Hollywood is bombarding us this summer with lots of sequels and remakes, such as "Iron Man 2," "Sex and the City 2," "Toy Story 3," "Shrek 4," and "The Karate Kid," among others. Whatever happened to creativity and originality in films?
Have Your Say ( 47 )
Order by Time Order by Popularity
47 Comments
Login to comment
0
Tosaken
There is nothing on offer that could be seen as a good book to read, so I suppose this means that Hollywood know what they are doing, showing pictures to the semi literate and making money. CAD was a god send to Hollywood, more bangs to the buck equals a high rate of return.
0
ChrisBiggins
I like the old Ealing comedies ,they are funny and sad at the same time,sometimes you are laughing and sometimes you cry. Those classics aremuch better tha these siily special effects films with ghastly stories and hideous over acting,yucky wucky!!
0
Tosaken
Ealing comedies were the same film in different costumes what was there to like about something that silly? Hollywood might have dipped its toe in film as art but it will always go back to what it does best, rubbish that makes money. If Hollywood can’t find new film material it means nobody in the world can be doing much either, because anything good Hollywood does come up with is normally a copycat idea they have taken from a foreign film.
0
ChrisBiggins
Tosaken, When Hollywood can make something as lovely as A Passport To pimlico i may agree, but they have not and cannot,it is all silly star appeal and spcail effects,yawn!!! I yearn for the days of Stanley baxter, Kenneth Williams and Sid James.
0
Tosaken
A Passport To pimlico was not one of the Ealing comedies. It belongs to a better period of film. Even Hollywood was making a few good films at that time. get some focus rather than rambling away about old films. Ther are good new films, they just are not made by either Britain or America.
0
gaijinfo
Creativity and originality are just as alive as ever. Summer season is for blockbusters, no indies. Relax. There are just as many indies as there has always been. The movie industry needs to make money, they don't exist as a charity bring enlightenment to the masses. Making an original, creative movie is a huge financial risk.
If you really want to whine about the lack of originality in movies, make your own, or sign up for NETFLIX, or make an effort to go to a film festival once in a while.
That being said, of the movies mentioned, I plan on seeing Iron Man, and The Karate Kid, but not the the others. That's the beauty of capitalism. You can choose what you spend your money on.
0
Gurukun
I don't know, we should ask Rocky Balboa...
0
wtfftw
"Inception" by Christopher Nolan looks original. Planning to see that one in the theaters.
0
smartacus
Movie companies churn out sequels because they make money. It's that simple. Anyway, I think it must be very difficult to come up with an original story that has never been done before.
Having said that, I do think that the best writing is done in TV. Storylines in TV dramas and comedies have always been more original than movies, no matter how far you go back. I've been enjoying DVDs of programs from the 1960s and 1970s and their stories are far superior to most plots of movies ("Mission: Impossible," "Twilight Zone," for example).
0
cnc
I guess we all miss Will Smith this summer. and on a side note I've given up on the cinema to provide me with entertainment anymore. everything and all the stories are extensions of something we've already seen and experienced. Now it seems that movie-making is all about how much money a new release can rake in. And we have Apple bullying them all.
0
cnc
to smartacus, I agree, even current tv shows like two and a half men, fringe, even spartacus had me hooked on for the season.
0
whiskeysour
I will watch Iron Man 2 "Toy Story 3 hopefully in Engrish", Karate Kid "in China", & Inception.
Iron Man 2 was ok !!! But Samuel L. Jackson turned it to pulp fiction when talking in the diner/restaurant !!!
0
ratpack
Gee I don't know!! Suppose we should ask the makers of the endless Godzilla flicks.
0
farcus
Hollywood has never been very creative - it is all about the money and the lowest common denominator. Mos of the creative movies come from sources other than Hollywood
0
TSRnow
They might as well put "To be continued" on the end scroll like Back to the Future 2.
I would like to see The Karate Kid when it comes out in DVD... I used to like Jackie Chan. I heard he's playing Pat Morita's role.
0
Monkeyz
I don't mind sequels, especially if it's a story I'm interested in. There's nothing unoriginal about a sequel, unless it's an obvious cash grab (Shrek Shrek Shrek). I do mind remakes. Unless a movie is seriously old, there's no reason to remake it. Karate Kid isn't THAT old. And if you remake it, it had better be significantly better than the original. Which is why you usually need to make sure the original is really, really, really old.
0
cracaphat
Just run out of new ideas.The same with music.I listen to my old stuff,cuz today's music is just noise. Sequels are to make money with a familiar name.
0
ChrisBiggins
Toasken, A Passport To Pimlico was an Ealing comedy mmde in 1949, ok!!!
0
Sarge
When are they going to make an I Dream of Jeannie movie?
0
grafton
How about a “new” Star wars or a “new” Star trek? There must be something with the word “star” in the title or it wouldn’t be a Hollywood summer. There isn’t a thing in this list that is worth getting out of my chair for. But then that could be said about most everything that Hollywood has produced in a long, long time.
0
Sarge
Grafton - No worries, JJ Abrams is making a Star Trek sequel, possibly with an appearance by William Shatner, and most likely with another appearance by Leonard Nimoy. Chris Pine had better be Kirk, he's a great Kirk! And Zachary Quinto had better be Spock, he's a great Spock!
0
Tosaken
ChrisBiggins at 02:58 PM JST - 15th June
“Toasken, A Passport To Pimlico was an Ealing comedy mmde in 1949, ok!!!”
No it is not “ok”. It was a J.Arthur Rank film made at Ealing studios, but it was not an Ealing studios film. JAR used Ealing’s studios but they were different companies.
What you are calling Ealing comedy was made by the Rank Organisation and Peter Rogers Productions. OK!!!
0
ChrisBiggins
Tosaken, it was made in Ealing and is a comedy. Good enough for me pumpkin!
0
Pukey2
Can someone please explain to me why the new Karate Kid is so-called? It's set in China and, correct me if I'm wrong, the martial arts involved is kung-fu. Are Americans really that ignorant when it comes to distinguishing different Asian cultures?
I'm glad the film will be renamed Kung-Fu Kid in China. I see it'll be renamed 'Besto Kiddo' in Japan - not a very good name for the original film - we can't have foreigners associated with a Japanese word (albeit referring to an Okinawan martial arts).
Interesting to see the location/culture changing from Japan to China. A sign of the times?!
0
bobobolinski
Tosaken, you may be technically right about the production company, but the writers, director, cast and general style of the film are all part of what is generally recognized as an Ealing comedy.
Back on topic, there are loads of films that I would love to see, but due to the narrowness of Japanese distribution, it seems that unless it has Johnny Depp or Brad Pitt in it, it will not be released here for ages. For example, recently released British movies like Four Lions, Cemetery Junction, Centurion, The Disappearance of Alice Creed, Heartless, and several others. But you know we will get Robin Hood and that is all. Oh well, back to the torrents.
0
maxpower
Well with the money they are asking, indies are more risky, so it's not surprising really.
0
Zenny11
For me the originality and creativity LEFT Hollyweird many years ago.
Same for many US TV-Shows, quality actually picked up during the writers strike as they had to actually compete to sell scripts.
Hollywierd today is also too focused on special effects, latest technology gimmicks and spend too much money on those and hence the story/script sucks.
Just my view.
0
ca1ic0cat
All the original (but not too outrageous) stuff has been done before. Plus Hollywood needs profits - best to stick to tried-and-true formulas and not take risks.
0
Zenny11
Example.
Look at the Terminator Franchise.
Terminator 1 was low-budget but started the Franchise.
Terminator 2 Was a blockbuster and cemented Terminator(best movie so far, IMHO).
Terminator 3 Not going to mention that snooze fest.
Sarah Connor Chronicles started of decent but got weird later on, gret sfx to start than lost it.(money)
Terminator 4 Nice attemtpt but got ruined by how many SFX/CGI can we sell vs a story that the fans been wanting to see for years.
Granted there are still some good directors/producers that care more about delivering a quality product vs a super-hyped SFX/CGI Bonanza that has nothing with what they claim is the origina/inspiration.
Look at Speed Racer I had better trips on LSD.
0
ChrisBiggins
Old films are better by far. Now there has to be a scene or plot change every minute or so. ooooh, it really annoys me. I get sooooo cross. Bring back the old classics without beastly computer graphics.
stop rehashing old films or tv series. the Starsky and Hutch remake was beastly i almost cried it was an insukt to the 70,s classic.
0
Zenny11
Recent "Clash of the Titans" got me upset, give me the original anytime.
Original maybe dated but the effects for that time were top-spot, vs run-off-the-mill for the new one. Plus the original still looks good now and better than the remake, IMHO.
Could give more examples.
0
yanderei
The only novelty is the whole 3d shit they are adding to cinemas, which overprices tickets and destroys the yes... so yeah thats about the only creative side to making films nowadays... i prefer oldies myself, computer graphics are ok, but they are going a bit too far for my liking :P
0
Sarge
I hear Sylvester Stallone may make Rock 7, lol.
0
nisegaijin
Sequels make money! That's the golden rule. Besides, Hollywood ran out of ideas long time ago!
0
LostinNagoya
I second what was said above: if you want to see creativity and originality, then avoid blockbusters. Watch indie movies, youtube movies (there are a lot of great short movies done specifically for youtube, did you know that?), movies in other languages. There are a lot of talented directors/actors that just avoid Hollywood.
0
pamelot
Money changes everything.
0
ratpack
Wouldn't be because they were knocked back or ignored time and time again by any chance would it??? I bet if Hollywood came knocking they would be off like the road runner to sunny california.
0
my2sense
Canada.
0
Badge213
Karate Kid that has nothing to do with karate. I'm glad it will have different international titles.
Sex and the City 2, I never understood what was so great about these 4 not so good looking women who can't act.
Shrek 4, I didn't even know there was a Shrek 3.
Toy Story 3, probably a decent addition to the series.
Iron Man 2 , never saw 1 to comment.
0
delrennich
Sequels are fine. Looking forward to seeing Iron Man 2. Iron Man was a great movie. The problem is with remakes. Who wants to see a remake of "The Karate Kid" or a movie based on "The A Team" TV show from the 80s? Hollywood, for all its worth, does lack originality by embracing the remake. A very lame thing to do, I think.
That being said, Guy Ritchie's version of Sherlock Holmes was a great film.
0
ChrisBiggins
Guy Ritchies Sherlock Holmes was a vulgar insult to the character. The best one ever was the marvellous Jeremey Brett who lived and breathed the part, a true genius whom i had the great pleasure to meet before his sad passing away.
True artistes are overlooked, for shallow girls and boys for looks alone and to rehash old telly and films which by the looks of them are made for people with the attention span of a small child.
0
Sarge
When are they going to make Starship Troopers 4? I heard they actually made 2 and 3, incredible as that seems...
0
Newsman
"Creativity and Originality?" Who says sequels can't be creative and original? Seems to me Homer followed the Iliad with the Odyssey, and I that particular sequel did all right ...
0
TrentonGaijin
And let's not forget the remakes of old TV shows- "Charlie's Angels" (1 & 2) and now "The A-Team." I was thinking yesterday that maybe a remake of "The Rockford Files" is in order. Not sure who would play Jim Rockford (although he could drive the new Camaro), but James Garner could play Rocky....
0
Sarge
What I can't understand is why they haven't done a remake of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea or Time Tunnel ( Time Cop doesn't count ).
0
Sarge
Or Land of the Giants!
0
Fadamor
There are only so many plot lines you can explore and it appears they have all been done, now. Even the "non-sequels" have derivative plots (Avatar/Pocahontas, Lion King/Kimba the White Lion). What's coming out next? "The Last Airbender", a live-action cover of a TV anime title. The movie industry has apparently conceded they are out of ideas.
Back to top