It seems that the only thing directors and producers do these days is remake movies and TV series from the ’80s or continue movie series that started in the ’80s. The A-Team and The Karate Kid just opened, and Wall Street 2, Predators, Red Dawn, and Tron: Legacy are coming up. Is it a good thing? How do the titles from the 2000s stack up against their ancestors from the ’80s?
10. MacGyver (1985) vs. MacGruber (2010)
MacGyver: This clever hit TV series couldn’t be ignored by anyone alive and reasonably conscious in the mid-’80s. Secret agent MacGyver (Richard Dean Anderson) used his brain in place of a gun, and relied on his knowledge of science to save himself and others. MacGyver could literally design lifesaving tools from a gum and paper clips … no wonder it gained a beloved cult favorite status.
MacGruber: Counting on the popularity of the series, this is a spoof comedy, led by Will Forte’s bumbling secret agent, whose lack of skill and abundance of personal problems serve as a detriment to him—and those around him.
Winner: MacGyver, easily.
This is an example of a really ridiculous effort to build on the ’80s magic. MacGruber’s big failure is, among others, the-far fetched expectation that thirty-five- to forty-year-olds will enjoy a spoof of a series they watched when they were ten! Next time, don’t wait twenty years to make the spoof …
9. Miami Vice (1984) vs. Miami Vice (2006)
Original: One of the most popular TV shows of the ’80s, it helped define the fashion and music of the period while maintaining high-quality police drama standards. Miami Vice is a fascinating cultural document of the ’80s, as well as a stylized and exciting cop show.
Remake: This rough movie follows the violent, dangerous adventures of Crockett and Tubbs, with Miami at the center of a global drug trade. Both men continually struggle with personal demons to stay on the right side of the law.
Winner: the TV series (and actually, anyone who simply didn’t go to see the movie).
In line with the introspective, gloomy wave of 2000s remakes/sequels, this remake simply eliminated all that was exciting, fun—even campy—in the original series.
8. Fame (1980) vs. Fame (2009)
Original: The film won an Oscar for Best Original Score and Song. The ’80s TV series that followed was a huge hit. Both had lovable casts and inspired music-and-dance numbers that seem to burst forth spontaneously out of sheer irrepressible emotion. In those days, everybody hummed the main theme song, tried to dance like Leroy, loved Mr. Shorofsky, and recited Debbi Allen’s memorable line: “You want fame? Well, fame costs. And right here is where you start paying ... in sweat.”
Remake: This modernization of the classic musical from 1980 more or less does the same, and allows students at the New York School of Performing Arts to take center stage.
Winner: The ’80s movie, obviously.
The 2009 movie was bad and redundant. As with MacGruber, producers failed to notice reality (in more than one sense): with so many reality shows like American Idol or So You Think You Can Dance?, the charm of an art school that takes common, even hard-case youngsters and make them stars, is a bit outdated. High School Musical movies and Glee knew how to adapt.
7. Hairspray (1988) vs. Hairspray (2007)
Original: This offbeat, cult music comedy from John Waters actually takes place in the 1960s. Energetic, overweight teen Tracy Turnblad wants to get on a hip local TV dance program. Her lively dance moves and bubbly personality are met with unexpected popularity, and she finds herself fighting against discrimination by black dancers, and also against angry, scheming fellow dancer Amber and her pushy mother.
Remake: While less out there than Waters’ original, the film is still quirky, thanks largely to another John, this time Travolta, playing Tracy’s overweight mother. The creators also smartly updated the original by making the remake a musical. The result was a great success.
