Very recently I saw a trailer for the remake of The Day the Earth Stood Still and I got angry. Very angry. I was asked by a commenter on the post that I found this trailer on to explain why this remake would upset me so.

I am a geek and proud of it. I love my Scifi for not only the movies themselves but the effects those movies had on the generation that saw them in the theaters. These were movies that had other social relevance, a new way to see the world, a glimpse into the past and the myths of old or terrified a nation.

To the loyal nation of geeks, dorks, nerds and movie whores I give you a short list of some our sacred movies that should have never been remade and a flick or 2 that I hope they scrap.

The Day the Earth Stood Still

In 1951 WWII was over and the cold war was at it’s beginning and audiences everywhere walked out of the theater terrified of what might happen in the future. At this time outer space was more concept than science and fact. Then comes along this film that gives us an alien who warns us of our violent ways.

Really for the first time the human race felt small and insignificant. For the first time people actually thought about what might happen should we meet aliens. The aliens told us be peaceful or be wiped out. It is a lesson that we the people of earth still have yet to acknowledge seriously much less learn.

Because of this movie  the message of peace on Earth that is frequent in the Scifi genre exists. It has been recognized repeatedly as one of the top Scifi movies of all time. This year in fact it was selected for preservation in the US National Film Registry. Don’t believe me, check out this Wikipedia article on the movie.

When you know the history of the film and the impact it had on people of the time it is easy for this whore to see that this is a sacred Scifi movie and any one that remakes this flick should be punished by a zero return from the box office and banned from film making. Harsh yes, but obviously you have proved that you can not make a decent movie on your own and need to be taken down a few pegs to teach you to respect that which came before you.

Tron

The first movie of it’s kind. When I was a kid I saw Tron and my eyes were opened to a brand new world I never would have though of. It was the most original movie and still stands as a singular marvel. There has never been a movie like Tron since because people realize that it is a one of a kind and should remain as such.

At the time of Tron’s release the arcade was a place to find anyone you knew at some point. Arcades were packed with kids and adults all pumping quarters into machines to reach that top score and then you got to put in your initials to stay until some one could top it. You were proud of those scores and crushed when some one topped it. It kept you coming back for more.

You can see by the social landscape why Tron would have such an impact on the generation feverishly wasting their money in arcades across the nation. Tron took us inside the game and changed the nature of video games for years to come and even todays gamiong industry was originally influenced by Tron.  Again if you touch this flick or mess with it in any way you should be banned from film making forever.

War of the Worlds

In 1898 H.G. Wells, the father of modern Science Fiction, created a masterpiece that captivated the minds of people for for over a century and does still today. The radio broadcasts of this story had people convinced that Martians were really invading the planet.

His vision terrified people. Then in 1953 this story was given a visual representation. I remember watching this movie when I was a kid not really understanding it completely but blown away by the fact that there were aliens with rays and they were taking us out with us not being able to even slow them down a bit much less stop them. Feelings of being small and insignificant crept into my mind and I did not even know what those feelings were then but understand it now.

A story like this never needs to be updated or retold or re-imagined. My imagination worked just fine the first time. Shame on you Steven Spielberg. You know better. You have made great films that stand on their own. One day you will pay for your film transgressions as karma has a way of working these things out.

Planet of the Apes

One of the most socially relevant movies ever made when you look at the time period. Tim Burton you screwed up and you screwed up bad. I don’t care that you are this weird little genius with cooky ideas and funny hair. As soon as you touched this flick you became a hack. You knew better and you did it anyway. Then had the nerve to rip off Kevin Smith in the process. OK, that is a joke and if you have seen a An Evening with Kevin Smith you will get the reference that would take too long to explain here.

Look at the social hierarchy of the apes and realize the racial undertone to this film. The 3 species of apes each serve in different functions of society while humans are nothing more than slave animals. This movie garnered a lot of attention. It struck a chord amongst people of the day who look back at it not only as a great film but an important film that resonates still today.

Just because the message still applies with some of these films does not mean we need to remake it to get the message out again. It means we should be running these films on HBO, putting them in On Demand, getting them loaded on Hulu ro any other of the multitudes of ways we have to share these films with this and future generations. Put an end to the remake trend and do something original or don’t do anything at all. Thus sayeth The Movie Whore.