Creativity vs Commercialism

Grievance: Remakes and shameless cash grabs

The guide on how to turn a classic to garbage

They say Hollywood is out of ideas.  I say Hollywood is now dumpster diving trying to create updates to classic films and rehash the same popcorn fluff we can watch at home for less money.  And the worst thing about this is the general public is okay with this.  "I just want to watch a film and turn off my brain" or "I just want to see something explode" and who can forget the classic, "I just want to see cool special effects!" Okay I get it I watch action movies and when they try to add a 'plot' instead of going straight to the explosions it confuses the hell out of me too.  But that's just it, even the most bland action flick has something in their besides explosions and special effects: There is a story idea in there.  Nowadays all the studios want to do is rehash the same story over and over to get people to fork over their cash for the same movie they saw a year or so back, I'm looking at you Hangover 2!  Then there is the remakes like the utter piece of filth I put a picture of here.  The remake of the Day the Earth Stood Still was atrocious.  The acting was horrible, the plot made no fucking sense, and the only thing I took away from it was that yes Keanu Reeves does act like an extraterrestrial all the bloody time.

Praise: Crafting a good story the first time around

How to update a classic into something more

And yet someone manages to get it right.  Why?  Because they have a good solid story first and then they make a movie out of it.  They don't use special effects as the be all, catch all of the flick; It enhances the story, gives it a little flavor, just enough to suspend your disbelief.  The above film is a sequel to a popular animated TV series in Japan that was released worldwide.  It was a smash hit and fans loved it.  Not because it retold the same story but because it updated it, choose a different theme, had characters with flaws not caricatures, wonderful special effects that didn't steal the show and most important of all a DAMN GOOD STORY!  Seriously go rent this video if you can, it's freaking awesome.  Now I understand why Hollywood wouldn't make this type of flick; the producers want sure bets, but if you don't push the boundaries your industry stagnates.  And stagnation just makes you stink.