do them again. Remake motivation for studio executives is obvious. If it made money before, the prospect of cashing in on the same property a second time is irresistible.

Motivation for filmmakers is a bit different. Yes, they also like the money, plus artistic expression factors into the equation—if they truly love the original, think of the fun they’ll have personalizing the film by remaking it in their own image.

Since our column appeared, several of you stopped us on the street to discuss remakes—the good and the bad—and some of you even questioned why we hadn’t praised Steven Spielberg’s recent take on West Side Story.

It’s not that we didn’t like it. We like just about everything Spielberg does. We liked this too, but—and here’s the kicker—not the way we loved the Robert Wise-directed original.

Which leads us to repeat our cardinal rule of filmmaking: Don’t remake beloved classics. Lots of good, but creatively impaired, movies deserve to be redone. An innovative filmmaker likely can do a great job at improving a flawed gem. However: if a wide audience loves it as is, leave it alone, dammit.

West Side Story is a prime example. The 1961 classic didn’t “call out” to be remade. But Spielberg loved it so much that he wanted to recreate the magic, and as tenderly rendered as his beautiful musical is, it wasn’t “needed.” At least, not in the opinion of the largely dismissive ticket-buying public.

Spielberg’s instincts were keener when he revamped War of the Worlds in 2005. Yes, the 1953 version starring Gene Barry is considered a classic, but the advancement of visual effects (thanks in part to folks like Spielberg) has come a long way. And adding a big star like Tom Cruise as the lead certainly didn’t hurt. Bottom line: it was a box office hit.

Remakes in certain genres—say, horror—often work just fine. Reboots of The Fly, The Thing, and Invasion of the Body Snatchers frightened audiences delightfully more than the originals had. However, Godzilla has been remade numerous times, both to ho-hum response (1998) and to applause (2014). Equally repeated, King Kong fared only medium-well in both 1976 and 2005.

Westerns, too, have proven hit or miss. The Magnificent Seven has pleased viewers since Akira Kurosawa came up with the basic concept in 1954’s Seven Samurai. Both the 1960 remake starring Yul Brynner and the 2016 version with Denzel Washington received kudos. On the other hand, Will Smith’s Wild Wild West (1999), based on the popular 1960s television series starring Robert Conrad, quickly got shot down.

How about romantic comedies? Director Billy Wilder’s Sabrina (1954), with Audrey Hepburn and Humphrey, was warmly received. But Sydney Pollack’s 1995 update with Harrison Ford and Julia Ormand didn’t warm the hearts of a general audience. Director Nora Ephron’s aim was more on target when she transformed 1940’s The Shop Around the Corner into 1998’s You’ve Got Mail.

So, which remakes will work? It’s anyone’s guess, of course. At this moment in 2022, Hollywood studios have a number of retreads on their books and in their budgets, including: Salem’s Lot, Father of the Bride, Pinocchio, and, yup,—Wonka. (As in Willy.)

Yet even folks who believe in remakes seem to know where to draw the line. A few years ago, Universal suggested to Spielberg that he should think about redoing 1975’s Jaws, the blockbuster that made him an A-list director.

Spielberg said no.