I’m just about old enough to remember the Edward Woodward television programme, The Equalizer, a drama about a former intelligence operative who acts as a private avenger saving downtrodden New Yorkers from various evil-doers. For the late 80s the show was remarkably violent…
House of Cards
12 February 2013 by Leave a Comment
If you were involved in British politics in the late 80s and early 90s then you couldn’t fail to be hooked on the TV adaptation of the Michael Dobbs novel House of Cards. Every political party member and amateur debater who thought they were being clever answered any question asked of them with “You might think that, I couldn’t possibly comment.”…
Miracle on 34th Street (1994)
20 December 2011 by 1 Comment
Last week I wrote about my favourite movie Santas and as usual I ranked my top ten in alphabetical order. Had I ranked in order of preference there would have been no problem at all in choosing my number one…
Is a good remake possible?
16 September 2011 by 1 Comment
When I was mooching around the stands at Empire Big Screen a few weeks ago, I watched the trailer for the remake of Footloose. I honestly didn’t know whether to laugh or cry….
Fright Night (2011)
3 September 2011 by 4 Comments
I’ve never been a big fan of horror movies – I never seem to find that they scare me very much. I’ll have the occasional jump or squeal followed by a nervous giggle but no more than that….
Dirty Dancing to be remade? Whhhhhhhhhy?
10 August 2011 by Leave a Comment
I’m very unhappy with the news that a remake of Dirty Dancing is in the pipeline. Original choreographer Kenny Ortega has been signed up to direct the remake which is bound to be an absolute disaster. Why do studios feel the need to remake classic films instead of developing new ideas? Jennifer Grey’s old nose will be spinning in its grave.
Trading Places
4 August 2011 by 2 Comments
An 80s classic to be treasured – not remade with the latest floppy haired teen idol
One of the most well-worn clichés in life is that you know you are getting old when policemen look young. Cliché or not, it’s certainly true. Another sure-fire sign is when you remember chart songs from the first time round and tut angrily at the horrendous cover versions. Yes Black-Eyed Peas I’m looking at you… I know I’m getting old because I’m dreading the inevitable remakes of my favourite 80s and 90s films. There’s a spate of remakes already released including The Karate Kid, Nightmare on Elm Street and Arthur. Others are still only rumours or are stuck in the development stage including Footloose, Overboard and Top Gun. The very thought of some of these new films makes a little bit of my soul die, however it has got me considering my favourite films and how I would feel about any potential remakes.
I’m passionately attached to films and hate the idea of spoiling the magic. I won’t watch It’s A Wonderful Life in colour, I refuse to see the “sequel” to Dirty Dancing – Havana Nights or go to see the apparently brilliant stage version. The thought of a CGI Gizmo in a 3D remake of Gremlins is enough to keep me awake at night sobbing. I think, though, the film I would be most upset to see a remake of is the 1983 John Landis classic Trading Places. Let’s face it though, it’s probably ripe to be remade, particularly in light of all the financial shenanigans going on at the moment. We’d easily believe that a couple of bankers (or brokers, they’re all the same anyway) would be evil enough to wreck the lives of a pair of innocents just for fun.