Cast: Kay Panabaker (Jenny Garrison), Naturi Naughton (Denise Dupree), Megan Mullally (Ms. Fran Rowan), Bebe Neuwirth (Ms. Kraft), Debbie Allen (Ms. Angela Simms), Kelsey Grammer (Mr. Martin Cranston)
For complete info, see IMDb's Fame (2009) page.
When I heard they were going to remake Fame, I was worried that they might use too much of the original and try to copy the movie. Thankfully, they didn't do that. The new movie is a different group of (mostly unknown - at least to me) actors playing the students and teachers that (for the most part) people will recognize. I'm glad Debbie Allen was in the movie, since she was in the original movie and the TV show based on the original movie. Clearly, her part isn't nearly as focal as it was in the TV show, but I liked seeing her in the new movie.
The cast is a very talented group of performers and I think they did a good job selecting everyone for the movie. The music is very good and almost all a different style - even the remake of the song Fame, which had to be included in the remake, was very well done and updated.
If you like the performing arts, I definitely recommend renting this one. Do you need to see it in a theatre? No, but it wouldn't hurt. It's a fun movie. It's not quite as good as the original or the TV show, but that's to be expected. As long as you're not expecting it to be the most amazing movie you see, I think you can enjoy the movie and the performances.
Grade: B-
Labels: 2009, comedy, dancing, drama, family, movie, musical, remake, romance
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Josh Lucas (Dylan Johns), Kurt Russell (Robert Ramsey), Jacinda Barrett (Maggie James), Richard Dreyfuss (Richard Nelson), Emmy Rossum (Jennifer Ramsey), Jimmy Bennett (Conor James), Mike Vogel (Christian), Mia Maestro (Elena Gonzalez)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's Poseidon page.
Obviously, seeing Poseidon in an IMAX theater is going to be more amazing than in a regular theater. The quality and size are something you can't match in a normal theater. I haven't seen The Poseidon Adventure, so I judged Poseidon as a movie in its own right, not a remake. I can't say how it measures up to the original movie, but I can say that the cast, script, sets, and everything else worked perfectly in this version of Poseidon.
We saw Poseidon in IMAX, since I thought the special effects of seeing a modern-day cruise ship complete with the huge hallways and glass elevators would be great to see on a really big screen, but I didn't expect the movie to be as good as it is. I was very pleasantly surprised by how entertaining Poseidon turned out to be.
I definitely recommend catchin Poseidon in an IMAX theater near you! If you can't see it in IMAX, I've been assured by those I know who saw it at other theaters that it's still a very good movie. I'm not sure why it hasn't done better in theaters so far. Perhaps too many people think that they've already seen Titanic and know that the boat will ship, so why bother. I admit that I had a bit of that scepticism before seeing Poseidon, but now I'd recommend it.
The cast of Poseidon is truly amazing. It was great to recognize everyone who played a major role. I was surprised by some of the death scenes and by the number of people who died, though perhaps if you've seen the original the number of people who survive are the same. I haven't done any research on the original.
Grade: B+
Labels: 2006, action, adventure, drama, Emmy Rossum, IMAX, Josh Lucas, movie, remake, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 4:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Tom Cruise (Ray Ferrier), Dakota Fanning (Rachel Ferrier), Miranda Otto (Mary Ann), Justin Chatwin (Robbie Ferrier), Tim Robbins (Harlan Ogilvy)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's War of the Worlds page.
I didn't see the original movie, but (like just about everyone), I know of the HG Wells story. With Steven Spielberg directing, Tom Cruise & Dakota Fanning starring, and such a great supporting cast, I must admit that I expected more. I expected to be really impressed with the special effects, to get grabbed by the movie immediately and fear for the characters, etc.
As much as I love Dakota Fanning (and will probably always see anything she does) and enjoyed the rest of the cast (with the possible exception of Tim Robbins for whatever reason - I normally like him, too), I really wasn't impressed with the movie overall. The story just wasn't that great. The plot seemed a bit erratic and sketchy to me. The special effects were good, though, so I guess it was worth seeing in theatres for that.
Grade: B-
Labels: 2005, action, adventure, Dakota Fanning, movie, remake, sci-fi, Tom Cruise, war
Reviewed by Kat at the 11:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Johnny Depp (Willy Wonka), Freddie Highmore (Charlie Bucket), Deep Roy (Oompa Loompa)
For complete information, see IMDb's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory page.
This was a wonderful remake of Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory! I liked the original a lot and had, of course, seen it many times, so I wasn't sure how I'd feel about the remake. Seeing Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in IMAX surely helped me to get into the movie, since you feel like you're almost there with images that big.
Johnny Depp did an amazing job as Willy Wonka and the rest of the cast was very good. The story hasn't been altered much. In fact, this movie follows the original book better than the original movie did, which was nice to see.
Deep Roy is so great performing the rolls of all the Oompa Loompas in the movie. With a song for almost everything, the Oompa Loompas do a lot in this version of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and it adds to the humor of the movie. If you liked the books and/or the original movie, I definitely recommend that you see the new version with Johnny Depp!
Grade: A-
Labels: 2005, adventure, comedy, family, fantasy, Freddie Highmore, IMAX, Johnny Depp, movie, remake
Reviewed by Kat at the 9:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: George Clooney (Danny Ocean), Brad Pitt (Rusty Ryan), Bernie Mac (Frank Catton)
For complete cast, see IMDb's Ocean's Twelve page.
I think this movie has gotten a very bad rap. In part, that's deserved, but it's not the worst sequel ever. No, it's not original. It's a sequel to Ocean's Eleven. But, it was an enjoyable movie, which is sometimes all I want. The heist wasn't nearly as interesting as the first one, but I still thought it was fun and definitely worth seeing. If you loved Ocean's Eleven and go into this realizing it can't be as good as the original remake was, you'll enjoy Ocean's Twelve. As long as you don't expect much, you can still enjoy the mid-level movie.
Grade: C+
Labels: 2004, Bernie Mac, Brad Pitt, comedy, crime, George Clooney, Julia Roberts, movie, remake
Reviewed by Kat at the 12:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Nicole Kidman (Joanna Eberhart), Matthew Broderick (Walter Kresby), Bette Midler (Bobbie Markowitz), Glenn Close (Claire Wellington), Christopher Walken (Mike Wellington), Roger Bart (Roger Bannister)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's The Stepford Wives page.
The original was definitely better and the new version of The Stepford Wives is a lot less plausible, but I still enjoyed it. Though the remake of The Stepford Wives is way too cheesy and out there, I still thought it was enjoyable to watch for a bit. I would probably say it belongs on the rental list, but it's worth renting.
Grade: B
Labels: 2004, Bette Midler, Christopher Walken, comedy, drama, Matthew Broderick, movie, Nicole Kidman, remake, sci-fi
Reviewed by Kat at the 4:30 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Mark Wahlberg (Charlie Croker), Charlize Theron (Stella Bridger), Donald Sutherland (John Bridger), Edward Norton (Steve)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's The Italian Job page.
I haven't seen the original movie, so I can't say whether this is a good remake or not. However, I can say that examined separately it is a very good movie! It's a fun and exciting movie about a big heist in LA, which involves an elaborate scheme.
The Italian Job even got me to think that the Mini (which had never impressed me before) was a pretty cool car.
Grade: B+
Labels: 2003, action, adventure, Charlize Theron, crime, Edward Norton, Mark Wahlberg, movie, remake, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:30 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Lindsay Lohan (Hallie Parker/Annie James), Dennis Quaid (Nick Parker), Natasha Richardson (Elizabeth James), Elaine Hendrix (Meredith Blake), Lisa Ann Walter (Chessy)
As a fan of the original The Parent Trap movie with Hayley Mills, I wasn't sure how I'd feel about a new version. I was very pleasantly surprised. They did a wonderful job with this updated version. Yes, you've seen the story before, but the updated version works very well. The story is still very possible, even if it is incredibly unlikely. The story of identical twins who meet at camp and hate each other instantly being forced to share a cabin in solitary confinement and learning that they're sisters is sweet.
I also thought it was cool that Joanna Barnes (who played the girlfriend of the twins' father in the original movie) came back to play the mother of the girlfriend of the twins' father in the new version. The little things that make someone who knows the original smile if they realize it...
I'm also a big fan of cuppy bunny (the very well loved bunny that accompanies one of the girls to camp). The story is still very sweet and it's very well done. The cast is wonderful and I highly recommend taking a look at the remake of The Parent Trap.
Grade: B+
Labels: 1998, comedy, Dennis Quaid, Disney, drama, family, Lindsay Lohan, movie, remake, romance
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:55 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Michael Douglas (Steven Taylor), Gwyneth Paltrow (Emily Bradford Taylor), Viggo Mortensen (David Shaw), Sarita Choudhury (Raquel Martinez)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's A Perfect Murder page.
I've always loved a good Hitchcock movie and this remake of Dial "M" for Murder was well done. I think Michael Douglas and Gwyneth Paltrow did a wonderful job. And of course, one of the best lines in a movie (delivery and actual quote) is "That's not happiness to see me is it?"... Such a great line in this movie.
I definitely recommend seeing this remake. Whether you've seen the original or not, I think it's an enjoyable way to spend some time. (Many of the people I know who've seen this version did not see the original.)
Grade: B
Labels: 1998, drama, Gwyneth Paltrow, Michael Douglas, movie, remake, thriller, Viggo Mortensen
Reviewed by Kat at the 12:40 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Robin Williams (Professor Philip Brainard), Marcia Gay Harden (Dr. Sara Jean Reynolds)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's Flubber page.
The flubber is definitely the star of this remake of The Absent Minded Professor. Who would have thought that some green goop could upstage Robin Williams? Generally, Robin Williams is hilarious, so how could they possibly waste his talent so horribly? Such a shame to waste someone as wonderful as Robin Williams in the role of a side kick to something called flubber...
The flubber is cute, but not cute enough to make seeing Flubber worth the time. Kids will probably love this, though, so if you have kids, it's a great idea for a rental.
Grade: C+
Labels: 1997, comedy, Disney, family, movie, remake, Robin Williams
Reviewed by Kat at the 4:45 PM show | 0 screams