When we think about our favorite movies, we typically spend our time pondering our favorite characters or the plotline. If your favorite movie is relatively new, you may have been influenced to watch it by the buildup of advertisements and trailers beforehand. Many times, we create judgments about movies before we have even seen them, just based on how a movie is promoted beforehand. In 2015, in my humble opinion, one of the best movies was released, titled “Point Break.” Not only was this movie amazing, but it was also a remake, which can sometimes be difficult to follow. The original 1991 film was praised for its adrenaline-inducing action and surprising depth. The 2015 version was a success due to the intense stunt scenes throughout the movie. If you are interested in checking out the two movies and comparing them yourself, check out the Point Break 2015 movie trailer here and the Point Break 1991 trailer here.
Promotion strategy plays a significant role in the success of a remake. You not only have to convince audiences to watch the movie, but also why they should watch this new one if they’ve already seen the first one. Afterwards, the movie will be compared to the original no matter what, creating its own competition. For starters, the original movie was focused on a cult of surfers, while the remake is a group of “Robin Hood” characters that participate in a variety of extreme sports. The concepts and plotlines of each movie are similar but there were some major differences in the two. The 2015 remake focused its promotion on the adrenaline-packed and death-defying stunts to give it an edge. Not only was extreme surfing a major part of the movie, but so was wingsuit flying and free rock climbing, all part of the made-up “Ozaki 8” challenge the movie was based around. Each of these stunts became marketing tactics for the movie, drawing in adrenaline junkies and reaching an audience who loves the action-thriller genre. The movie director, Ericson Core, wanted to get rid of all the special effects and green screens used in the first movie and gathered a group of professionals in each extreme sport to play roles in the movie. You can read more about these stunt doubles turned actors in the IGN article referring to the action in the movie: IGN Movie Stunts
Unfortunately, despite all of the intense stunts and thought behind the film, it received many negative reviews. People enjoyed the stunts, but the plot seemed to be the cost of these extreme activities. This is a risk many face when developing a remake. Producers have to compete against a movie that people already liked or disliked, which is hard to overcome. The movie may also be trying to create the same message as the original, meaning the remake spends less time on developing the message since most who saw the first one already understand the point, and instead focuses on the entertainment and uniqueness of the original.
