Entertainment: Everything Old Is New Again

If you are a forty-something or older, you have probably noticed that many of your favorite movies from the late 1970s and the 1980s are back with a revenge as reboots. It’s not that Hollywood is out of ideas, it’s just that the Tinseltown Powers That Be love proven winners and will try to copy any format or film that shows box office potential. That may be why we have seen classic films like Conan The Barbarian, Fright Night, Rocky (Balboa) and Batman (The Dark Knight series) remade for 21st Century audiences.

Not all of these projects have been successful. The new Conan The Barbarian was a complete flop at the box office without Arnold, but fear not! Arnold Schwarzenegger has just signed to play the Barbarian in yet another reboot which could be completed as soon as next year. While the new Fright Night barely even broke even, other reboots have done very well like Rocky Balboa which brought in over $155 million at the box office with the real Rocky (Sylvester Stallone) in the starring role. Expect many more reboots to come with projects like a new Highlander film and the latest new version of the Star Trek franchise in the works.

Back to entertain us again are new versions of Footloose, Red Dawn, Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark and even War Games. Considering the surprising success of The Karate Kid (even if it was China instead of Japan and King Fu instead of Karate), it’s no wonder that films like Carrie, Summer School, Terminator, Poltergeist, Overboard, Porky’s, Drop Dead Fred, Soap Dish, The Never Ending Story, Police Academy,Three Men and A Baby, Heathers, Tootsie, The Wild Bunch and Honey I Shrunk The Kids will soon be showing as reboots in a theater near you.

The real question is how audiences will react to new versions of almost sacredly iconic films like The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, Back To The Future, A Christmas Story, E.T. The Extraterrestrial, Raging Bull, Star Wars and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off? My guess is that folks under forty will either be entertained or bored out of their heads, while everyone over that age will dislike seeing such treasured stories try to be retold.

Movies are not the only game in town when it comes to bringing back the past. TV has already tried to resurrect Charlie’s Angels with very disappointing results. Most who watched the brief run of that series agree that the story line just strayed too far from the original series and that the casting choices were questionable. The new Bionic Woman, Night Stalker, V and a Knight Rider reboot also tanked. To have a really successful reboot, you have to copy and update, but never seriously change the original formula. The new Dallas is a good case in point.

That reboot is a ratings winner and a fun trip back to the South Fork ranch. It’s good to see members of the old gang fighting and feuding all over again, along with some new ones. The new versions of Beverly Hills 90210, Beauty and The Beast and Hawaii Five-O are also modest to big hits for their respective networks. With those successes in mind, it is no surprise that new versions of old shows like Perry Mason, Lost In Space, Mork and Mindy, The Mod Squad, the original Star Trek, The Brady Bunch, Buffy The Vampire Slayer, My Favorite Martian, Burke’s Law, Superman, The Fugitive and Alias are currently on the drawing boards.

To be honest, there are some shows I would really like to see revived and others that I think should rest in peace. I was a huge fan of Mission Impossible during the 1960s and 1970s and have often wondered why it has not returned as a TV series? I also think that classic science fiction shows like The Time Tunnel, Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea and Land Of The Giants deserve a second chance. Green Acres and The Beverly Hillbillies (although dated in terms of their formats) were always good for a few belly laughs and if people find a show like The Office funny, well, enough said. On the other hand, I could easily live without reboots of My Mother The Car, Run Buddy Run, The Flying Nun and Flipper.

Movies are all about box office results and TV shows are all about great ratings. As long as reboots deliver the goods, you will see a steady stream of shows from as far back as the 1950s, right up to the 1990s resurrected for your viewing pleasure as long as they produce solid revenues. In these days of diminishing box office receipts and disappearing TV viewers who would rather go online then grab their TV remote, the Entertainment industry will go with proven winners that offer the best chance at success. For them and you that could mean a nostalgic trip to the ‘thrilling days of yesteryear.” Did I mention the new Lone Ranger flick?

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