Is anyone else tired of folks saying ‘that movie couldn’t be made today’? It’s such a limiting line of thought to be certain. Even worse, it gives the impression that if anyone were to make the attempt to bring these movies back to life, there would be a PC mob ready and waiting to make sure it didn’t happen. The constant fear of upsetting and offending people has changed the entertainment business in a big way over the last several years, and it’s been changing throughout the last couple of decades. Sadly, people have grown increasingly offended by one thing or another and have lost that one thing that makes some movies stand out in a big way: their sense of humor. Jokes aren’t as allowable as they used to be, and as a result, this has made for a few very tone-deaf movies in the recent past. But placing limitations on the possibility of bringing great movies back, even if they wouldn’t be the same, is the kind of censorship that makes it clear that many people aren’t really interested in freedom of expression unless it happens to be something they personally approve of in an advance. Here are five movies that could still be made today.
5. Blazing Saddles
One thing that a lot of people don’t appear to understand is that by tweaking the dialogue just a bit, this movie could still be perfectly acceptable in today’s environment thanks to the fact that it does show historical representations. Sure, they’re not entirely agreeable since they use the habits and language of the time, but when really looking at this movie, a lot of people are offended by various moments and dialogue that are still present today. If the n-word offends people that much, then why in the world would a huge percentage of the rappers in the music industry get away with it? Double standards being what they are, this movie could be brought around again simply because it’s fun and doesn’t take itself too seriously. Tweak a few of the lines and voila, it’s acceptable.
4. Sixteen Candles
The sexual content in this movie is what has a lot of people up in arms since the idea of a young man violating a high school senior and being aided by her boyfriend is definitely cringe-worthy. But again, change a few things and you’ve got a coming of age story that is actually quite funny. Those that are getting up in arms about the high school and teenage aspects need to chill since like it or not, most of us have been through high school and had to deal with various issues that might not be the same, but are a rite of passage anyway. Trying to say this movie couldn’t be made has more to do with the insecurities of those watching the movie, not the story itself.
3. The Breakfast Club
Sure, Bender didn’t need to put his face between Claire’s legs, and that could be taken out without a fuss. To be fair, it was cringeworthy and didn’t need to be in there, since it makes Bender even more of a creep with less chance of redemption. But throughout the rest of the movie, there really isn’t any call to state that this movie couldn’t be made again. Once more, it’s a coming-of-age story, not a tale that’s meant to show how one behaviorally-challenged individual is bound to ruin the day for everyone or poke fun at anyone’s shortcomings or insecurities. The better question is to ask when people started taking movies so personally, and why in the world would they think that a movie couldn’t be made simply because they can’t stomach the humor and the drama that unfold.
2. Better Off Dead
Depression and teenage suicide are by far and large tough issues to deal with since they kind of have to be handled with kid gloves at this point, kind of like a lot of things. But the fact is that as dark as this movie goes (dark comedy after all) it’s still funny as hell since each situation in which the main character finds himself rethinking his plan, something insanely funny tends to happen. And on top of that, the movie does show his transition from sad and depressed to joyful and hopeful after a while, which some folks appear to miss. One has to wonder how many folks miss the idea that humor is meant to come from a place of sadness and then take the power of the issue that it’s poking fun at.
1. Caddyshack
This is another movie in which the dialogue could go a long way toward altering the movie, but for the better. The mention of the word ‘negro’ or ‘colored boy’ could easily be replaced, which would make this movie different enough to remain entertaining. The rest of it is simply blue-collar humor that doesn’t really hurt anyone and is amusing to a lot of people. The PC brigade has done a great job of convincing too many people that certain movies simply aren’t as funny as we believed back in the day, but thankfully there are those of us that are still able to think that yes, yes they are. Should these movies be remade? Initially, I would say no, they’re fine as they are for the most part. But could they be remade? Yes, without question they could.
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