Have we reached a point in our cultural evolution where we have seen it all before and everythig is more or less a repeat or repackage, or worse still a poor imitation of what has gone before? I contemplated this at the weekend when i spent time watching one of the many tribute bands on the live circuit these days, and it got me thinking about how much of our entertainment these days is a repackaged version of what has gone before.
For tribute bands i think theres a case to be argued in favour of them, as many of these original acts are either unlikely to reform, dont tour often (if at all) or may indeed be dead so it can be one of the few chances to hear certain tunes in a live context, which is for a lot of us how we learned to love the songs in the first place. That said, we`re required as an audience to participate in a game, where we know theyre not the real band, the band know they arent, but we`ll both pretend otherwise and a jolly fun time will be had with the accompaniment of tribute Irn Bru and tribute lager. But with a non-tribute hangover the next morning of course.
I suppose its kind of like having themed bar bands, although some of them do pull off the imitation extremely well.
Films are a another area where rehashing can be found in abundance. Granted there are some remakes/reboots/reimaginings/reheated in the microwaves which are fairly decent films, such as the most recent Star Trek films, and possibly the many others (fill in your own titles as your taste dictates), but for every one thats pretty good there are many, many which are just appalling. Things like the shot for shot remake of Psycho or the regurgitation of The Fog, theres just no real reason for them surely? The original Psycho still exists, why make another one just the same? The original of The Fog was a great film, but the remake adds nothing to new, and i did approach with an open mind, and lacks the feel and style of the 1980 version.
I cant say i have much knowledge of the medium, but does the same thing extend into the like of theatre?? Are many plays just weak imitations of those that have gone before? Would the same play with a different cast be considered a remake? Where does it end? Is this post an imitation of something i have seen elsewhere? Its possible it is, but its not conciously so and if i want to drag it off in a different direction completely by starting to write about my interest in the shoes of Paul McCartney, then i will. So there.
Anyway, Paul McCartney has had some interesting footwear over the years, hasnt he? The fascination for me began in 1972 at the age of 3......
Sir Crack Of Mandibles
I completely agree with you Sir Crack.
ReplyDeleteThe films I think of most when talking about remakes are the classic horror films, the likes of The Amityville Horror, and The Sixth Sense. All of these kinds of films knew how to manipulate the audience by using suspense, and more often than not, nothing happening was scarier than whatever you thought was going to happen. Don't get me wrong, I love all these gory films going around, but there's only so many ways you can watch someone be decapitated before it becomes a bit "eh".
On the complete other hand though, I think remakes are a vital part of the film industry nowadays. If I had never seen The Sixth Sense (the remake), I never would have thought to go back and watch the original version, and such a masterpiece would have been lost to me. The same goes for books being remade into films. I recently went to see The Great Gatsby, and I liked the film so much that I went out and bought the book the very next day. I guess, like most things, it's a personal choice though.