Please -- Stop Remaking the Classics!

Whatever happened to originality?

Why does Hollywood – and the TV industry – keep making remakes of what’s already been done?

And usually done to perfection.

I read recently there are new remake movies and others being planned and I just have to ask myself: WHY??

Hey, I like Jake Gyllenhaal, but did we really need a remake of Roadhouse? Didn’t the late Patrick Swayze nail that role in the original movie?

To me, it’s almost a diss of Swayze’s memory to do virtually the same movie with a new actor. 

But Roadhouse, while a great action movie, is not a bonafide classic film (although some may disagree).

However, I recently learned that moves are afoot to do remakes of The Wizard of Oz and It’s a Wonderful Life. 

OMG.

First, let’s get The Wiz out of the way, another movie of that wonderful story with the late Michael Jackson and a black cast. I understand the reasoning behind that, as there were ZERO black actors in the original with the late Judy Garland and company.

Black people, watching that classic over the years, probably did feel a bit left out of the cultural mainstream (as they surely often do) watching an all-white movie. And Jackson did bring a lot of charm and talent to his role.

But I hope all people of goodwill can agree that the original Wizard of Oz is not racist at all and is simply a sweet retelling of an American classic. And over time it has become embedded in the fabric of our culture.

So why would we need to see another Wizard of Oz production? Cooler special effects? A scarier witch? Better Flying Monkeys?

Certainly the songs of that movie could never be surpassed.

And another film classic, It’s a Wonderful Life, is also being eyed for a do-over. 

Are you kidding me? That movie, to most people, embodies the spirit of Christmas, and the late Jimmy Stewart and all the other “lates” who made that incredible 1946 film were simply fantastic in their roles.

So again: WHY???

To me, The Wizard of Oz and It’s a Wonderful Life are almost sacred parts of Americana. Their simple goodheartedness imparts lessons on how to be a good person – lessons that are timeless no matter when you were born.

I’m old, but even I was born after both of those films were made and probably in my teens before they invaded my consciousness. But I’ve loved them ever since, and I never needed a remake that was somehow more hip or modern or with better special effects to connect with me.

Is it just laziness on the part of Hollywood and TV writers that results in so many remakes? Or producers just not wanting to take a chance on something original that might not click with audiences?

Don’t get me wrong: Good, original movies and TV shows are still being made – thank goodness – but again: Why so many remakes?

And don’t get me started on the endless Star Wars and Fast and Furious and John Wick and Marvel superhero films, etc., etc.

But hey: We, the movie-going and TV-subscribing public, will just keep getting variations of the Same Old Thing — and Unnecessary Remakes – as long as we keep shelling out our hard-earned bucks to see them.