Screen Rant fans rejoice because Hollywood is proving once again that its finger is on the pulse of entertainment. They have apparently entered the “Throw It Against the Wall and See if it Sticks” phase.
Nothing proves this point better than the recent announcement for a remake reboot of the Renny Harlin/ Slyvester Stallone action film Cliffhanger.
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Cliffhanger only managed a meager $16.1 million its opening weekend and topped out at $84 million for its entire 10 week run, just barely passing its $70 million budget. It did, however, manage to find an audience overseas raking in $170 million.
I’m not saying the first film wasn’t fun to watch but do all those combined numbers really justify a reboot? (Just by calling it the first film I am admitting to myself that there will inevitably be a second…sigh.)
The thing is, they aren’t even keeping the same story as before. They are changing the characters from Stallone’s lone mountain guide to a group of young climbers and going from the Rocky Mountains to “multiple cliff-face locations”. If you are going to do that why not just make it an original story and give it an original name?
Here, in his own words at the Cannes Festival, is producer Neil Moritz:
“Just as they rebooted Star Trek, we’re going to reboot Cliffhanger“.
Am I the only person wondering when Cliffhanger became a nine-movie, five-TV show series franchise? Did it reach cult status at some point in the last sixteen years and I somehow missed it?
Moritz is all too familiar with the concept of a remake. He has producing credits on Prom Night, and I Am Legend making him “highly qualified” (if that’s even possible) to work on this film. StudioCanal and Moritz’s Original Films will produce the reboot. People, I can’t make irony like that up!
There is currently no screenwriter attached to the project but plans are to begin filming in 2010 which would possibly lead to a 2011 release. We’ll update you as more information surfaces.
Although not confirmed, here’s how I think this idea was formed:
Hollywood Big Shot#1: “We’re supposed to have a really good movie idea to hype up during Cannes. So let’s get something together today.”
HBS#2: “How about a comic book movie? I’ve always been fond of those. My favorite was Slapstick by Marvel.”
HBS#3: “Nah comic book movies have been done to death. How about a live-action cartoon or video game movie? Something like Smurfs or Altered Beast? Robert De Niro can be Papa Smurf”
HBS#1: “No that’s too hard to write a script for, let’s just remake something. Everyone seems to be doing it so maybe we should jump on the bandwagon before it leaves?”
HSB#2: “What should we remake? A really old movie that can use an updating or something that was so bad we need to try again?”
HBS#3: “Let’s take something bad and try again like Eraser or Daylight”
HBS#2: “I like were your head is at but both of those movies are TOO bad to remake. How about Cliffhanger!?! “
HBS#1: “Ok so we go with Cliffhanger. I’ll make the announcement at Cannes this spring and call it a reboot. This is gonna be BIG!”
Besides the Hollywood moneybags, is anyone else looking forward to a Cliffhanger reboot?
Source: Empire Online
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14 Comments
This doesn’t need rebooted, it was an awesome film just make a sequel or leave it alone.
Oh for Christ’s sake!!!!
Reboot the Six Million Dollar Man and keep David Eiek away from it
Oh God, please spare me this agony!
I already hate Prom Night to no end. This isn’t irony, this is something so much worse I even can’t name it at the moment.
But I’m still hoping this is a big April fools of the HBS’s because they might have crawled out of their smelly party caves one month too late.
By the way: how can someone reboot something that only has a history as big as a two hour movie? Last time I checked, Stallone was still well alive. You could put him on the slope again without the need of a wheelchair.
ROFL LIVE ACTION SMURFS WOULD BE HOT!!!!!!!!
Why do Americans treat international money as second rate money?
@EnglishGavz – Because international money is the accumulation of all ticket sales in teh world that are NOT in the USA. IF the money came from one or two sources then maybe but it comes from literally scores of countries. International sales are not a good indicator of how good a movie is because in the USA we have dozens of movies to choose from but in overseas they have maybe 1 or 2. If people want to see a movie, then they have limited options. So if 200 million people want to watch a movie, no matter how bad it is, then they HAVE to see the only one playing and that movie will make a lot of money.
@ Paul Young
Even tickets sales state side and internationally don’t always determine if a film is good or not. Case in point Crash, did horrible at the box office, but won an Oscar and overall made almost 15 times as much revenue as it cost to produce it.
“So if 200 million people want to watch a movie, no matter how bad it is, then they HAVE to see the only one playing and that movie will make a lot of money.”
Your comment is a direct result as to why DragonFail Evolution set box office records in Asia.
@ EnglishGavz
I just treat money as money, but when it comes to determining if a film is good or not ALL money is second rate to my opinion of if the film is good or not.
If they do this reboot it should be a Cross between the Original Cliffhanger, and Snow Dogs with Cuba Gooding Jr., that way the Hollywood Money Hounds can market it too kids as well.
@Sin – Absolutely! But DFZ is a bigger franchise in Asia than it is over here so that might have a little to do with it as well.
Most commercial films, guessing 90% or more, are made in the US so it would make sense that their success would be judged by stateside box office numbers.
I didn’t think Daylight was that bad.
Cliffhanger does NOT need rebooting. You can bet that I won’t be spending my money to watch it. Judging from the description, it’s NOTHING like the original (which I enjoyed very much). They’re just using the fairly well known name so people will see it.
90% are made by US Studios but are 90% made in the US?
and CLiffhanger reboot? huh? Sorry my brain was like an etchasketch with that one..scrambled for a sec and then rebooted..Wans’t that already done and called Vertical Limit?
Are you F’n kidding me?!!
I think there is gonna be a major backlash against Hollywood real soon.
What really sucks about all these remakes and reboots is that it really alienates aspiring screenwriter who are trying to actually do something original.I’m sure that there are hundreds upon thousands of screenplays just wasting away on the floor of producers floors that are just collecting dust.I’m sure there’s something that’s more than deserving of being made into a movie.
At this point,if you are looking to break into Hollywood as a screenwriter,start writing comics and hope that someone notices your talent.
sly will fall off the mountain into a time vortex, into the future where he’ll battle mountian people- in – CLIFFHANGER -
A TIME TO CLIMB.
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