Blog by Sean Gehon, Wednesday, June 06, 2007
The first time I saw a movie was at the hopeful age of five. I remember sitting in the theatre with my mother, my best friend Sarah, and my auntie Lola not really understanding what was about to happen. Then the lights went out and my very first Disney movie came to life on the big screen. Beauty and the Beast was Disney’s take on a traditional fairy tale turned into a cartoon classic that has since delighted millions of children (of all ages) around the world. As I sit here reminiscing about my childhood, I stumbled across one of Warner Brothers upcoming film projects. With the discovery of this popular cartoon turned live action motion picture, I found myself wondering if it would be any good.
The Thundercats are a group of alien creatures stranded on Third Earth after their home world of Thundera was destroyed. After arriving on earth the courageous group of alien cats (Lion-O, Cheetara, Panthro, Tygra, Wily Kit and Wily Kat) set out to rebuild their home on this strange new planet. The premise of the show surrounded the battle waging between the Thundercats and the ancient evil Mumm-Ra and his desire to possess the “Eye of Thundera” (Lion-O’s sword).
For those of you who have no idea what I’m writing about and are simply confused, my point is simply that I’m excited for one of my favourite childhood shows to be turned into a live action movie. I can’t help but be concerned that Thundercats: The Movie will turn out to be a disaster along the lines of Bewitched or Starsky and Hutch. At this point they’re pretty much willing to take any classic sitcom, movie, cartoon, or superhero and turn it into a potential blockbuster.
This summer another popular 80’s cartoon is headed for the big screen. Transformers has the potential to join the ranks of summer blockbusters Pirates of the Caribbean, Spiderman 3, and Shrek the Third. The movie based on the cartoon of the same name takes a look at the war waging between the Autobots and the Deceptacons, and the humans caught in the middle. Frankly, from what I’ve seen in previews and screen captures circulating the internet, I don’t think this movie is going to be any good. As much as I’m a fan and I would love Transformers to be awesome, it just looks like they’ve changed far too much from the original.
While looking at the remakes they’ve come out with so far, I can’t help but wonder if anything is sacred anymore. Do the fond memories of our past while watching these beloved cartoons or shows mean nothing to you people? I’m pretty sure that movie execs think we’re dumb enough to go see anything as long as it has a popular name attached to it. I for one refuse to fall for it. Just because a movie is named after something I loved as a child, doesn’t mean it will be the same.
Take a movie like X-Men for example. You have the basics thrown together: Mutants with correct names and powers following any storyline they choose to alter for the sake of a motion picture. As a fan of the X-Men comic book series, I found myself annoyed and angered by the lack of attention they paid to the original stories that entertained me as a child. Maybe I’m being too particular, and maybe it’s okay to update certain things, but remakes can definitely run the risk of failing to live up to the original.
Perhaps it’s my nature to just prefer the nostalgia of it all and cling to the memories of the way we were. For those of you who enjoy the remakes, I’m sorry for knocking them. I have faith that Thundercats will live up to my expectations and will not turn out to be a disaster like Thunderbirds or Bewitched, unfortunately only time will tell… and until then… THUNDERCATS…HO!
Sean (http://youtube.com/watch?v=2Qd_IsxgAf8)
|
 |
|
