Saturday, April 5, 2008

Johnny 5 is Alive - Short Circuit Being Remade!

Johnny 5

Oh no! Now all of you who claim that Wall-E is a "rip off" of Johnny 5 will get your moment in the spotlight, too! The Weinstein Company and Dimension Films have acquired the rights to remake the 1986 family classic Short Circuit. Even the original creators, S.S. Wilson and Brent Maddock, who created the characters and wrote both of the original movies, are back on board again writing the script for the remake. No director has been hired yet, but the producers do claim that it will at least be similar in its theme, with technological advances accounted for. Johnny 5 is still alive!

The original film is about a military robot called Number 5 that runs away from the government after it's struck by lightning and develops a conscience and a personality. With the help of a young woman, Number 5 tries to evade capture and convince his creator that he has truly become alive. As Peter at SlashFilm points out, Bob Weinstein probably noticed all of the discussion comparing Wall-E and Johnny 5 and thought that they could capitalize on the renewed interest. Unfortunately I don't think that's going to help turn this into anything good.

Although Short Circuit is undoubtedly a beloved 80's classic, that doesn't mean it's ripe for a remake. In fact, I think just the opposite. I've got a feeling deep down inside that we're going to get Stealth mixed with Wall-E - and that really makes me sick… Thoughts on this remake?

Original here

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