Today I found out something sad. The film industry has shown once again that it doesn't have a original bone in its body. Friends and fellow readers, Robert Rodriguez is doing a rehash of Predator.
Think about this for a second. Can you really do anything better than this classic?
First of all, I don't think we have an actor that really achieves the beefy manliness that is Arnold Schwarzenegger circa 1987. The close I can think of is Vin Diesel, or possibly Dwayne Johnson (aka The Rock). But still Ahhhrnald personified beefy warrior with big guns and an instinct to kill. There aren't a lot of actors that fill that quota anymore.
The climate today is very different too. In 1987 we still had a lot of people who remembered the hostile jungles of Vietnam. That was the most recent war we had participated in. But now we're in 2009 where most war is about sand dunes and secret bombers. Is that really the kind of setting that is beneficial to a villain like Predator? And could an audience enjoy the jungle setting as much in relation to the wars we see on television now? I think the latter question can be answered a yes, but I don't know how big of a yes that is to the audience. Also, why do we want to focus on freaky aliens hunting us when we have a bunch of popular horror movies about humans hunting humans.
Despite these logistics, why can't Hollywood think of something ORIGINAL? I can forgive them for some of the cool comic book movies, and possibly TV movies, but what the hell is up with these reloads of movies that weren't worth remaking? Why can't we have some more original content on the silver screen?
It makes me sad to think that Hollywood can think of anything to captivate my nerdy interests. They used to be a lot of sci-fi/fantasy things that were new out there, but now I don't feel that way anymore. I feel like people have been tired of exploring the final frontier, and instead are visiting the same alpha/delta/gamma quadrant in hopes of getting me in a theatre seat. And no, rehashing a show from the 60s does not make the movie original. Even if I plan on watching it anyway.
I understand there is money to be made from fandom, but please, screenwriters EVERYWHERE, please give me something new to love, because soon you'll run out of old stuff to work every last penny out of, and then we both lose.
Readers, how do you feel about this situation?
Predator took place in Central America, not VietNam. Oopsie!
ReplyDeleteThe point is the kind of war we can relate to as a modern audience, not movie specifics. Can we really go back to the jungles of Central America when the nation is more focuses on the dry, sandy climates of Iraq and Afghanistan? Maybe, but it will be a harder sell.
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