Movie/TV remakes that suck :( (Originally about Picnic at Hanging Rock 2018)

Started by KyriakosCH, Mon 27/08/2018 23:38:10

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KyriakosCH

Natalie Dormer is gorgeous, obviously.
Still, this series is nothing short of an insult.
The 1975 film was very elegant, had excellent music, and atmosphere.
This tv series just has a cheap plot, and also seems to rely on some familiarity with the story if one is to make anything of it :/

1975 movie trailer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWqCHKtKPKI

2018 series trailer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=egTBRvl186s

This is almost as bad as the 2018 remake of Murder on the Orient Express (nod)
This is the Way - A dark allegory. My Twitter!  My Youtube!

Mandle

Let me guess what the main problem is:

They get really "clever" and subvert the plot and mood of the original movie to "surprise" and "delight" those who have seen it. This confuses viewers who haven't seen the original because they don't know what is being subverted so have no idea why the tone is so weird. And this enrages fans of the original because it feels like the makers are spitting on the source material at times.

Am I close?

This seems to me to be the biggest problem with the way remakes/reboots/reimaginings are handled these days.

I just recently rewatched "Sleepy Hollow" and, while in no way perfect, I thought it was a really good example of how to do a "reimagining" well. Fitting I suppose as it was Tim Burton who coined the term "reimagining" many years later with his pile-of-crap movies Alice In Wonderland and Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, which both do everything wrong I mentioned above.

KyriakosCH

#2
There are a few bad things in the new plot, eg:

-the headmistress (played by Natalie Dormer) is the center of the story
-the (main three) girls don't look like pupils; they look 25 or even near 30
-the girl who is the protagonist in the 1975 movie (Miranda) is entirely different character-wise
-a lot of boring/useless racial casting and homosexuality thrown in for no reason at all
-the fourth girl has an attitude out of 2018, not 1900 (well, others too, but her in particular...)
-the side actors/actresses play very poor versions of the roles in the 1975 film

Anyway, i watched two episodes (has six in total) but it already is derailed :)
Will watch the rest, cause i like Dormer a lot, and i liked the 1975 movie, but i expect it to become a lot worse.
This is the Way - A dark allegory. My Twitter!  My Youtube!

Stupot

I actually think we're in a golden age of remakes/reboots/reimaginings. Some of them, especially TV series based on old movies, are really really good. I haven't seen Picnic at Hanging Rock (not even the original) but I point to Bates Motel and Fargo as a prime example of great recent TV shows based on old films. I've also heard good things about The Exorcist and Ash Vs. Evil Dead TV shows though I havent seen them yet.

I'm currently watching Scream and I love it. It does a lot of subverting and surprising and delighting, but then that's what Scream always did, isn't it. This TV show is just real.

The high-school-kid-looking-25-30-years-old thing is basically what they do in TV and Films, right. For a start they have acting experience, and secondly I have a major crush on the lead actress of Scream, which would get me in a lot of trouble if she was actually the age of the character she's playing.

Mandle

Quote from: Stupot on Tue 28/08/2018 00:55:38
I actually think we're in a golden age of remakes/reboots/reimaginings. Some of them, especially TV series based on old movies, are really really good.

Yes, some are really good. But most aren't: The Exorcist, The Omen, Westworld, Emerald City, etc.

And usually the reasons why I feel the shows are bad are the ones I mentioned above.

Gurok

Quote from: Mandle on Tue 28/08/2018 03:52:58
Yes, some are really good. But most aren't: The Exorcist, The Omen, Westworld, Emerald City, etc.

The first season of Westworld was carried along by Anthony Hopkins, but I agree, beyond that it's utter garbage. It's what I like to affectionately call, low-budget Canadian sci-fi.
[img]http://7d4iqnx.gif;rWRLUuw.gi

Snarky

Quote from: KyriakosCH on Tue 28/08/2018 00:46:09
There are a few bad things in the new plot, eg:

-the headmistress (played by Natalie Dormer) is the center of the story

Well, that's from the book. The headmistress is the main viewpoint character.

Quote from: Gurok on Tue 28/08/2018 03:57:55
The first season of Westworld was carried along by Anthony Hopkins, but I agree, beyond that it's utter garbage. It's what I like to affectionately call, low-budget Canadian sci-fi.

There are many things you could call Westworld, but "low-budget"?

KyriakosCH

Hm, tbh the headmistress was a bit off (not presented clearly, intentions-wise) in the 1975 movie, so that she was the weak point there doesn't surprise me :)

Quote from: Gurok on Tue 28/08/2018 03:57:55

The first season of Westworld was carried along by Anthony Hopkins, but I agree, beyond that it's utter garbage. It's what I like to affectionately call, low-budget Canadian sci-fi.

The first season was certainly far better than the trainwreck second season, and i agree that Hopkins was very good :)
This is the Way - A dark allegory. My Twitter!  My Youtube!

Gurok

Quote from: Snarky on Tue 28/08/2018 06:16:03
Quote from: Gurok on Tue 28/08/2018 03:57:55
The first season of Westworld was carried along by Anthony Hopkins, but I agree, beyond that it's utter garbage. It's what I like to affectionately call, low-budget Canadian sci-fi.

There are many things you could call Westworld, but "low-budget"?

I was referring to season 2 here. Typically in shows like Travelers, there's a tendency to tell rather than show the action (because that's cheaper, I'm guessing). It's also possible the writing took a dip. Westwood went from robots and debauchery to long walks along the beach and no real pay-off in sight. It was draining to watch.
[img]http://7d4iqnx.gif;rWRLUuw.gi

Mandle

Quote from: Gurok on Tue 28/08/2018 10:31:51
no real pay-off in sight. It was draining to watch.

That's pretty much the way I felt about the first season. I could see them falling into the trap that Lost set for itself: piling mystery upon mystery until the point where the viewer starts to suspect that there aren't going to be many actual answers, only fan-theories on the internet, which is what some shows seem to be aiming for/counting on these days.

Also: too many set-ups that something is actually going to happen which turn out to be fake-outs.

KyriakosCH

#10
Quote from: Mandle on Tue 28/08/2018 11:05:23
Quote from: Gurok on Tue 28/08/2018 10:31:51
no real pay-off in sight. It was draining to watch.

That's pretty much the way I felt about the first season. I could see them falling into the trap that Lost set for itself: piling mystery upon mystery until the point where the viewer starts to suspect that there aren't going to be many actual answers, only fan-theories on the internet, which is what some shows seem to be aiming for/counting on these days.

Also: too many set-ups that something is actually going to happen which turn out to be fake-outs.

It was pretty obvious that Westword S2 had a ridiculous plot, and relied on fans supposedly filling in gaps. The problem was that it couldn't be salvaged by gap filling, cause a far worse issue was what plot was made certain; and that simply could not stand. Too many reveals (with no explanation as to how it was done; just that it exists in the show mythology) that were at the same time deus ex machina AND contributing to a more convoluted story.
Also, imo the main plot already had a vast issue since Season1, with AI presented as being possible without the use of DNA (ie pure AI, not some DNA tied to a machine).
This is the Way - A dark allegory. My Twitter!  My Youtube!

Mandle

Maybe, KyriakosCH, change the thread name to "TV series that sucked, or didn't?" or something like that because I think people have a lot to say about such stuff beyond PAHR

KyriakosCH

Quote from: Mandle on Tue 28/08/2018 18:42:44
Maybe, KyriakosCH, change the thread name to "TV series that sucked, or didn't?" or something like that because I think people have a lot to say about such stuff beyond PAHR

Done :)
Read the thing that shall not be named (laugh)
This is the Way - A dark allegory. My Twitter!  My Youtube!

Kweepa

Quote from: Gurok on Tue 28/08/2018 03:57:55
It's what I like to affectionately call, low-budget Canadian sci-fi.
I love a lot of the recent Canadian sci-fi shows - Haven, Continuum, Orphan Black, Dark Matter, The Expanse, Killjoys, Van Helsing, Wynonna Earp. My wife even enjoys half of them...
Still waiting for Purity of the Surf II

Danvzare

Quote from: Kweepa on Tue 28/08/2018 22:20:36
Quote from: Gurok on Tue 28/08/2018 03:57:55
It's what I like to affectionately call, low-budget Canadian sci-fi.
I love a lot of the recent Canadian sci-fi shows - Haven, Continuum, Orphan Black, Dark Matter, The Expanse, Killjoys, Van Helsing, Wynonna Earp. My wife even enjoys half of them...
Same here. I've been enjoying those shows immensely. And I'm going to have to put a few of those you listed onto my To-Watch list. :-D

Blondbraid

When it comes to bad remakes, what irks me the most is when a good movie or TV series gets an either pointless or even downright bad remake in English just because people think Americans are too lazy to read subtitles.
As a Swede it frustrates me to no end to see The girl with the Dragon tattoo, Let the right one in, Real Humans and Wallander get unnecessary remakes that adds nothing to the original, or files away all the unique bits deemed unpalatable to english and american audiences just for the sake of a cheap cash grab, rather than just subtitling or dubbing the original and let people see something from a different country than their own.


VampireWombat

The irony with The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo being that the trilogy does have an English dub.
The problem isn't just that it's thought Americans are too lazy to read subtitles, but also that a movie can only make money if it has a big name attached to it.

Blondbraid

Quote from: VampireWombat on Wed 29/08/2018 13:04:38
The problem isn't just that it's thought Americans are too lazy to read subtitles, but also that a movie can only make money if it has a big name attached to it.
Though Noomi Rapace does have a reasonably good Hollywood career too, appearing in big franchises like Prometheus and Sherlock Holmes.


VampireWombat

Quote from: Blondbraid on Wed 29/08/2018 13:25:51
Though Noomi Rapace does have a reasonably good Hollywood career too, appearing in big franchises like Prometheus and Sherlock Holmes.
Well, it's not like the remake was using Rooney Mara's name to fill seats. That was all on Daniel Craig.
Not that his name was enough to do The Golden Compass any favors...

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