The Fondness for Remakes by Melinda Curtis

With a sigh of relief that it is now April and I no longer have a March book out...

I have a love-hate relationships with remakes, whether they be remaking songs, TV shows, or movies. Why? Because sometimes they screw up what I loved about the first version and sometimes they carry the heart and soul of the old and add something truly great to it. Here are some of my winners, hopefuls and pet peeves.

Music:
I was not a fan of Smash Mouth's version of I'm a Believer (a Monkees original). It completely lost the heart and charm of the song. Granted, if Smash Mouth was doing the cover at a bar and I'd had a drink, I wouldn't complain. Here are the two versions if you need a reminder. I've heard the Cold Play version once. Gotta say it earned my bar-dancing vote.

Monkees

Smash Mouth

Television:
Growing up in a household with one TV - the horror! - my mom basically controlled what we watched. She was a huge Star Trek fan (yes, she went to conventions). I grew to love the original TV series. Years later when they first brought back the series "reimagined" with Captain Picard, I was a fan. But somehow, the later incarnations of the series just didn't capture me. Do you have a favorite captain? I admit, I cannot choose between these two.
From StarTrek.com
Movies/Limited Series:
Now I know I will not be popular with this choice. When it comes to Pride & Prejudice, I'm a Kiera Knightly fan because I like spunky heroines. Now, Mr. Darcy...
I love Colin Firth, but Matthew McFadyen brought some soul to the role of Darcy. Just look at that face when Elizabeth rejects him!

Do you have a favorite Pride & Prejudice actor? Or perhaps your favorite take on P&P was Pride & Prejudice & Zombies?

Enjoy a little remake-itis. Happy Monday! Happy not release month to me!

Melinda Curtis is an award-winning, USA Today bestselling author of over 40 romances. She writes sweet romance for Harlequin Heartwarming, sweet romantic comedy and sexy contemporary romance. Her latest release was Marrying the Wedding Crasher, about a man who needs a wedding date.

Comments

  1. I usually don't love remakes and often wonder--with movies, at least--why they bother when the originals are still there and still so good? I have never watched the remake of "Footloose" for that reason. Often, though, if I haven't heard the original first, I like song covers.

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  2. Usually with songs I like the original but maybe that's an age thing. With movies it depends on how well it's done.

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  3. I usually like the original better. Not happy to hear they may be/are remaking To Kill A Mockingbird. What?!

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  4. With some movies being remade and I remember the original...well it makes me feel quite old.

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  5. It's interesting to listen/watch remakes, if only to get a different perspective on what society has now introduced or values.

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  6. High five on the remake with Matthew. It's my go-to movie...a lot. Sinfully, a lot. I always loved the first SABRINA with Audrey Hepburn and as much as I love her, the remake with Harrison Ford, is my favorite. ANYTHING with Harrison Ford is tops with me. As for the songs, I bend to the hate part of the re-make. Except for "I will Always Love You" with Whitney Houston. I still get chills. Great post, Mel!!!!

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  7. With songs I'm sort of give and take. Some I like as well as original if I like the new group or singer, but with movies it's more difficult. The visual of some great characters just are imprinted on a person's mind.

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  8. Fun post!! Totally agree on the I'm a Believer. LOVE the Monkee's version. Haven't heard Cold Play's I don't think. For Star Trek? I love both Piccard and Kirk (surprise). Also love Janeway but my fave is Sisko (DS9 is also my fave show because it's a complete story from beginning to end. Full circle--and relevant to today even tho it's now 20 years old). And Mr. Darcy? nope. No contest. It's Colin Firth all the way for me. Until the day I die . For me, it's the look he gives Elizabeth when she protects his sister from Miss Bingley's callous remark. Won me there and then. <3

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  9. Most of the time, I'm not a fan of remakes. I was very distressed when I heard they were going to try to do a remake of Dirty Dancing. NO! I hated the remake of True Grit. (I'm a huge John Wayne fan, so you just can't touch his stuff. Ever.) I also loved the Kierra Knightly version of P & P. I can't say anything about Star Trek because I've never seen any versions. But I'm with Catherine, if they put Harrison Ford in it, I would try it, lol. Songs are easier to get my vote on remakes than tv shows or movies. It cracks me up when I sing along with a "new" song and one of the teens I work with are surprised I know the words. And they are even more surprised when I tell them the original version came out when I was a kid.

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  10. I always give a remake a chance. I heard from one Hollywood producer that remakes are cash cows and that's why they do them. What's a remake to us was a remake of something that happened in the 20's and 30's. I've seen countless movies that I love and then see a prior version on TMC or TCM.

    I gave Footloose a chance and it failed. For P&P, I like both versions, but think the Kiera Knightly version had more depth, less the audience trying to read fans and fans.

    Music, since I play piano and sing, I'll give that a chance, but when you add all the jazz to the center of a ballad, you've lost me.

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  11. I have to agree with you about the Monkees. And I like Kirk a lot, but Picard is by far my favorite. I love that bit of social awkwardness. Now what they need to remake is The Hobbit. They make a terrible animated version back when I was in high school, and the recent trilogy drags in so many backstories from other writings you can hardly find the original story. And it's such a simple, charming story.

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  12. I have to go with the Jennifer Ehles/Colin Firth version of P&P, but it's not really a fair comparison. The BBC version was a miniseries, and was so much longer that it could include so much more of Jane's dialogue...

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  13. I am totally Team Matthew as Mr. Darcy! I love him. That last scene walking across the field with the sun rising behind him *SWOON*

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