The Day the Earth Stood Still
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This is yet another in now decade-long Hollywood tradition of unnecessary and unoriginal adaptations, sequels, prequels or whatever-quels. This time, we’re talking about remake of the SF classic from 1951 that, in the decade of Red Scare and bug-eyed monsters coming to steal our women stood out with it’s thoughtful portrayal of possibly friendly aliens and paranoid and belligerent Earthmen.
And although the 1951. version of “TDtESS” might not have been the subtlest of movies, it has nothing on it’s wretched 2008. remake. Yes, fellow readers, Hollywood has managed to make a allegorical SF movie less subtle then those made 50 years ago.
2008. version plays more like an religious allegory then an actual SF movie. Keanu Reeves is Klaatu, human clone with an alien mind apparently sent to warn people that they’re destroying their planet. I write “apparently” because it takes him all of 48 hours to lose patience and decide to go all Old Testament on mankind. You know, for superior species, these aliens sure are passive-aggressive. Somehow, I prefer much more the eager stupidty of Kang and Kodos.
It doesn’t help mankind that, for the most part, it is represented by Secretary of Defense Kathy Bates who does whatever she pleases in a strangely government-less USA. One would also think that a giant slime-coloured orb hovering over central Manhattan would provoke some kind of reaction from the various governments and organizations, but we actually hear surprisingly little from them. Luckily, there’s dreamy (and dreamy-eyed) geneticist Jennifer Connelly (Why don’t we have such good-looking scientists in real life?) who wants to help Klaatu. Unluckily, there also her step-son, whiny brat who, literally, almost gets us all killed because of his temper tantrums. “Mad Men”‘s Jon Hamm and “Fawlty Towers” John Cleese are also here but don’t get to do much.
After escaping the government facility, Saint Klaatu proceeds to walk on the water, heal wounds with a touch, raise dead and create an interstellar version of Noah’s Arc. Finally, he ushers in the End of Times with the help of nanobots… shaped like a plague of locusts. In case that even that didn’t remind you on certain passages from the Good Book, Great Flood and Apocalypse are specifically mentioned by other characters politely turning towards the camera as they do so that you get the subtext even if some sort of an idiot or godless Communist.
In the end, “TDtESS” tries to be all serious and thoughtful but the bluntness of it’s preaching is only rivalled by it’s banality: movie’s message pretty much amounts to “Evil is bad – don’t do it…. Oh, and recycle.”
Oliver out.
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Oliver
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Thanks for the warning! Why do they keep remaking these classics? Is this further evidence of “dumbing-down?” Or have they just run out of original ideas?
I can’t believe that The Pink Panther was just remade, either! Sorry, I love Steve Martin, but that part belonged to Peter Sellars. Doesn’t Martin feel in the slightest bit guilty?
Producers are remaking and continuing old franchises because they want to play safe: remaking a movie that’s been a success or a comic book with a large fan base means a bigger chance of it’s new version succeeding in theaters. So, it’s up to visionaries, lunatics, indie authors and foreign movie directors to actually try and pull of something new in the SF genre.