Movie Remakes And Why They Should Stop!

It was released a few days ago that Platinum Dunes, the company behind the recent Friday the 13th remake, is looking to move forward with A Nightmare On Elm St. remake. I haven't heard any details about the casting or plot yet, but I'm sure something will be out in the next few months.

This does not need to happen. The original "Nightmare" still stands on its own as a true to form horror movie. The only thing Platinum Dunes has officially said is that Robert Englund will not be returning as Freddy Kruger. So on top of the fact a classic is needlessly being remade, the actor that made the entire franchise what it was is going to be replaced. I can understand when slashers like Jason and Michael are replaced with a different actor, because no one actually sees those actors, but Freddy Kruger? I can't think of anyone else that could replace Englund.

What's more, everyone can assume that the special fx are going to be overly cg, thus not scary. I predict this turning out very similar to Freddy vs. Jason in terms of the movies "horror" elements. What aggrivates me the most is the fact the first movie in this series was not campy and succeeded in being a great horror movie. Some many of the studios today rely on cg for their scares, not realizing there is nothing scary about cg effects.

Let me know what you think about the new "Nightmare" remake, yay or nay?

Quarantine tells the tale of a reporter and her camera man as they tag along with a local fire fighting unit for a night. The fire department recieves a call purtaining to an elderly woman needing assitance in an apartment building. When the crew arrives they discover much more than they bargained for as a strange virus lands them "Quarantined" in the building.

I know Quarantine has already been released, but this really reconfirms my standpoint of unneccesary remakes. The original Spanish film [REC] is unbelievably atmospheric and terrifying. The plot is the same as the remake as are many of the scares. When broken down, there aren't many differences between the two movies, but I can think of one. The main discrepancy I can think of purtains to the end of the film. I do not wish to spoil anything for anyone so I will just say that the Spanish version actually offers more explanation to the events taking place than its American cousin.

Movies like this and Let The Right One In are prime examples of the laziness of Americans. There is absolutely nothing wrong with the original movies other than the fact you have to READ subtitles as you watch. Apparently this is too much of a problem for the average joe. So the movie studios of the good 'ol US of A end up buying the rights to good original ideas and remaking them with all American casts, thus subtracting the evil subtitles. It would be great if we could just see these movies brought over here in there original form and accepted for the refreshingly new ideas they are. But I suppose that's wishing a little too hard.

Let me know what you think about the foreign remakes and the "subtitle-retardiness".

I went to see the new Friday The 13th at the midnight showing last night. Now, I know the purpose of this hub is to show how unneccesary these remakes are, but... I actually liked this.

I had originally thought this would be along the lines of Rob Zombie's Halloween; how wrong I was. Damian Shannon and Marcus Swift did a good job of creating a re-imagining that craftfully infuses aspects of the first three films. As far as the plot goes, the first movie is summed up in the first few minutes; tipping a hat to the original killer in the first film. Other nods to the classics include the potato sack as well as a certain severed head kept in a shrine.

It's important to remember that this isn't an exact remake of the first movie. Instead it's just another take on the Jason mythos. That being said, if you just sit back and accept the movie as the slasher flick it is I believe most every horror fan should be entertained. I am a horror fan, and there are several pros to the new Friday. First, most of the deaths are not cg heavy like the scenes in Freddy vs. Jason. The teen characters are well written and pretty believable, a little more so than most the slasher movies lately. Derek Mears portrays a very brutal and visceral Jason Vorhees. And lastly Marcus Nispel (director) managed to bring Camp Crystal Lake to life and just as much a character as Jason.

The cons are there as well but in my opinion they don't hold a candle to the pros, and the cons are going to stand out most to the die-hard fans. There is a large lack of back story to Jason. Some may find the deaths to be too simplistic in comparison to those in the original series. But overall, I actually recommend this movie to genre and non genre fans alike. Just remember, if you're not a horror fan this is a slasher flick. The main goal behind a good slasher flick is to show gratuitus amounts of gore and nudity; that is all! 

So let me know what you think about the new Friday, yay or nay?