I've blogged about my usual distaste for remakes, so I thought I'd explore what to me makes a good remake. The answer is depth, a.k.a. added dimension. The best candidates then to be remade lacked depth originally:
Stargate. From the makers of Independence Day, putting Earth under threat from similarly shallow, vengeful, non-English-speaking aliens.
Stargate SG-1. A charismatic lead in Richard Dean Anderson, and expansion of the stargate concept beyond the single planet Abydos to countless worlds.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The movie was utterly forgettable. The series brought in Sarah Michelle Gellar and again went beyond the original vampires to countless species of demon and the now-famous Scooby Gang group of uniquely talented friends.
Batman. From camp (Adam West) to dark (Michael Keaton), back to camp (Val Kilmer, George Clooney), back to dark (Christian Bale). Batman has limitless depth to explore. It's only a question of doing so.
Spider-man. Nicholas Hammond vs. Tobey Maguire. Any questions?
Now to a remake I'd like to see: Perhaps a big screen version of Vega$ with George Clooney as Dan Tanna.
The trick is to broaden the concept without diluting it.
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