This next article probably won't sound like me, because I'm going to be trashing some movies, but honestly, they had it coming, and here's why.
In recent years, we've seen a lot of adaptations and remakes for everything from movies to TV shows to video games. And the general rule was that they all sucked. Even though they may have been successful, the fans of the original works were all frustrated and disappointed in every single case.
I've always been a fan of authenticity and originality, and I've always preferred the original works over the remake no matter how bright and shiny the new one looks and how poorly produced and simply made the original was. Old is gold applies every time in this case and there are no exceptions.
For example, the remake of Alfred Hitchcock's "Rear Window" in 2007 is nothing short of a disgrace, and for an actor no matter who he is to put himself in a situation where he gets compared to Jimmy Stewart is simply dumb. Another example of that stupidity are the new "Pink Panther" movies. Steve Martin is a great actor and a brilliant comedian, but he is not and will never ever be Peter Sellers. It's that simple.
Another example from the world of television is the TV show "Mission: Impossible". A fact that it was the longest running spy series on television and by far the most successful of them. The series was based on teamwork, there was the team leader who was the only intelligence professional, then there were other professionals who were assigned to the team as the mission required, so there were the actors, the electronics genius, the heavy lifter, and others who together made that show incredibly enjoyable with their chemistry on screen and how well they worked together. Then came the movies not only to ruin that concept and replace it with the one man leader who can do anything and everything on his own. In all fairness the first movie did have a glimpse of the show in it but they had to crap all over it by killing off the team in the first 5 minutes of the movie and by showing that the sereis' main character as a traitor and a mole, which for the original series fans was like a slap across the face. I was around 10 when I saw the movie with my mother when it came out and I've never till this day seen her so angry at something, and when I got the show and saw it I can say that not only do I understand, but also I'm just as pissed.
And now to video games, where many great games were made into movie only to find that they changed their story lines, altered characters' behaviours and personalities, and removed all elements that made the game loved by the fans. Among the examples that stand out in the area are the Resident Evil and Tomb Raider series. There's also Alone in the Dark, Hitman, and Max Payne. There have been rumors of adaptations for Metal Gear and Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell going around for a couple of years, but I pray to God they never see the light of day, because the others I could live with (Hardly, but I got over them). But not these two, that would be too much.
A final example comes from literature. I can understand that when a book is being made into a movie, you have to cut some corners in order to fit a several hundred page book into 2 hours of screenplay, but what's not acceptable is to change the story, alter the characters and remove all resemblence to the original work. And that's what's been done to the Bourne series.
I'm not a huge fan of Robert Ludlum's, I find his work all the same and that he just changes a few things in each book. But not the Bourne series, they were by far his best work.
I can understand the changing of the era, because Carlos the Jackal is in prison and there has to be a modern day villain. But what I don't like that if you watch the movie there's not one single thing that reminds you of the book, not one. And what pissed me off was that someone (I don't remember if it was Damon or Doug Liman the director) actually bragged about it during an interview.
Like I said before, I admire originality and authenticity, so that remake thing's never worked with me before and probably never will.
A.G
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