Horror Remakes: Is Rob Zombie a Hypocrite?

Posted on Wednesday, September 5th, 2007 by Peter Sciretta

Rob Zombie's HalloweenThe critics and fans pretty much hated Rob Zombie’s Halloween remake, so it makes us wonder why Zombie didn’t take his own advice. The following quote comes from ArrowintheHead. Apparently Rob Zombie said the following quote in a 2002 interview.

“I feel it’s the worst thing any filmmaker can do. I actually got a call from my agent and they asked me if I wanted to be involved in a remake of CHAINSAW. I said no fucking way! Those movies are perfect — you’re only going to make yourself look like an asshole by remaking them. Go remake something that’s a piece of shit and make it good. Like with my movie I have elements of CHAINSAW in it because I love that movie so much, but I wouldn’t dare want to “remake” it. It’s like a band trying to be another band.”

Halloween is raking in the cash at the box office, and lead to Zombie’s two picture deal with Dimension Films. So to be fair, it was a good business move. But I think that Zombie’s quote above speaks more towards the creative nature of a remake than the business nature. So is Zombie a hypocrite?

Comments 

 

Related Posts

Tags

Horror, Quotes, Sequels, The Weinstein Co, ,

  • Rick
    Is he a hypocrite? Yeah maybe, but only to his quote. Like you said, it was a good business move, and the movie IS making bank. With so many people going to see it, the movie can't be THAT terrible to fans and critics. I saw it and didn't particularly care for it, preferring the 1978 version, but it was worth the ticket and the almost 2 hours time.

    I think people like to pick and talk more than anything else. It's hard to remake ANY movie considered a classic. Perhaps Zombie's "Re-vision" will be continued in the next one and give more context to the 1st ('07) movie.
  • Chris
    I guess the real question is, does Rob Zombie think the original Halloween movie is a piece of shit? He wouldn't be a hypocrite if he thinks the original was crap.
  • jon
    this movie was being re-made regardless of who did it. i'm just glad it was rob zombie and not someone who has no respect for the original and just looking to make a buck and get they're name out there.

    hypocrite? or protector of the sacred?? haha, you decide.
  • dbunker
    Hypocrites in Hollywood?? The hell you say.
    Hey money makes it all go away.
  • Ray

    Zombie probably thought "Halloween" was so flawed that it needed to be remade. Ya know, it didn't have enough redneck slimeballs in it.


    I sincerely hope that everyone who went and saw this reimagining/remake/regurgitation based on Zombie's work will now have their eyes opened to Zombie's complete lack of vision and talent.

  • If he said that, then the simple answer is: Yes.

    Amazing what waving enough money under one's nose can do to undermine one's principles.

    Vic
  • Jeff Nyman
    Maybe he just did that very human thing called "changing your mind." That quote is from 2002. Things can change. Whether that's due to money or a change in viewpoint is really pretty irrelevant in this case.
  • Scott Perry
    Ok so compared to Halloween 3,5,6, and 8 you cannot deny that Rob Zombie's was much better. Its not the greatest and his lack of tieing things together really ruined the film's credibility. And for that piece of shit ending of his, I really think it would have been better if he shaved off 5 minutes of the ending and finished the movie off with Sam Loomis and Laurie in the cop car.
  • Thad Ward
    No Rob is not a Hypocrite he simply changed his mind , and for all of you that hated the movie I guess your not used to a movie finally after all theses years making sense!!! Rob stayed very true to the original and yet gave Myers a story unlike the original!! he cleaned up the unnessesary shit from the original film and over all made a great movie!! I gues what you people wanted was another piece of shit freddy or jason running aroind that would never die Micheal Myers should have always been human not immortal like the original Makes for a better story!!!
  • Yep...
    Freddy, Jason, M. Myers, and the creepy well-chick from The Ring should have a cage match.

    *nod*
  • I watched an interview with him where some one asked him basically "Is this sacrilege" and he said no, the real sacrilege is to keep piling on thoughtless sequels. From that interview I get the vibe from he doesn't consider this so much a remake as much as telling Micheal's back story. Lastly, Slash film guy, I generally agree with you and we all have our things we hate/don't care for. So stop trying to paint this movie as something that sucks. It runs people out of the theater, it's a good Horror movie!
  • hutter
    You can believe that the slimeballs that inhabit Rob Zombie's version of Halloween share the same zip code with the Firefly clan. Having a love for the original is not enough...you have to have more than one gimmick in your directoral arsenal.

    Rob is good when he's filming his own creations. He can fill his world with humorous scumbags and make it work. But explaining why Michael Myers does what he does, trying to make the audience feel sympathetic to him, doesn't do the character justice. Rob claimed that his tweaks to the character were to give him new legs, but all I can see is a distant relative of Otis & Baby running roughshot in Illinois. Is Rob a bad director? No, IMHO. But he's the wrong director for Michael Myers, and whoever approached him to helm the Halloween remake probably knew Rob was wrong for the job, but hey. If you're remaking a film that has no need for the remake treatment, you don't hire who's best for the job...you hire who's "hot".

    Bah.
  • Frebbles
    I see no hypocracy, as the original Halloween was a total turd.
  • actually Rob you did the world a favour. Your version of Halloween is probably the best well rounded Horror movie ever. It gives the Bad guy far more depth and therefor adds a more realness to Hollywood evergroing pile of horror movie shit. Everyone I know (and that's quite a bunch) thought it was a brilliant movie. I think unless your more conservative person in taste in horror movies then this is a kickass movie. That said it wasn't much of a horror more a thriller tho. I don't recall sleepless nights or moment of sudden sock which is the piont for a horror movie. To scare tha crap out of movie goers. Bad on a scale of over good movie 1 being good 10 being bad, This scores a easy 8.
  • Will
    Sorry I was a bit drunk there let me say it again for the cheap seats

    Actually Rob did the world a favour. His version of Halloween is probably the best well rounded Horror movie ever. It gives the Bad guy far more depth and therefor adds a more realness to Hollywood evergrowing pile of horror movie shit. Everyone I know (and that’s quite a bunch) thought it was a brilliant movie. I think unless your more conservative person in taste in horror movies then this is a kickass movie. That said it wasn’t much of a horror more a thriller tho. I don’t recall sleepless nights or moment of sudden shock which is the piont for a horror movie. To scare the crap out of movie goers. But on a scale of over good movie 1 being good 10 being bad, This scores a easy 3
  • iggy
    what was that about 'critics and fans hate the movie' ??

    i thought it had a distinct look, great music and sound, and even though we all knew the story, he made it watchable again.

    pashaw i say, he is a great director and don't be surprised if you see him moving into bigger and more 'serious' projects.

    (ridley scott anyone?? yeah, he started out with alien and blade runner...now american gangster)

    you go rob, and sherri even turns my WIFE on..
  • bryan and ruben
    i say RZ did take a peice of shit and make it good!
    I hated the first make of halloween.
    Miky was a bitch killer in them
    Rz turned him into a b.a.m.f.
    way to go
    I love the devils rejects and house of 1000 corpse!
    KICK ASS!
  • VampireCowboy
    I think Halloween fans should be happy he remade it.
    Maybe people will remember how this one was a pretty good remake and forget about all the horrible sequels.
    Instead of being a movie that got worn out by crappy directors trying to continue the story just to make money, now it can end on a much better note.
  • Phillip Carter
    Rob Zombie is the best horror director to come along in a long time. He has the guts to show the dark side of people and his characters bring reality to the screen and none of this PG-13 garbage I see in theaters today. He reinvented Halloween and brought power and emotion that Michael Myers didn't have before. House of 1000 Corpses and The Devil's Rejects made me excited about horror movies again. Rob Zombie is a legend and I hope he keeps delivering the darkness!
  • Kyle
    Rob Zombie did not remake Halloween. He raised it from the cliche that it had become. You look at all the sequels, they were far from anything truly worth watching. So, he did not remake it as much as resurrect it from the hole that the directors of the sequels had thrown it in.

    He made it his movie, while paying homage to Carpenters film. I thoroughly enjoyed it and found it to be quite different, yet not to different.

    When we look at Zombie did a great job as far as being an original. When you see a Rob Zombie film, you have to expect that you're going to for sure see two things: Lots of swearing and a fair amount of nudity. When we look at many classic horror films, those are two things that have become tradition. Zombie is old school and quite innovative.

    So I don't think that he thinks that Carpenters HALLOWEEN is a piece of shit... But that the remakes were pieces of shit and made the original look bad. Therefore it was a resurrection and reinvention, more than a remake. One, that I feel, was quite affective.
  • Bryan Durnin
    Rob Zombie gave that Halloween movie a life... I watched the original as a kid, and was a little scared.. I watched Zombie's as an adult and left horrified.. The beginning with the young boy, who could have gotten an Oscar for that role, just put chills up my spine. It is so real. There are familys out there and there are kids like that out there.. Psychopaths.. Is it because of they way they were raised?? Well, here Zombie gives a good idea of what this child was living with.. Hatred.. How many have killed their family in our culture?? Maybe they were thinking along the same lines?? Zombie makes REAL movies.. That's what's out there.. He doesn't throw in the old 'this is only a movie' phrase.. He gives real life.. Best remake I ever saw.. Keep rockin' Rob...
blog comments powered by Disqus
gorilla nation

/Film

Copyright © 2009 /Film. Web design by Pro Blog Design. Logo Concept by: Illumination Ink

All names, trademarks and images are copyright their respective owners.