Let's start with "Batman". As an iconic film, Tim Burton's "Batman" is nothing short of classic! It continues to top the list of best super hero movies. Even though the franchise itself fell into disarray with subsequent films due to replacement actors and a rapidly multiplying cast of villains; the original film (along with the rest of Burton's catalog of pre-steam punk gothic media), would go on to inspire a new generation of filmmakers to push the boundaries of imagination.
Following in the footsteps of that first film, there was no way to relaunch that franchise and follow the same formula. Fortunately for us, Christopher Nolan was smart enough not to compete with Burton's classic. Knowing an origin story was inevitable, Nolan re-imagined the franchise. He took Batman's primary external conflict, (his need for justice after the murder of his parents) and internalized it by having the Wayne murderer publically executed before Bruce had a chance to do away with him. This one simple change catapulted the character into a completely different level of character development. It also helped Nolan create one of the best superhero trilogies ever committed to film.
We have another great example of this with the television series Battlestar Galactica. The SciFi reboot was a re-imagined version of the original series. The cast became real rather than the live action cartoon characters of the original 70's series. The new series was edgier, more urgent and made the reality of the back story that much more believable.
But let's not get too carried away... There are just as many bad examples as good. I'd like to focus for one minute on J.J. Abrams and what he did with the "Star Wars" and "Star Trek" franchises, because I think it demonstrates the principle I want to apply to the "Rocky Horror Picture Show".
Abrams re-imagined the Star Trek universe and his movies have all been well received by fans. Even die hard fans who didn't like the idea of replacing Spock and Kirk with younger actors eventually jumped on board. However, what Abrams did with Star Wars was less than spectacular...
The biggest complaint about "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" I've heard is that it is plot point by plot point "Star Wars: A New Hope" all over again. Abrams may have refreshed the way we look at a Star Wars film through his unique style of shooting action sequences, but the lack of originality in the storyline was disappointing to die-hards who were desperate for a shake up in their favorite film series. I didn't see the new Star Wars film during the opening weeks. I waited a month, but when I did go to see it, I had the entire theater to myself. Subsequently, I saw Star Trek twice. Once right during the initial week of release and once about a month later with my dad. The theater was still somewhat packed.
I see a trend in these films. When something is re-imagined, it fares better than an updated remake. That being said, part of what made "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" so remarkable was it's edge. Queer transgender bisexuality was a virtual unknown taboo when this film came out. Much like early John Waters fare, it was sought out and viewed by a subculture who was drawn to the controversial subject matter and themes.
In today's world, where Rupaul's Drag Race is a show watched in hundreds of thousands of homes across the US, neither transvestites or drag queens are seen as subversive. In fact, changing Tim Curry's Frankenfurter into a Drag Queen actually kills the character's edge. There's nothing dark and dangerous about an over the top flamboyant queen.
But the biggest flaw in this remake isn't the attempts to update characters, it's the lack of a reimagining of the story. Knowing the impact of the original film, writers should have written a new script specifically with the audience cat calls in mind and given us a completely new story vaguely resembling the original. A change of music would even seem appropriate if one was to truly challenge themselves in remaking such a cult classic.
Instead, we get a watered down broadway musical version that looks and feels more like a Vegas Lounge act.
I guess the moral of this story is simple... You just don't mess with a classic. What I find most disturbing is the lack of innovation in the business that something like this has money spent on it and original, new film visionaries are struggling with crappy budgets to do mediocre versions of truly innovative scripts.
This was a bad idea from the start and apparently, no one had the sense to stop this train wreck from happening. Described as a tribute to the original film with only the visual element being updated seems rather pointless and more like an excuse rather than a description.
But enough about this... I'll leave my commentary there for now. In my opinion, this film should've never been made.
