Weekly Round Up: Ghostbusters, Kevin Hart, DiCaprio

17th June 2019

Weekly Round Up: Ghostbusters, Kevin Hart, DiCaprio

Ghostbusters is a much beloved classic, and while I personally enjoy its direct sequel, it’s safe to say that any follow-ups to the original have been… divisive, to say the least. Ghostbusters 2 is often the subject of much debate among fans of the franchise, who consider its lighter, more child friendly tone to be damaging in many ways. The remake, meanwhile, helmed by Paul Feig, drew criticism from all of the spectrum, including whiny man-babies who can’t stand anything that comes with a vagina.

For my money, I didn’t like the remake. I thought it was lazy, not in keeping with the spirit of the original, and failed to tell a coherent, enjoyable and, most importantly, funny narrative. I would have been happy to see that cast take another crack at it, though, but Sony have had other plans, and are busy moving forward with their proposed Ghostbusters 3, which is being written and directed by Jason, son of Ivan, Reitman.

It is with regards to that movie that this week’s first bit of weekly movie news arrives. While speaking to parade about the 40^th anniversary of the original Alien, Sigourney Weaver let slip that she’ll be returning for Ghostbusters 3. As if that news wasn’t exciting enough, Weaver also seemingly confirmed the return of some other cast members.

Whether or not Sony had intended to keep these details quiet remains to be unseen, but Weaver commented that “it’s going to be crazy working with the guys again”.

Quite who the guys were remains a mystery, but if you’re asking me (and presumably you are since, y’know, you’re reading this round-up), then I’m guessing she’s referring to the surviving members of the original Ghostbusters team. Namely, Bill Murray, Dan Ackroyd and Ernie Hudson, who all appeared in the remake.

It’s possible that Rick Moranis could make a surprise return, though he has been famously absent from movies for several years now. Still, I’d love to see him make a comeback, and if ever there was a movie in which to do it…

While we’re on the subject of Bill Murray (and remakes of classic movies), it would appear that Paramount Pictures are looking to reboot another classic film from Murray’s career, the Christmas Carol inspired comedy Scrooged.

Kevin Hart is set to produce and star in this version of the movie, which seems like a shame to me, because why would you not just call it something else and release it as yet one of the many, many countless remakes and reimaginings of the Dickens classic?

It seems really unnecessary to go through all the hassle of remaking such a beloved movie (and it is beloved, for me it’s a Christmas must-watch), when Hart himself, as well as the story on which the film will based, already has enough brand recognition to hold its own. I mean, c’mon… how many youngsters are really going to be drawn in by the title Scrooged, and how many Scrooged fans are really going to be drawn in by Kevin Hart?

Speaking of remakes in this weekly round up we don’t need this Christmas, it looks like Blumhouse are eager to get something into the festive 2019 slot, with the announcement this week that they remaking Black Christmas (yes, again…).

The original Black Christmas is often labelled the first slasher movie. Released in 1974, the film tells the story of a group of Sorority House members terrorised by a mysterious killer. It’s a mean, vicious little film, and it’s really f**king good. It set the trend, alongside John Carpenter’s Halloween, which was released a few years later, for the slasher boom of the 80s, and features some fantastically tense and unsettling sequences.

The remake, at least, the one that came out in 2006, was a flop, and it’s terrible. Whether or not Blumhouse are intending to right the course with this one remains a mystery, but they do see super eager to get it done, with a release date scheduled just six months from now.

The film is set to be directed by Sophia Takal, who co-wrote the script with April Wolfe, which does suggest that this will at least offer something new in terms of perspective. Whether this turns out to be any good, however, remains a mystery, and I guess we’ll find out come Christmas.

Finally, in this weekly round up, it looks like Leonardo DiCaprio will no longer be starring in de Toro’s next feature, a remake of the 1947 creepy carnival drama Nightmare Alley. DiCaprio’s agents were unable to reach a deal with Fox Searchlight for the movie, and so he has left the project. In his place has stepped none other than Bradley Cooper, who is in talks for the role of a carnival worker who teams with a female psychiatrist to improve his act and rip people off.

I haven’t seen the original, so I’m unsure what to make of this one. While it’s a shame that DiCaprio is departing the project (see what I did there?), Cooper is a good actor in his own right and I’m sure he can bring something to the role. Mostly, anything that comes from del Toro is worth interest, so I’m excited to see where this one takes us.

Until the next Weekly Round Up…

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