[_____V_____]

RESULTS OF THE FINAL QUEST OF HDC BATTLE ROYALE


This was the common query put forth to both Finalists :-

"I've heard a few people say that they should remake some of the old Hammer films. I think it's a horrible idea. Tell me what you think."



This was Despare's answer :

"This is a tough question because to be honest I’m not sure where I stand on the issue. Original thought be damned but I don’t hate remakes, especially if they’re taken with a sense of responsibility to the source material and delivered with a creative edge that adds something to the film. To really make a decision I guess I would have to take a look at some of the things that made Hammer Horror great.

The first thing that comes to mind for me is the actors, and Hammer had one hell of a stable. Who would we have stepping in for the incomparable Lee and Cushing duo? The film industry simply doesn’t have the “horror actors” that existed in the past. Sure, we have icons like Sid Haig and Tony Todd but it seems like they’re just tacked onto a film’s credits to attract horror fans. It works, but for me actors like that would not only be a poor substitute for Hammer’s headlining duo but they even seem incapable of replacing Hammer stars like Andrew Keir and Michael Ripper. If I were to wander into a theater and see a remake of a Hammer Horror starring some group of Mtv rejects I think I’d be pretty upset.

Atmosphere is probably what comes to my mind next and here’s where things get a bit clouded. While I think any studio would have trouble finding actors to suit the roles for a remake I believe a director would be fairly easy to find. Nobody stands out more in my mind when talking about atmosphere than Guillermo Del Toro. I could see a director like Guillermo taking the reigns of a Hammer remake and recreating the sense of wonder that those movie held me captive with. One thing Del Torro would have to change up a bit is his palette which is typically dark and not fitting in with the aesthetics of a true Hammer Horror. We need to see those rich, vibrant colors that helped the Hammer studio stand out. Other than this one man I can’t really think of somebody who is able to inject such perfect atmosphere into a horror film and maybe if we could get him to team up with Argento we would get some colors that suit the piece.

Looking at all the remakes today I really have a difficult time thinking that anybody can rewrite a good Hammer remake. One of the beautiful things about a Hammer film was that you could expect it to contain intelligent and adult oriented material. Can you really imagine somebody penning a remake to “The Curse of Frankenstein” and actually being able to make it as transgressive and entertaining as the original? Is there a writer out there who could re-script Baron Victor Frankenstein without transforming the character into a parody? It seems like remakes generally attract the scripts of the intellectually lazy and while it’s not a guarantee this would happen, my money says that it would. I believe we would see a gorgeous film turned into another PG-13 disaster with all the primitive violence and sexual content stripped from it unceremoniously.

I don’t have to go any further. After thinking about it I agree that remaking some of the old Hammer Horror films would be disastrous. I would hate to see a remake of a magnificent movie be released to a young audience that didn’t care and an older group of horror enthusiasts that were insulted by the replica. A remake couldn’t add to the genre or be as truly groundbreaking as the originals were and when I really think about it, I doubt they could be even half as entertaining. I submit that there’s only one thing that a Hammer Horror remake would be good for; a special edition re-release of the original film."



And this was Zero's answer :

"Now – on to the question: 'I've heard a few people say that they should remake some of the old Hammer films. I think it's a horrible idea. Tell me what you think.'

I’d respond to this question on two levels: the general question of remakes and, second, the specific question of Hammer Films.

Generally speaking, I don’t like remakes. There are some remakes that are quite good and, indeed, some that may be equal to or even superior to the original – Carpenter’s The Thing or the 1978 version of Invasion of the Body Snatchers. But, by and large, remakes have diminished rather than equaled the luster of the original. The long line of lackluster remakes – and I’ll be up front and say I’m thinking of films like the newTexas Chainsaw or Dawn of the Dead – seem produced mainly to make money and cash-in on the notoriety of the original.

The other obvious problem with remakes is that they seem to be crowding out originality. What made the original Texas Chainsaw or Dawn of the Dead so amazing and wonderful was that they were original – and, indeed, it was this originality that helped shock and horrify audiences who had nothing to prepare them for what they were about to see.

My final comment related to remakes in general is a sense that remakes are diminishing our appreciation for the history of film. Here’s an example of what I mean. A few months back I had a couple of friends over and they said they’d never seen the original Dracula – so I popped it in. Not 10 minutes into the film, they were moaning and groaning that it was slow. This got me thinking – in a way they were right – Dracula is slow and stagey and grinds along. But what they were missing was all the cool innovations of the time – and the reason they were missing this is that they expected the film to be made like it would be made now. In other words, they were totally incapable of appreciating Dracula as a historical artifact. I think remakes play into this erosion because we learn to expect films to always be contemporary. Personally, I love older films for the same reason I love foreign films – because they are difficult to view – they require work and attention and patience, but for me the payoff is worth it.

Now, in terms of Hammer Films, I’ll confess to not being the biggest fan of Hammer Films. I do, however, appreciate many of them and recognize their place in the history of global horror and so the prospect of remaking Hammer Horror Films saddens me. I do recall hearing a rumor several years back that they were going to remake The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires with Tim Allen as the star – I think I threw up in my mouth a little. And, I can’t help but imagine that people wanting to remake Hammer Films would go either with a hammy/cheesy/comedic angle – or with a hyped-up, gored-up version. Of course the sad part is that what makes Hammer Films classic is that delicate balance between the two. Great sets, great actors, bizarre plots and bright red blood!

The fear that Hammer Films might get the remake treatment is, however, real. In 2007, Dutch TV producer and really exceptionally rich guy, John De Mol led a group who purchased the rights to Hammer’s 300 strong catalog. Now for those who don’t know de Mol, he made a fortune creating and producing the original versions of shows like Big Brother, 1 vs 100, and Deal or No Deal. Now I’ll be honest I’m no fan of these shows but the one thing that is clear about them all –they have virtually no budget and pander to popular tastes. This is a great formula for making money, but not a great formula for making classic TV or Film. So, given the real condition of the new Hammer Films – I also find the prospect of Hammer remakes horrific (and not in the good way).

It is of course possible that the new Hammer, which is being helmed by a couple of reasonably successful Hollywood types – Guy East and Nigel Sinclair, will take up the challenge of pushing the Hammer tradition in new directions while also finding ways to bring the Hammer classics to a new generation. I have seen the trailer for their first production, Beyond the Rave, which looked promising (in a ‘opening sequence of Blade’ sort of way). But, in final answer to the question, it is my hope that the new Hammer follows along the paths of crafting new tales and promoting the classics and not along the too-often treaded path of the remake."



And this is how the esteemed Judges turned in their verdicts for both very impressive and thoughtful answers on a scale of 0-10...


(Contd.)