Guide
to Remakes of Classic Movies
REMARKS
OF CLASSIC FILMS:
High Noon 1952 | Sabrina 1954
| REMARKS
OF CLASSIC FILMS
Artistically
and economically,
Hollywood
hasn't learned that
remaking classic movies for television or theatrical release is dumb. It never
works. Not at the box office, nor does it enhance the reputation of actors and
directors in comparisons with the legendary casts of the originals. Even modern
sequels are dangerous decades after the original movie ignited fireworks
nationwide.
HIGH NOON 1952
Most recent proof of
this is the Turner’s new millennium version of High Noon perhaps
the greatest horse opera ever made, circa 1952. The original movie starred Gary
Cooper as sheriff Will Kane. His wife, Amy, was played by Grace Kelly.
How in the name of hell can any of today's most prominent stars match that
towering duo? The new High Noon co-stars a couple of TV actors: Tom
Skerritt and Susanna Thompson. Not to knock Skerritt or Thompson, both of whom
are excellent performers.
But they're not in a league with superstars Cooper and Kelly.
Skerritt is a polished veteran who has starred in several films, but he's not a
legend. He lacks Cooper's towering presence and heroic magnetism. Kelly's
astonishing beauty and aristocratic bearing surpass Thompson's charms. Cooper and Kelly, both Oscar winners, rate among the most charismatic actors in
the history of the screen.
Look what happened to Gone With The Wind II and that bomb of bombs, The
Wiz starring Michael Jackson as a later day visitor to the Land
of Oz. Too many remakes are done by half-baked hustlers trying to cash in on
monumental successes of the past with pale imitations.
Cooper won an Oscar for his performance as the reluctant hero. Composers Dimitri
Tiomkin and Ned Washington won Oscars for the superlative score and the song
"Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darlin'." High Noon won a couple
of other Academy Awards as well.
It was a tremendous box-office success and still rates among the best Westerns
ever made.
The story is compelling and simple: Sheriff Kane on his wedding day stands his
ground when he hears a deadly enemy is heading for his little western town to
shoot him down in the street. Kane looks for help among townsfolk terrified of
the returning the bad guy. They eschew Kane's pleas for assistance to bring
justice to the criminal killer. But no, with little time remaining, the
dauntless lawman checks his six-shooters, stands courageously alone in the
middle of the rutted street awaiting the arrival of his deadly foe. It is Cooper
at his best, the lanky, dutiful man facing almost certain death with a display
of courage protecting his town and defending his honour.
 Sabrina 1954 Academy
Award Nominations: 5, including Best Director, Best Screenplay. Academy Awards:
Best (Black-and-White) Costume Design Cast: Humphrey Bogart, Audrey
Hepburn,
William Holden, Walter Hampden, Director/Producer:
Billy Wilder.
Screenplay: Billy Wilder, Samuel Taylor, and Ernest Lehman.
Well-known
actors could draw large crowds to a bad movie, while obscure names could keep
audiences away from a good film. Charisma and star quality were never more
important in
Hollywood
than during this era, when
the enchantment of motion pictures glowed most brightly through the stars.
Sabrina
is a perfect example of the kind of film where the actors have great importance
and manages to be a thoroughly charming, delightfully romantic variation of the
Cinderella story. Fresh from her Oscar-winning performance in Roman Holiday,
Audrey Hepburn is radiant in the title role. Bogart, best known for his tough
guy image, plays effectively against type as a romantic lead. And William
Holden, who had recently won an Academy Award for Stalag 17, is the perfect
playboy.
Based on Samuel Taylor's stage play, Sabrina Fair, Sabrina tells of the
transformation of a shy, insecure girl into a sophisticated, stylish woman who
wins the heart of Prince Charming. As directed by Billy Wilder Sabrina is meant
to be a modern- day fairy tale. It's about love and laughter, and delivers ample
quantities of both. Wilder does as much as he can with this formula, and the
result is a simple-yet-charming confection. Prince Charming is David Larrabee
(Holden), a confirmed playboy who has been married three times, and seems unable
to be faithful to any one woman.
Sabrina (Hepburn), the Larrabee chauffeur's daughter, is hopelessly smitten by
David, but he hardly acknowledges her existence. There is another Larrabee
brother, Linus (Bogart), who's only love is the family business. He has no
personal life to speak of, and spends most of his waking day at the office. In
an effort to broaden his daughter's perspectives, the chauffeur, Fairchild (John
Williams), sends Sabrina to
Paris
for two years.
While there,
she blossoms into a sophisticated young woman, but never lets go of her crush on
David. When she returns to the Larrabee Estate on
Long Island
, David is stunned by her
transformation, and decides to terminate his engagement to a wealthy heiress to
be with Sabrina.
Linus, however, who orchestrated David's impending marriage for business
reasons, is determined not to see a $20 million deal go up in smoke. So,
cold-bloodedly, he works to woo Sabrina away from David. Then something
unforeseen happens -- Linus falls for her.
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In 1995, director Sidney Pollock remade Sabrina with Harrison Ford as Linus,
Julia Ormond as Sabrina, and Greg Kinnear as David. Again, the actors'
devaluated the material. Most of the script changes were subtle: the settings
were updated, the Larrabee patriarch was written out, and David's fiancee was
given a semblance of personality.
Other
than that, however, the story followed an identical trajectory. The 1995 Sabrina
not as delightful as the original.
Although
Sabrina belongs to the category of lightweight, romantic comedies.
It's the kind of film that's perfectly-suited for the magic of a
black-and-white. Pollack’s
Sabrina is bland and the actors will leave almost all viewers, as cold as Linus.
For Ford lacks the subtlety of Bogart. Kinnear does not have the charisma of Holden. And how can Ormond reach
Hephurn’s sophisticated charm.
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