by Erik Hopkins

Created on: August 25, 2009   Last Updated: August 26, 2009

What can you say about the old shows from the 60's, 70's, and 80's? Some were so outrageously campy and dumb while others were innovative and provocative.

The only thing they ever had in common was the characters. We watched to see what would happen to the characters and reveled in the chemistry of the whole cast and the actors who played them. Who shot JR; will Gilligan ever get off the island? That's what we wondered.

I have seen most if not all the movie remakes of those shows and not a single one was or is as memorable as the show itself. The remakes coming out of Hollywood all seemed to be profit driven and bear little or no resemblance to the show it's based on. In some cases it appears to be intentional. This is not to say I didn't enjoy them I did but none of them have done any justice to the original.

The actors chosen to play in the key roles always seem to forget or just don't understand who the original characters were and what they were about. Case in point, and this is my opinion, is Starsky and Hutch.

The original series didn't portray them as idiots and morons like the movie did. Not to put down Stiller and Wilson but they played the roles like comics while Soul and Glaser while a little over the top, played the characters like real people. And they were easy to relate too.

The original actors created the characters putting themselves into their interpretation of who he/she was. Could anyone else play Hawkeye Pierce (MASH) like Alan Alda? How about (and again not to put down anyone's ability) Vin Diesel as Kojak or Cedric the entertainer as George Jefferson? These roles belong to their original actors who helped shape and created them, so if Hollywood insists on remaking old TV shows at the very least they should try and find someone who understands who the character was. To do anything else (again my opinion) is a sign of disrespect. How about Harrison Ford and DJ Qualls as Andy Griffith and Barney Fife? Maybe they could have Barney in a shoot out in the remake. Even better Jack Nicholson as Archie Bunker.

Very few actors who are put into a role of character that is preexisting either understand who that character was or are willing to learn what they where about and so far the best I have seen was Zachary Quinto, who played Spock in the new Star Trek. When I watched him, I saw a young Spock not a replacement one.

Hollywood needs to stop trying so hard to copy the successes (and failures) of the old TV shows and maybe concentrate on more original offerings and a better quality of film.

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