“HOLLYWOOD REVISITED” The Business of Re-makes by Darryl Rembert, Co-Editor
Ok, we all know that the business of making movies is just that,a business. There’s an old saying in showbiz: “There’s the show, then there’s the business.” Movie companies not only make films for entertainment, they make them for profit. This has a lot to do with the unprecedented number of movie re-makes we have been bombarded with over the last few years. In 2014, Hollywood produced an estimated twenty-two re-makes or sequels for widespread distribution. “Re-make” can be music to a movie executive’s ear. For nearly as long as films have been made, there have been Hollywood writers, producers, and directors that are ready, able, and more than willing to re-do any and everything that’s ever been remotely profitable at the box office.
Why is this you ask? Because sometimes, it’s worth the risk and it actually works. Without the original 1932 “Scarface”, audiences wouldn’t have the 1983 cult classic starring Al Pacino. Actually, very few even know it was a re-make. The same goes for “Ocean’s Eleven”, “The Maltese Falcon”, “Some Like It Hot”, and countless other Hollywood box office hits. Dig deep into your movie history, and you’ll find that many successful films are actually just polished versions of celluloid past.
Technically speaking, there are only four “bona fide” re-makes slated for release this year: “The Loft”, “Poltergeist”, “Point Break”, and “Badlapur”. “The Man from U.N.C.L.E” is another example of one of Hollywood’s favorite tricks…taking an old television series and turning it into a feature length movie. That’s a category all to itself. However, with the countless number of sequels generating second, third, and fourth installments, and re-incarnations of movies that had great or even moderate success in the past, it’s no wonder we feel bombarded by more of the same over and over again.
There are seventeen movies set for release this summer that fall into the categories of re-make, re-work, sequel, or spin-off. Here’s the countdown in no particular order:
17. ‘THE TRANSPORTER: REFUELED’
16. ‘CROUCHING TIGER HIDDEN DRAGON II: THE GREEN LEGEND’
15. ‘INSIDIOUS: CHAPTER 3’
14. ‘ENTOURAGE’
13. ‘TED 2’
12. ‘SINISTER 2’
11. ‘VACATION’
10. ‘MAD MAX: FURY ROAD’
9. ‘POLTERGEIST’
8. ‘MINIONS’
7. ‘THE FANTASTIC FOUR’
6. ‘MAGIC MIKE XXL’
5. ‘THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E.’
4. ‘MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – ROGUE NATION’.
3.’PITCH PERFECT 2’
2. ‘TERMINATOR GENISYS’
1. “JURASSIC WORLD”
Like it or not, re-makes are an ingrained part of Hollywood culture and
will be around for a long time to come. Get used to them because there
will likely be more than ever in the very near future.
What sequel, spinoff or re-make are you most looking forward to this summer 2015?
“Ted 2” “Jurassic World” “Minions” “Terminator Genisys” “Entourage” “Magic Mike XXL”
“Mad Max: Fury Road” “The Man From U.N.C.L.E.” “Insidious: Chapter 3” “Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation”
“Sinister 2” “Pitch Perfect 2” “Vacation” “The Fantastic Four” “Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon II: The Green Legend”
“The Transporter Refueled” “Poltergeist”
*Be sure to check out “Quiet on the Set Magazine’s” 2015 Summer Movie Guide for all the latest movies coming to a theatre near you. There are some remakes, reboots, and resurrections of movies you’re sure to enjoy.
