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THE FOG Remake (1 Viewer)

Joe Karlosi

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HALLOWEEN? Oh, it will happen - I'd bet on that. I wonder if the moviegoers who are generally permissive about remakes would draw the line there...?
 

Jordan_E

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I doubt it. I've posted at another place about HALLOWEEN and you wouldn't believe how many don't think that the movie is "scary" or that they believe it's complete "shit." Of course, these people also liked 'running zombies' and thought DotD remake was superior to the original. :rolleyes
 

Kevin M

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It's a strange idea since ,whether or not they like older films or not, most people know Halloween quite well...what would the point be...aah yes...$


Perhaps I said all I needed to say in my first thread......whatever, man.
 

Rex Bachmann

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Matt Butler wrote (post #10):


Is that a "remake" of the remake (1988), or a "remake" of the original (1958)?
 

Russell B

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^^^1958

The Hollywood Reporter writes:
With several remakes under his belt, producer Scott Rudin is turning his attention to the 1958 B-movie "The Blob" for Paramount Pictures. The Paramount-based producer whose recent credits include "The Manchurian Candidate" and "The Stepford Wives" remakes will produce the feature along with Jack Harris, who produced the original film. Judith Harris will serve as an associate producer. Starring Steve McQueen, the campy cult classic followed a mysterious creature from another planet that resembled a giant blob of jelly and went on a path of destruction as it grew bigger. The horror/sci-fi movie was remade in 1988 with Chuck Russell at the helm. Paramount has fast become the home of the redo, with other remakes in the works including "The Last Holiday" with Queen Latifah, "A New Leaf" with Barry Sonnenfeld and "The Naked Jungle" with Jonathan Hensleigh.
 

GeorgePaul

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Personally, I think it's incredibly chilling. The "pirate leper people" (as my g/f calls them), Father Malone, Carpenter's freaky synth music and the whole creepy mood of the film in the cinematography got in my little kiddie brain at age four and stayed there.

The Fog is my favorite John Carpenter film. Period.
 

GeorgePaul

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Well, beyond what I posted earlier in this thread, I'm ambivalent about this release, honestly--as I think John Carpenter and most of America is about remakes in general anymore (Demme's Manchurian Candidate came and went last summer with hardly a complaint).

Now that I'm older, I can see room for improvement on the original in terms of its storyline and character development, but how often do you actually SEE that improvement in a Hollywood remake? The majority of big studio films lost respect for their writers about a half-decade back, and they show no sign of finding their way now, IMHO.

Even in 1979, John Carpenter wished to just make an old-fashioned ghost story, but Avco/Embassy was pressuring him to up the gore in the film (in fact, most of the shots that gave The Fog its R rating were covered in re-shoots).

More likely, as Kevin brilliantly observed, Revolution Studios will pressure whoever the director is to pump up the CGI at the expense of dialogue (especially if the test screenings go badly), if that wasn't said director's intention already. I don't even like to get my hopes up for remakes anymore because 9 out of 10 of them succumb to this pressure--plus, they make me all the more angry at Hollywood for not greenlighting more original ideas for wide release.
 

Winston T. Boogie

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I think remakes like this are for a new generation of film goers. The Fog was made in the late 70's and many of us, including me, loved it when we saw it back then but it is not what a younger audience expects. Sure some may find it a classic and enjoy what it has to offer but others will find it slow and dull. The idea when a company decides to make a horror film these days is to reach out to the broadest possible audience. A remake will snag the fans of the original along with a new generation of fans. It's safer to do a remake than to attempt an original and companies want to make money on the picture, they don't want to take a risk with a horror film. Remakes are a safer investment, that's the bottom line.

I don't think a remake of The Fog will be as good as the original but I'm a fan of the original. It's a beautifully shot film. I don't think a second try will even come close.
 

Joe Karlosi

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I think what needs to happen is for newer moviegoers to gain some sophistication and learn to appreciate and respect older films. And by "older" I'm not talking about films as recent as the 1970s -- I'm talking about going back to the 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s ....
 

Robert Ringwald

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You'd be surprised. As an 18 year old, I notice many of my peers considering films from 1999 as "old." Most haven't even heard of the original Dawn of the Dead, let alone seen it. It's depressing.

I personally feel that THE FOG is a fantastic film, and don't really want a remake of it...

I think the concept would work as another film, but wouldn't really like it.

I suppose with Debra Hill and John Carpenter behind it as producers it MIGHT have a chance of not sucking, but I wouldn't count on it.

Halloween, unfortunately, does not seem like a film that could be remade. The whole essence of that movie lies in the 1970's idealistic suburban life. I can't imagine it working in 2005+.

I would much rather see more original ideas come out of hollywood too.

The scary part of all of this is that most of these remakes aren't going to be failing at the box office. Sequels to them maybe not... but the whole "rip-off" aspect is lost on these films. The japanese horror film remakes will get old, the slasher craze of the 80's, etc. etc.

The remakes, by not following a formula other than updating an older film.... audiences won't feel like it's OVERKILL... which is a problem.
 

Joe Karlosi

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Yes, but that's how I feel about many remakes. Something like KING KONG (1933) is distinctly the 1930s. Now, Peter Jackson's going to re-re-make the film, and set it back in 1930s America. But what better way to fully capture the whole feel of those times by watching the original 1933 classic - which was ACTUALLY MADE in those times?
 

GeorgePaul

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Others will argue that there have always been remakes, which of course is undeniable. They've usually been under different names, though, and the writers have gone in different directions altogether than the original stories did.

What we usually get with remakes now are CGI re-hashes of the same movies (minus much of the suspense and acting talent). I hope that The Fog will be different. I severely doubt it, though.
 

Matt Stone

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I just watched the Dawn of the Dead remake and The Ring last night, and I'll be watching John Carpenter's The Thing tonight. I love them all. They may skew The Fog toward CGI, and that would be a shame, but remakes aren't inherently bad.

If you don't want to go see it, don't go see it. I still think by-the-book rom-coms and lazy action movies are a much bigger problem than remakes. But, I'm not going to limit myself by being prejudged toward a genre.
 

Seth Paxton

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Yet I wonder if you ever bother to differentiate which version of The Maltese Falcon you have in mind, or even Ben-Hur. And Falcon is a particularly good example because the previous version was far from memorable and just about any film buff would hate to think that someone wouldn't have made the Bogart version just because it had already been done 10 years earlier. I imagine that in '41 there was some fan of the original that thought that even though it came off with the public like a forgettable B-picture it should be left untouched in its greatness. IMO its a damn good thing that person wasn't listened to then.

You can always not watch a bad film, but good films are hard to come by and any chance there is of that happening should be promoted. That's not to say that I won't worry about what sounds like bad casting/crew for a film, and if it takes resources from another project I think sounds good it will trouble me. But in the end I would still rather have the next Bay film or Oh God remake be outstanding than bad.


And needless to say there is little point in me going into the endless versions of various Shakesperian based films. Would Throne of Blood really be unbearable were it named Macbeth?

I for one love the idea that there are 2 great versions of Invasion of the Body Snatchers or DotDead.

And I think Scott leaves the situation short by saying that they merely go for name recognition. Sometimes people just like the story, the music, the setting, whatever. After all Broadway enjoys endless revivals rather than only featuring new creations every season or two. A big reason for that is that actors, directors, etc LIKE THE MATERIAL and want to take their own shot at it.

Let's be honest here, films have a very short box office shelf life, even something like Star Wars, in comparison to Broadway or albums or books. 20 years is a long time in the world of film, except to film buffs.

Since film is an art for the masses too, it seems natural that people like to have another go with a story 10-20 years later. Sometimes they see things they could improve, other times they see a chance for a new angle, and still other times they just really like the material.

IMO, Manch. Candidate didn't really try to "fix" the old one, it just gave the team their own shot at a great story.


And somehow I have a feeling that if they did just remake the story under a different title, the same people bitching here would still be bitching...or did you all give Barb Wire a free pass as a Casablanca remake because they changed the name AND the scenario?
 

Jordan_E

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I wouldn't go as far as calling the DotD remake great. I thought it was decent the first time I saw it, but watching it again on DVD...it didn't hold up for me. :thumbsdown:
 

Joe Karlosi

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Yes, I'd still bitch - you can bet on it. But I'm just as tired of people who bitch about people bitching. A lot of film fans do not like this remake epidemic, and that's that.

But with the title change, at least it would be less offensive to me, and that's better. I haven't seen BARB WIRE, so I don't know if you're being serious or not... but if it's truly based on CASABLANCA, I'm glad they did change the title.
 

Joe Karlosi

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You mean "remake" is now a genre? See -- I told you it was bigger than ever, Seth! :)

I watch all types of films, from each decade between 1910 to 2004. I see silents, black and white, color, CGI, western, horror, biblical, classic, Grade Z Trash, War, Noir, Chick Flicks, Romance, Smut, Slasher, you name it.
However, I'm done with remakes. It's just a personal decision and a stand I'm taking from now on. I don't think I'm "limiting" myself by not seeing a new remake, but I think most moviegoers are limiting themselves by only watching the new rehashed stuff they're spoon-fed, and not seeking out older and different genres.
 

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