I’m fairly open with my views that remaking a movie isn’t quite on par with violating your grandmother. So, the news from last year that a remake of The Day the Earth Stood Still was in the works didn’t bother me as much as it bothered some other writers on this site. Even the casting of Keanu Reeves as Klaatu didn’t phase me much. Word that the movie is going to be yet another environmental screed, however, is the proverbial straw that has broken this camel’s back.
The original film, released in 1951, was a message about the Cold War and nuclear war. Reeves, being interviewed for the MTV Movies Blog says that the remake will focus on a more inconvenient message, if you catch my drift. Reeves said, “The version I was just working on, instead of being man against man, it’s more about man against nature. My Klaatu says that if the Earth dies, you die. If you die, the earth survives. I’m a friend to the earth.” In other words, get ready to hear more about ice caps melting and the endangered fruit bat while Keanu’s surfer dude voice puts you to sleep.
I understand that an anti-nuclear war movie isn’t quite as relevant today as it was in 1951 when our parents were all hiding under their desks. Still, at what point will environmentalist scare mongering bring about fatigue in audiences who will avoid these types of movies they way they are currently avoiding Iraq-war movies. Reeves isn’t going to bring in the box office he once did and the movie is more well known as a title than an actual film people have seen. It’ll be interesting to see how well the message they are preaching is received by the paying public.
