80s vs. 00s: Which Decade Made Better Movies?
June 10th, 2010 by BarakIt seems that the only thing directors and producers do these days is remake movies/TV series from the 80s or continue movie series that started in the 80s. Just to name a few examples: This week The A-Team and The Karate Kid are released, and in the near future we will also see Wall Street 2, Predators, Red Dawn and Tron: Legacy hit our screens. Is it a good thing? How are the titles from the 2000s in comparison to their ancestors from the 80s? We’ll try to answer these burning questions and more below…
10. MacGyver 1985 vs. MacGruber 2010
MacGyver: This clever hit TV series couldn’t be ignored by anyone was alive and reasonably consciousness in the mid 80s. Special secret agent MacGyver (Richard Dean Anderson) used his brain in place of a gun, and relied on his knowledge of science to save himself and others. MacGyver could literally design lifesaving tools from a gum and paper clips… no wonder it gained a beloved cult favorite status.
MacGruber: Counting on the popularity of the series, this is a spoof comedy, led by Will Forte’s bumbling secret agent whose lack of skill and abundance of personal problems serve as a detriment to him - and those around him.
Winner: MacGyver, easily.
This is an example of a really ridiculous effort to build on the 80s magic. MacGruber’s big failure is, among others, the-far fetched expectation that 35- to 40-year-olds will enjoy a spoof of a series they watched when they were 10! Next time, don’t wait 20 years to make the spoof…
9. Miami Vice 1984 vs. Miami Vice 2006
1984: One of the most popular TV shows of the 80s, it helped define the fashion and music of the period while maintaining high-quality police drama standards. Miami Vice is a fascinating cultural document of the 1980s as well as a stylized and exciting cop show.
2006: This rough movie follows the violent, dangerous adventures of Crockett and Tubbs, with Miami at the center of a global drug trade. Both men continually struggle with personal demons to stay on the right side of the law.
Winner: The TV series (and actually, anyone who simply didn’t go to see the movie).
In line with the introspective, gloomy wave of 2000s remakes/sequels, this remake simply eliminated all that was exciting, fun - even campy – in the original series.
1980: The film won an Oscar for Best Original Score and Song. The 80s TV series that followed was a huge hit. Both had loveable casts and inspired music-and-dance numbers that seem to burst forth spontaneously out of sheer irrepressible emotion. In those days, everybody hummed the main theme song, tried to dance like Leroy, loved Mr. Shorofsky and recited Debbi Allen’s memorable line: “You want fame? Well, fame costs. And right here is where you start paying … in sweat.”
2009: This modernization of the classic musical from 1980 more or less does the same, and allows students at the New York School of Performing Arts to take center stage.
Winner: The 80s movie obviously.
The 2009 movie was bad and redundant. As with MacGruber, producers failed to notice reality (in more than one sense): with so many reality shows, like American Idol or So You Think You Can Dance, the charm of an art school that takes common, even hard-case youngsters and make them stars, is a bit outdated. High School Musical movies and Glee knew how to adapt.
7. Hairspray 1988 vs. Hairspray 2007
1988: This offbeat, cult music comedy from John Waters actually takes place in the 60s. Energetic, overweight teen Tracy Turnblad wants to get on a hip local TV dance program. Her lively dance moves and bubbly personality are met with unexpected popularity, and she finds herself fighting against discrimination by black dancers, and also against angry, scheming, fellow dancer Amber and her pushy mother.
2007: While less out-there than Waters’ original, the film is still quirky, largely thanks to another John, this time Travolta, playing Tracy’s overweight mother. The creators also smartly updated the original, by making the remake a musical. The result was a great success.
Winner: A draw.
Each title had its uniqueness and style. This is how you make a 80s remake. One reservation though: maybe the fact that both movies are period titles, dealing with the 60s, helped fight the 80s remake spell.
6. A Nightmare on Elm Street 1984 vs. A Nightmare on Elm Street 2010
1984: “Don’t fall asleep” was the mantra of a small town group of teenagers, terrorized by a mysterious, hellish character who entered their dreams and systematically slaughtered them in their sleep. This excellent, surprisingly surrealistic genre entry became a successful franchise. Everybody remembers (and maybe even dreams about) the slashing razor-fingered hand of the tormented Freddy Krueger.
2010: In the revival of the franchise, we once again meet slasher film legend Freddy Krueger, once again haunting the dreams of the teenagers of Springwood.
Winner: The original.
The remake was just insulting. Why didn’t the producers learn from the failed attempts to revive Halloween and Friday the 13th?
5. First Blood 1982 vs. Rambo 2008
First Blood: After being arrested for a crime he did not commit, a Green Beret survivor of the Vietnam War begins having terrible nightmares. This gripping, classic one-man-army movie was the beginning of the popular Rambo Franchise, and raised the question: Why didn’t Rambo win in Vietnam on his own to begin with?
Rambo: Rambo is drawn back into the action when a group of idealists gets captured by the Burmese army. What follows is Rambo fighting genocide with genocide, turning men into hamburger meat with machine guns, bombs, machetes, and, the most deadly weapon of all, his bare hands.
Winner: First Blood.
Because it is the one that started it all, an explosive movie that keeps you on the edge of your seat until the last, powerful frame. And we also need to thank the original, as it was the inspiration for the sweet tribute – Son of Rambow. That said, Rambo wasn’t a bad action movie on its own. Luckily, it didn’t deal with Vietnam or the Gulf war.
4. Transformers 1984 vs. Transformers 2007
1984: The Autobots and Decepticons, during the great Cybertronian War, crash landed on earth. Millions of years later, geological activity revives the warring factions. And so…
Oh well, who really cares about this mumbo jumbo, it was all about the shape-shifting robots fighting each other, and everybody wanted these toys back in the 80s.
2007: The movie is simply a massive giant-robot showdown. Thankfully, it had Megan Fox in it. Unfortunately, this time around there weren’t any shape shifting Megan Fox toys…
Winner: The 1984 series.
Shia LeBeouf, we do not accept your apology for the quality of the 2007 movie. If Wall Street 2 is really good, we might consider forgiving.
3. The Terminator 1984 vs. Terminator Salvation 2009
The Terminator: One of the tightest, tensest sci-fi films ever made, this is a landmark in its genre. The low-budget masterpiece was the breakthrough film for super director James Cameron, who created one of the finest action films of the 80s, and one of the finest cinematic time paradoxes ever. Arnold Schwarzenegger will forever be known as the heartless killing machine, and of course for “I’ll be back.”
Terminator Salvation: We really wanted it to be back, but not like that!! I intended to write few words about this 4th insultment, er, installment, but since it was so bad, I repressed all memory to the extent that I could write the synopsis of The Sound of Music here, and I wouldn’t know if it was right …
Winner: Terminator Salvation (is the loser). The winner is The Terminator.
James – we are in serious need of salvation! So before making another Avatar, pleeeease make a 5th and final worthy ending. You just have to.
2. Raiders of the Lost Ark 1981 vs. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull 2008
Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Allies discover the Nazis are planning to use the Lost Ark of the Covenant as a weapon, and enlist the help of Doctor Indiana Jones, a seemingly mumbling archeologist, to locate the biblical treasure. Jones must escape evil Nazis, a nest of venomous snakes - not to mention the wrath of God. Steven Spielberg delivered groundbreaking special effects and a fabulous sense of humor, and the movie was the beginning of an extremely successful franchise, enjoyable for the whole family.
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull: Indy tries to return to his life as a professor of archaeology, but soon finds himself fighting scheming Russians back in the 50s. As with Terminator Salvation, it doesn’t really matter what the plot of this movie is.
Winner: The winner by a knockout is the 1981 movie.
Even Spielberg makes mistakes. Unfortunately, he doesn’t apologize for them. Shia LeBeouf, on the other hand, is making a career from apologizing for films that shouldn’t have been made. Once again, we’re not forgiving.
1. Die Hard 1988 vs. Live Free or Die Hard 2007
Die Hard: Hans Gruber, a sophisticated robber posing as a terrorist, storms the Takagi Corporation’s Christmas party at the Nakatomi skyscraper, intending to pull off a multi-million dollar from the company’s vault. John McClane, a cop from NY visiting his estranged, career-driven wife, is the one who’s going to stop him. Die Hard is a groundbreaking action flick, fresh and captivating to this very day.
Live Free or Die Hard: Thomas Gabriel is an evil mastermind determined to bring anarchy and chaos to the United States on Independence Day. He should have known that kidnapping McClane’s daughter, Lucy, was the wrong move….
Winner: Die Hard
The 4th installment was a very effective action flick, but you just can’t compete with the quality of the original movie. It’s like the Michael Jordan of movies. Yippie ki-yay, m***f*** - that was one hell of a one-man-army thrill ride.
Conclusion: The winning decade is, of course, the 80s.
The original is almost always better than its successors. But that doesn’t mean 80s remakes and sequels won’t continue. If Hollywood decided to redo the 80s, it’s either because audiences want them to, or because there are too many Hollywood execs in their 30s and 40s with hyper-nostalgia.
I don’t know what about you, but despite the conclusive results, I’m looking forward to seeing The A-Team, The Karate Kid and even Wall Street – the 2000s versions. I’m pretty sure they won’t be as good as their ancestors, but growing up in the 80s is like an incurable disease, I guess: You can’t get enough of it…
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June 17th, 2010 at 7:46 pm
I think there are a bunch of problems with this.
First of all, whoever came up with this list obviously grew up in the 80’s and therefore is automatically biased towards the films/series from the 80’s.
second, they compare TV series with movies, which are two completely different kinds of art as well as the comparisons between cartoons and live action (even if the live action is mostly CGI)
Third the author obviously has an affinity for things “campy” which, if you ask most people, is another word for LAME.
Modern day special effects make movies more believable and enjoyable. Dont get me wrong, there are plenty of classic older movies that i would consider to be in the top 10 of all time, but as for this list; most disagreeable.
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June 18th, 2010 at 8:39 am
Agreed. It is pretty hard to compare classic movies from the 80s with crappy Hollywood remakes.
If the article was titled, “Original or remakes, which were better?” I’d be more likely to find this article as favorable. But the point of the article is to view which decade had better movies than this is a terrible way to do the job.
And I also agree its absurd to compare TV shows to movies. It also is unfair to compare MacGyver to MacGruber. That is like comparing Goldfinger to Goldmember. It is just not a good comparison, though everyone knows MacGruber sucked it is just not a fair comparison.
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June 18th, 2010 at 11:09 pm
I love the new ones ^_^
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June 21st, 2010 at 7:22 am
Reboots suck. We know this. Compare the best movies from the 80’s with the best movies of the 00’s next time.
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April 20th, 2011 at 9:58 pm
I agree with all the comments so far.
If we were to compare the best movies from the ’80s, with the best of the ’00s, then what would be your top 5 from each era?
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April 24th, 2011 at 5:51 pm
Hairspray was an awful update. The music was well-written, but the original was just fine the way it was. Travolta was annoying — nobody does Divine like Divine.
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April 27th, 2011 at 4:03 pm
This should satisfy everyone: better movies came out of the last decade, but the worst remakes were also made during that time.
For some reason, film studios think rehashing retro concepts will win over nostalgic audiences, instead of coming up with NEW ideas!
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April 28th, 2011 at 6:02 am
Totally agree with everything said so far. You can’t compare them in the way you are comparing them. Clearly you have a biased view so, shouldn’t present your article in the way you have done. As someone has previously said, if it was a comparison between the original and the re-makes then maybe you would have readable article. I think your title is misleading. If you had a different title etc. then I think I would have enjoyed your article more, and perhaps have even agreed with more of your opinions. Just something to consider then next time you write an article.
Thanks,
Lorna
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April 29th, 2011 at 8:06 am
Fame is a good example of how the original had a grittier, more human approach. The update didn’t translate the same way, and I didn’t care about the characters. A dumb reboot.
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April 29th, 2011 at 12:05 pm
I was a massive fan of Transformers as a kid in the ’80s, and loved that movie (along with the animated series and the comics and especially the toys).
The new flick, with all the special effects, sure made the robots look cooler. But it wasn’t a better film, that’s for sure.
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April 29th, 2011 at 10:54 pm
Its really hard to compare, but I dont know why I always choose modern movies in this cases, may be its because these are the movies of my time.
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May 1st, 2011 at 8:32 am
It’s not that MacGruber is a spoof 20 years later that is the problem. It’s that it should have only been a 2-minute SNL skit and not a full length feature, like many of the SNL skits that were made into movies.
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May 6th, 2011 at 1:04 pm
I have to say, Tron is one of those films that was totally groundbreaking when it came out, and still looks amazing today. However, technology has also allowed for the new Tron to look amazing, as well. So, I call that one a tie.
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May 7th, 2011 at 6:58 am
I’m looking forward to when classic ’90s movies are remade, like House Party 2 and Titanic.
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May 12th, 2011 at 7:49 am
It is only the proof that fashion is rotating as the taste of human being. Old and new are still beautiful movie.
My last blog post:
Kim About Body Issues, Butt, Cellulite
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June 29th, 2011 at 7:38 pm
It seems that the movie that you post here is an old movies. But those movies are very nice, i already watch those movie and i should say that the movie is so nice and funny.
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