Montana Gates
Contributing Writer
Movie and television reboots have been popping up all over lately. Some of them have been great while others just sucked. From the reboot of “Sabrina The Teenage Witch” television show to the newest “Joker” movie, which ones where a hit and which just simply did not impress?
“The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina”
If you’re a fan of macabre television you may find yourself being drawn to the new “Sabrina” reboot, aptly named “The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.”
The Netflix original seemed to present a more intense atmosphere and darker imagery. The show starring Kiernan Shipka as the main witch herself presented an interesting take on the blonde leading role, but the reboot seemed intensely different from the original with its ever-present dreary atmosphere.
And, without the sarcastic and witty comments of the talking Salem, there wasn’t much comic relief to be found. The show even caused so backlash by the Satanic Temple for its use of imagery in the giant Baphomet statue at the Academy of Unseen Arts where Sabrina attends part-time.
The reboot focuses on the darker aspects of Sabrina learning of her witchy side and while it was an overall interesting show, it varied greatly from the original.
It definitely did not keep to the lightheartedness of its predecessor and almost seemed to try too hard to be scary. However, if you’re into dark imagery and occurrences, this may be an interesting show for you.
“Charmed”
Another witchy show that’s been brought back from the dead is the 1998-2006 series “Charmed.” The CW series aired in 2018, with lead actresses Madeleine Mantock, Melonie Diaz, and Sarah Jeffery, and had some pretty big changes presented from the original.
Without exposing any spoilers, one large difference from the original show is that the new cast is more diverse.
The old main characters were almost all white while the new cast contains Latina and black leads, and the story has also been changed to having one of the lead girls as a member of the LGBTQIA+ community.
The show so far is a nice change of pace from the original. Adapting the new characters to better reflect modern concerns through diversity and representation in the media was a well-appreciated change.
The show is good in some respects but annoying in others. Some aspects were just entirely annoying, like the seemingly constant bickering between characters that continually cause issues for them. However, if you can get over the annoying traits of the characters it is a decent enough show.
“Blues Clues & You”
To take a turn from darker shows, one very popular children show has also been rebooted, that being “Blue’s Clues.” It’s been a long time since many of us have probably seen Blue’s Clues, but now that we have friends with kids, or kids of our own, it has popped up again.
Many people were pissed to see Steve (Steve Burns) replaced with Joe (Donovon Patton). Rumors spread that Steve died but he actually just quit the show because he was losing his hair.
In the new show, Joe and he make appearances, however, in those appearances Steve is a detective and so wears a detective hat to hide his hair…or lack thereof.
With brothers, Steve and Joe now went there’s a new family member in town- their cousin, Josh. The Nick Jr. reboot, titled “Blue’s Clues & You,” features Filipino actor Joshua Dela Cruz.
While the new shows diversity is appreciated the new animation style is not. The biggest change, other than the strange new animation style, however, is to the “Handy Dandy Notebook,” which is now a notebook on one side… and a smartphone on the other.
Don’t worry though, the GOOD “Blue’s Clues” clips and full episodes are available on NickJr.com if you feel like indulging in some nostalgia or teaching the new generation what good toddler television is.
“IT”
There have been a lot of movie reboots as well, specifically of horror movies in recent years. Steven King’s book inspired miniseries “IT” had a reboot that came out in two chapters and was very popular among moviegoers.
Bill Skarsgård starred as the crazed “Pennywise The Dancing Clown” in the new film distributed by Warner brothers pictures and Newline Cinema Pictures.
When Bill’s little brother Georgie (Jackson Robert Scott) goes missing Bill (Jaeden Martell) and his friends of the Losers’ Club go on the search for him but realize something more sinister may be occurring in their town of Derry, Maine.
The 2017 reboot features a significantly more sinister-looking Pennywise than its 1990 counterpart. Given the differences in available equipment, it’s no question as to why the main clown himself varies so differently from the miniseries to the new movie.
The new film delighted some and bored with others. While some of the imagery was creepy, many of the main scenes take place in the dark which makes some parts confusing to keep track of.
If you are a fan of horror movies and watch them often, the movie may seem predictable and that takes away from the scare factor.
The shapeshifting clown terrorized the kids and most of the audience in the 2017 movie, but the story isn’t over yet. There is a chapter two to the Andy Muschietti directed the film and it’s in theaters now.
“Joker”
There’s more than one clown in theatres now and considering the huge success of the new DC Joker movie it had to be included in the “reboot” section.
Even though this is technically not a reboot because it is another original interpretation of the origin story of the Joker, this time named Arthur Fleck, it still seems necessary to include.
The Warner Bros. distributed movie gives an emotional take on the Joker and his descent into becoming the famous psychotic Batman rival. I found the movie to be an amazingly intoxicating psychological experience that left me feeling empathetic for a supposed villain.
While watching the movie I found myself feeling that Arthur, played by Joaquin Phoenix, was the hero of the film and the underdog that everyone was rooting to finally come out on top.
It’s an incredibly sad film but that’s part of the beauty of it. Anybody can relate to at least one of the trials Arthur faces, weather societal strife or just blatant bullying. Anybody can find a sense of pity for Arthur.
Todd Philips “Joker” is available to see in theatres and is definitely worthwhile. I enjoyed the emotional rollercoaster and felt it was one of the best movies of the franchise to date and an excellent portrayal of one man’s descent into the madness of becoming the Joker.
Email Montana at:
mgates4@live.esu.edu
