Re-making Fame
Are Audiences Really Ready to Re-do the 80s?
Fame first surfaced in 1980 and despite a thin plot and mediocre music, it exploded and kicked off the dance film that would become the rage in this decade. With films such as Flashdance (1983) and Girls Just Want to Have Fun (1985) dance was incorporated into youth culture. A youth culture that is now labeled as Generation Y or the MTV generation, a channel that first aired in 1981. And MTV's fostering of the music video genre has allowed dance to develop in mainstream music and consciousness.
With the recent death of John Hughes [writer and director Sixteen Candles (1984), The Breakfast Club (1985), Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986) along with a slew of other writing and producing credits], it is hard to believe that the 1980s is construed as many as history. As cinematically, its films are just as modern and relatable as the concept of the MTV generation.
Furthermore, with a re-make of Footloose (1984), not only in the works, but actually cast, one has to wonder, how long is it appropriate to wait before a film can be recycled? Shouldn't audiences have at least a decent generational gap before the same story is rehashed? And with Kevin Bacon just making 51 this summer, it is best to suggest that this Footloose remake is too soon. Far too soon.
Why Fame? Why Now?
With reality programs such as Dancing With The Stars and So You Think You Can Dance? generating monetary and viewership success it is only natural that studios would attempt to piggy back on this new dance in the media. Of course, the success of DIsney's High School Musical would also suggest that this current dance craze is once again rooted in youth culture. And now with Fame, a direct relationship between reality dance programming and features will exist as this film stars one Kherington Payne of last year's roster on So You Think You Can Dance? Almost suggesting dance is the newest route to screen time.
What is disappointing about this remake is that there was never much to Fame to begin with and genuinely not any reason for it to be re-purposed. An original story centered on dance or a performing arts high school would work, yes, but the story is so overdone. The original film was also turned into a television series in 1982, but only to very limited success. So why is this remake necessary?
Nothing New, The Musical is Still Waiting
Maybe it is not necessary, but it has happened. Similar to the situation in modern musicals mentioned in The Future of the Modern Musical, Fame will insert itself within modern musicals explanation of song, making this musical very easy to swallow. It will not push the genre or change it. Rather it will create a fluidity between reality programming and features that center on dance or performance.
Just like Jennifer Hudson's American Idol experiences transferred her into Dreamgirls (2006) success, Fame will also contain a grain of knowledge of reality. Hudson's talent had already been tested on television and like Payne's took a role centered on that talent. But unfortunately, this talent will be displayed in a remake that is not only too soon, but lacks focus. One can only hope that original content will find its way into the modern musical and rid cinemas of these remakes. So that maybe the next generation can find these stories and re-purpose in a world that is not so familiar.
Fame
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