OT: "Red Dawn" To Be Remade

[Littlearmies]

Is this sacrilegious or what? Taking a classic teen movie of the late Eighties and remaking it twenty years later - and to what purpose?

http://www.getthebigpicture.net/blog...wn-remake.html

I first saw this on the BBC today where they were saying Tom Cruise's adopted kid was going to be playing one of the teens and it was going to be a Chinese / Russian co-invasion. I'm slightly mollified that the guy who wrote Michael Clayton has been hired as the writer (but who knows what the director will do with his script?).

Evidently they also plan to do Robocop. What happened to the days when studios produced original entertainment (or at least only ripped off foreign language movies that nobody had ever watched)?

[pmulcahy11b]

Well, I do think that China is the superpower of the future. But I've also long thought that Hollywood has run out of ideas.

[cavtroop]

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOoooooooooooooooooooooOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOo!!!!

[copeab]

Originally Posted by Littlearmies

What happened to the days when studios produced original entertainment (or at least only ripped off foreign language movies that nobody had ever watched)?

I'll point out here that the Bogart version of _The Maltese Falcon_ was the *third* film version of the novel. Would we be better off if they had never made it?

[copeab]

Originally Posted by pmulcahy11b

Well, I do think that China is the superpower of the future. But I've also long thought that Hollywood has run out of ideas.

I have no problem with a movie being remade if there are better ideas in it than the original. For example, John Carpenter's _The Thing_ was far superior to the original.

[pmulcahy11b]

How about making a movie from Heinlein's book Starship Troopers? That "movie they called Starship Troopers but wasn't and sucked" just didn't cut the mustard.

[Legbreaker]

Meh, it was a worth a laugh.

Or worth laughing at, take your pick.

[Littlearmies]

Originally Posted by pmulcahy11b

How about making a movie from Heinlein's book Starship Troopers? That "movie they called Starship Troopers but wasn't and sucked" just didn't cut the mustard.

I'd second that - where was the powered armour? Starship Troopers must rank as one of the crappiest adaptations I've seen.

[boogiedowndonovan]

Littlearmies, you beat me to it.

Tom Cruise's son is going to play the C. Thomas Howell character.

http://movies.yahoo.com/news/movies....remake-reuters

Wikipedia says there are talks with Kurt Russell to be a part of the remake.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Dawn#Remake

Who might he play? Lt. Col. Andrew Tanner? or Tom Eckert?

my most favorite dialogue from the original

Jed Eckert: ...Well, who *is* on our side?
Col. Andy Tanner: Six hundred million screaming Chinamen.
Darryl Bates: Last I heard, there were a billion screaming Chinamen.
Col. Andy Tanner: There *were*.
[he throws whiskey on the fire; it ignites violently, suggesting a nuclear explosion]


Guess that dialogue won't make it to the remake.

-bdd

[pmulcahy11b]

Originally Posted by Littlearmies

I'd second that - where was the powered armour? Starship Troopers must rank as one of the crappiest adaptations I've seen.

Today, the troops in powered armor would be easy to do with CGI, even on a limited budget. Back then, they just put out a cheap movie and got what they paid for. And they threw out most of the back story. I can't believe Heinlein's estate allowed them to put out that crap.

[Targan]

I'm looking forward to the remake of Red Dawn.

[natehale1971]

Originally Posted by pmulcahy11b

Today, the troops in powered armor would be easy to do with CGI, even on a limited budget. Back then, they just put out a cheap movie and got what they paid for. And they threw out most of the back story. I can't believe Heinlein's estate allowed them to put out that crap.

Don't get me started on that one... Heinlein's estate approved a movie to be made, but didn't enforce creative control. Thus the fact that the writer, producer and director stated they made the movie the way they did on purpose because they considered Heinlein a facist was over looked by everyone when it was in the starlog article when the movie came out.

[Targan]

Meh, I'm more interested in them making a movie version of The Forever War anyway. A better book than Starship Troopers IMO. If they stuffed up a film version of The Forever War I'd be really mad.

[kato13]

Originally Posted by Targan

Meh, I'm more interested in them making a movie version of The Forever War anyway. A better book than Starship Troopers IMO. If they stuffed up a film version of The Forever War I'd be really mad.

Quick look online says that Ridley Scott (Alien, Blade Runner, Gladiator, Black Hawk down) is attached to direct a 2011 "Forever War" release.

[natehale1971]

you know... it would have been better in the remake to have changed it from being the chinese on our side, to being the russians.... but that is just my own werid idea of irony

[Legbreaker]

Forever war would be an AWESOME movie.

Provided it's done right....

[copeab]

Originally Posted by Legbreaker

Forever war would be an AWESOME movie.

Provided it's done right....

Vampire$ should have been an awesome movie ...

[Targan]

Originally Posted by kato13

Quick look online says that Ridley Scott (Alien, Blade Runner, Gladiator, Black Hawk down) is attached to direct a 2011 "Forever War" release.

Excellent. I enjoyed all four of those films.

[Ed the Coastie]

I remember seeing Red Dawn while on Liberty Weekend in Boot Camp. (I also saw Ghostbusters, Condorman, and Yentl -- don't ask -- that same weekend.) It has long been one of my favorite movies.

I'm not sure that a remake would really have the same impact today as it did 25 years ago. We now live in a society that all-but demonizes the mere access to a firearm, much less teaching our children how to actually use such an "evil thing". To show a group of high school students who not only have access to and know how to use guns but who are also willing to do so against other human beings -- and yet keep from portraying them as a group of psychopathic juvenile delinquents -- is almost asking too much of the hankie-wringers who seem to be infesting Hollywood these days.

On the other tentacle, I would happily go see a true movie adaptation of Starship Troopers...I have nothing against the existing movie nor the "Roughnecks" animated series, but neither of them match very closely the way the book played out in my mind. I also second (or third or whatever) the suggestion of a movie made of The Forever War. For that matter, I would love to see movies of Old Man's War and any of the Falkenberg's Legion books. (I was given a copy of West of Honor as a commissioning present, and have carried it with me ever since.)

[Darksheer]

Originally Posted by Ed the Coastie

I'm not sure that a remake would really have the same impact today as it did 25 years ago. We now live in a society that all-but demonizes the mere access to a firearm, much less teaching our children how to actually use such an "evil thing". To show a group of high school students who not only have access to and know how to use guns but who are also willing to do so against other human beings -- and yet keep from portraying them as a group of psychopathic juvenile delinquents -- is almost asking too much of the hankie-wringers who seem to be infesting Hollywood these days.

I can honestly see them changing it completely and turn them into a bunch of computer hackers/sabotours that only attack people with stunguns/whiffle/nerfbats and unplug electric cars or make the toilets overflow
and in the end when they are all captured unharmed they will be sent to a nice camp where they get told they did a bad thing

on a side note the bad guys might have guns

[Raellus]

Originally Posted by natehale1971

Don't get me started on that one... Heinlein's estate approved a movie to be made, but didn't enforce creative control. Thus the fact that the writer, producer and director stated they made the movie the way they did on purpose because they considered Heinlein a facist was over looked by everyone when it was in the starlog article when the movie came out.

I read recently (can't remember where) that the director of STT hadn't even finished the book when he started making the movie. I'm not sure if he ever did.

I actually kind of dug the "Roughnecks" animated STT series.

Loved the Forever War. I'm not sure it would translate to film, though and I'm not sure Ridley's the director to try it.

Condorman? Loved it as a little kid; watched it again a few years ago... Sheesh! It did not hold up at all.

How can they remake Red Dawn? If the Chinese are the main baddies, lot's of folks are going to scream RACISM! (and, perhaps, rightly so).

[pmulcahy11b]

Originally Posted by Raellus

How can they remake Red Dawn? If the Chinese are the main baddies, lot's of folks are going to scream RACISM! (and, perhaps, rightly so).

Right now in the US, it doesn't matter what you do or say -- someone's going to scream RACISM!

[weswood]

Originally Posted by pmulcahy11b

Right now in the US, it doesn't matter what you do or say -- someone's going to scream RACISM!

Roger that. "Oh, you don't like the President's plan for XXXXXXX? You racist!"

[Legbreaker]

Originally Posted by pmulcahy11b

Right now in the US, it doesn't matter what you do or say -- someone's going to scream RACISM!

"That kid bought a chocolate icecream instead of caramel!"
"Racist! Burn him!"

[kato13]

I personally feel that the "Racism" card pendulum is swinging to the point where it exceeds actual cases of blatant/apparent racism (I have no idea how prevalent sub/semi conscious racism is). To be honest I hate that the word racism has been diluted to such a degree it has almost become useless. I really don't like it being used when "prejudiced" is really the proper term for most cases.

A variation happened to word Rape. It became sexual assault. And now when a eight year old boy kisses a classmate it can be classified by the same term. That is really inane.

Harsh words with bite used to have a clear definition, now the waters have been muddied so people can make something appear more significant than it is. That is a shame.

[kato13]

Getting back on topic

Red Dawn Imdb page
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1234719/

Ugh. This the directors first movie. Though he was the stunt coordinator/second unit director for two the Bourne Movies and three kings.

Interesting the first two leads are Australian.

[pmulcahy11b]

Originally Posted by kato13

Getting back on topic

Red Dawn Imdb page
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1234719/

Ugh. This the directors first movie. Though he was the stunt coordinator/second unit director for two the Bourne Movies and three kings.

Interesting the first two leads are Australian.

I'm getting behind on the times. I have no idea who any of those people are!

[Matt Wiser]

Red Dawn remake!? Sacrilege! Heresy! Who do they think they are? But I'll probably see it anyway, just to compare the two versions.

[Targan]

Originally Posted by kato13

Interesting the first two leads are Australian.

Well that changes everything. If there are Australians involved its bound to be awesome.

Bias? Of course not, why would you suggest such a thing?

[copeab]

Originally Posted by Targan

Well that changes everything. If there are Australians involved its bound to be awesome.

What if one of the Australians was Yahoo Serious?