Recently released on January 12, “Mean Girls”, the musical, was faced with low ratings and criticism with just a 2.2 audience rating on Google and 70% on Rotten Tomatoes. Viewers seem to agree that not only was the movie missing many of the “iconic” scenes and dialogue from the 2004 film but the musical itself watered down the characters from how they were portrayed in the earlier film. It’s not the first time viewers have welcomed a remake with harsh criticism and low ratings. Remakes of films normally don’t involve the same casts or plotline and often they end up being just a more diluted version of the original which leads to the question, are remakes really necessary?
Movies are becoming more and more often less original. It’s come to the point where there is rarely an original movie being released since most films being released are either based on an old story or just a remake of an earlier film. When directors choose to recreate an old movie, more often than not they just take the plot, throw in some filler, and change the setting and format. Take Disney for instance, in the last ten years, they have created 16 live-actions based on their old animated films. If one were to compare the original Disney film with the live-action remake, one would realize that almost nothing has changed and that the only difference is how it’s portrayed.
Disney used to be known for bringing to life fairy tales and old works. By adding their own twists to these old stories, Disney was able to make a name for itself in the film industry by creating films such as “Mulan”, “Alice in Wonderland”, and “Pinocchio”. All these films were hits and became well-known by audiences of all ages, even becoming an essential part of most people’s childhood. Instead of continuing to create more movies based on fairy tales, Disney began to release remakes right after another, all based on their own movies. Films such as Alice in Wonderland, the original released in 1951, have been remade twice as a live-action in both 2010 and 2016. While the remakes were able to do the original Alice in Wonderland justice in a way by maintaining some of the key plot points and portraying the characters in a way similar to the original work by Lewis Carroll, I don’t believe that it was necessary to remake it twice. Even though the movie was consistent with the casting, remaking the same movie only tires the audience. By showing the audience the same exact storyline repeatedly, people will grow bored of the film and will seek new entertainment.
Aside from Alice and Wonderland, Disney has remade five of their princess movies in the last 10 years and currently has one in the making, “Snow White”, which is set to release in the Spring of 2025. While I don’t believe the remakes of “Beauty and Beast” (2017) and “Cinderella” (2015) were bad films, I just don’t think they were necessary. Emma Watson’s portrayal of Belle and Dan Stevens Beast in the 2017 version along with the rest of the cast, wardrobe, and musical parts all helped the film become an enjoyable adaptation of the 1991 version. The 2017 version also closely followed the plot of the original only adding more depth to the character of the Beast which I wouldn’t consider a terrible addition to the plot. While the film was good, I believe Disney could’ve stopped there with the princess movie remakes and instead worked on creating new timeless classics.
So in short, no, not every movie needs a remake. Instead of investing millions of dollars into remaking an old film, big entertainment companies such as Disney should put money into creating new films based on original ideas instead of redoing their old work. By putting out more original films, people will be able to experience something new instead of having to feel like they are rewatching the same old plot unfold for the hundredth time. Continuously remaking old films is getting rid of originality and leads to the increasing belief that remaking old films will result in more success than creating an original film.
