Halloween: The night the remake came home

One of the real movie trailers shown with Grindhouse this weekend was for the remake of the 70's horror classic,Halloween,directed by Rob Zombie(who also directed one of the fake Grindhouse trailers,Werewolf Women of the SS). The studio's PR is claiming that this is not a simple remodeling of the original film but a "re-imagining" of the story,like they've done with the Texas Chainsaw Massacre,The Hills Have Eyes,etc.

I like Rob Zombie,he's a weird cool guy-the type we need making movies today. However,I do wish that his talent and skills would be focused on something else rather than yet another retread of a film that's already been done right the first time and whose only real purpose for being is to rake in some more cash for the studio coffers. I'd rather see him make Werewolf Women of the SS or anything else than this. The trailer does look good,have to admit it:



Zombie has a great eye for capturing the grimy roadhouse look and feel of a place that jacks up the tension for the horrors he unleashs,which is mainly the evil that men and women do to each other. I get why guys like him want to direct these remakes,it's a chance for them to pay tribute to the movies that inspired them. Cool,but what are we,the audience getting out of this? True,there are many that haven't seen the originals and may even check them out after taking a gander at the shiny new versions,but how many fresh and new ideas are being put aside and held back to keep pumping these sure-to-be money makers into the multiplexes?

Here's the Werewolf Women trailer,to compare and contrast:






There's more remake mania on the way,with the likes of Prom Night and Motel Hell being slated for early next year. The only remake that might actually be worth a look at is I Am Legend,the third version of Richard Matheson's novel to be filmed. Then again, IAL is said to be more in tune with Charlton Heston's The Omega Man(which was the first remake),so I may have spoken too soon there:



I guess as long as there's money to be made,these remakes will keep popping up like pimples on the horror scene. It would be nice if someone tried to remake a movie that didn't work the first time out and improve on it,like Deadly Friend,Queen of the Damned or even this vampire comedy that was redeemed by an excellant TV series: