Give reboots the heave-ho, says Marshall Fine. Well, sure…where do I sign? Except reboots — remakes with fresh blood — will never stop being made. It’s far less terrifying for a decision-maker to greenlight a reboot of a previously sold-and-marketed property than to stick his/her neck out on something even semi-original. Fear rules, cowardice prevails, survival is all and forthcoming films like The Lone Ranger are relishing the opportunity to deaden your soul. It’s an old equation. Pauline Kael explained most of it nearly 29 years ago. Things have changed, of course, but in what ways?
