Has the movie industry fallen into the ravenous hands of Hollywood’s money- hungry directors and producers? Movie remakes within Hollywood have seemingly turned the corner from being possible blockbusters to falling into a black hole of unoriginality.
The United States’ film industry has been incredibly successful and has thrived rapidly since the 1900s. However, with theaters being filled with remakes, reboots, and sequels, are we beginning to see the industry’s downfall and lack of creativity?
According to tjToday, movies depend on a new evolution of ideas, and techniques, however, when the same ideas are utilized over and over again, it can cause this change to stand still. When directors and producers remake and reboot different past stories, the outcome will generally be a more generic counterpart and will rarely bring anything new to the table.
A huge problem with movie remakes is that the directors attempt to recreate the same emotions and feelings that the original creator had in mind and created within their audience. The truth of the matter is that a remake will never be able to evoke the same emotions and feelings the audience felt the first time around.
This is particularly true when it comes to recreations of classic movies, especially when the original creator of the movie may no longer be alive to collaborate on the remake.
Casumo, a betting website, conducted a study with the search engine optimization firm Verve Search in which they standardized IMDb and Metacritic stores to compare different ratings and profits of recent movie remakes. The results ended up being not-so-great for remakes with 91 percent scoring lower with audiences than the originals.
The Washington Post also pointed out during this study that only 21 percent of these movies were more profitable. Most of the time, there is no point in remaking movies because of the fact that some originals were not made all that long ago. For example, The Walt Disney Company released their animated hit film, “Moana,” in 2016 and has already announced that they are in the process of producing a live-action remake of the film.
A bad remake or reboot of a movie can have a negative lasting legacy, as well. If a movie is remade unsuccessfully or lacks creativity, this can cause a negative view of the original film and affect how people view the original.
However, if people hate these remakes so much, why on earth is Hollywood still producing them at an outstanding rate? According to Vice, remakes of movies still pay off even if they do not beat the original because “there is profit and pleasure to be had in the familiar.”
Nostalgia might make people believe that the original is better, however, that is the factor that makes them see the remake anyway. Nostalgia is what drives the views.
It feels as if Hollywood is creating these remakes and reboots to earn a quick buck instead of paying attention to its audience and creating a quality film. It feels as if the original films they created are being exploited for money instead of being recreated for enjoyment.
The Internet Movie Database states that Hollywood consistently investing in these remakes, reboots and sequels will eventually lead to their decline.
If remakes of movies do not stop, these films will destroy Hollywood’s creativity and creative processes, which will lead to the film industry’s eventual downfall.