[The Count]

Perhaps I can offer a little insider insight.

There is no dirth to new ideas out there today. As a fact, come recent classics have shown that. Some producers/directors repeatedly come out with good material.

The key to remakes is pure and simple an economic one.

1) They are tried and true formulas with a ready-made viewer base. Contemporary commercials films run into the millions of dollars to film and to market. A guaranteed minimal return is too often the deciding factor as to which titles get made.

2) There are very few decent actors (male and female) around today. As with popular music, this lack of any genuine talent is offset by technological tricks and the "no competition anyway"-effect.

3) Contemporary (younger) audiences are victims to all this. Put plainly, they have been brainwashed to accept marketing in lieu of quality. Let's face it, with DVD's, I-Pods, etc., it's really disheartening to admit that there's almost nothing contemporary worth putting in these great media. Remakes offer a semblance of worthiness. It's a way to capitalize on the quality of the past.

4) You've all said it well: stop shelling out money and they'll stop insulting your intelligence. Problem: Aptly said, there's a sucker born every minute"; there are just too many others who WILL shell out their money; and when the DVD goes on clearance for $6.99, be truthful, even we'll buy it JUST TO KEEP OUR COLLECTION UP-TO-DATE.

5) Finally, there's the special-effects/modern technology angle. Even if it's only reflected in 1 or 2 "cool" scenes ... it draws the flies.

A word of hope: None of us is forced to subsist on today's market. In a sense, every decade now belongs to every consumer. If only 3 worthy contenders arise each year --- that's 3 more to add to an already commendable list of classics.

The best thing about media today is our ability to customize choice completely. We have that control. Unfortunately, we are also (or we WERE ONCE also) human; humans are curious; curiosity killed the cat!