After being laid to rest in the middle of 2013, Reasonable Remakes has been resurrected from the internet archives for a new series of editorials in 2014. Written by Justin Proper, this column examines the potential for reboot glory possessed by films you may or may not remember from years past. Everything below is purely hypothetical (for now), and is intended solely for entertainment purposes. If you have a suggestion for a future installment of this series, please contact us on Twitter and share your thoughts.
Remember the early 80’s and the Cold War scare? Of course not, you probably were not even born yet (no need to worry, I was not either). For most of us what we know of these events comes from stories from our parents and pop culture. The problem with this is your parents suck and pop culture is not history, it is just inspired by it. A good example of this is the 1983 film WarGames which had a premise that was completely absurd but still managed to scare the hell out of people prone to worrying about unrealistic scenarios. WarGames may have been wildly unrealistic, but fear mongering sells movie tickets and it is due for a remake.
Oddly enough, the War Room in films hasn’t changed much in 30 years.
Starring a young Ferris Bueller, WarGames mixed the real life threat of a nuclear war (entertaining, right?) and the mystery that was computer hacking in the early 80’s. So Bueller is this kid genius who hacks stuff, including his school to change grades, and he is searching for new computer games that have not been released yet. Yes, internet piracy was around well before your torrents and Napsters (or Limewires if that was what your thing). Only instead of finding a video game company to hack he accesses the government supercomputer in charge of our nuclear missiles. Bueller accidentally runs a program that he believes to be a game called Thermonuclear War which actually tricks the government into thinking the Soviets are attacking. After some more plot Bueller joins up with some other hackers and convinces the creator of the now rogue program to disable it. Nuclear war is avoided and everyone rejoices. Credits.
WarGames also had the greatest climactic final battle ever: a game of Tic-Tac-Toe.
The film was universally praised, even being nominated for three Academy Awards and spawning a few video games as well. Who cares though, that was then. The Cold War is over and there is no way people would believe today that someone could hack into the government and access files that could start a conflict that would result in another World War.
Oh…
A remake of WarGames now would be absolutely perfect timing. With all the government spying and internet piracy running rampant the plot would fit flawlessly in 2014. You would just have to update the government protocols to something more sinister sounding than NORAD, change the hacking around (maybe even have it all run off of an iPad after the initial hacking). You can drop the whole “accidentally caused it” angle and just have the main character start as a young anarchist trying to bring everything down until he has a change of heart in the third act before undoing the damage he caused.
Unfortunately, Matthew Broderick can never undo that haircut.
As for who should play the main character in the WarGames I think that Dane DeHaan (Chronicle) would be a perfect fit. A sulky youth that is a bit withdrawn and craves destruction is right up his alley. He has proven he can be the villain in Chronicle (and probably in the upcoming Spider-Man movie). Just reverse his character development from Chronicle (where he went from an outcast with good intentions to a full on chaos enthusiast) and you have the character nailed down. Plus, as a young budding star a role like this would take him from C-list to A-list in no time.
Skinny? Check. Pale? Check. Yep, he passes as a hacker in Hollywood.
Liam Neeson would make a stellar head of the government’s nuclear defense branch that is panicked about what they believe is an impending nuclear war. His stern character would be a perfect counterpoint to DeHaan’s rebellious ways and Neeson would rock a speech so solid that it would convince even the most defiant trouble maker to do the right thing. Making a cameo as the depressed and nihilistic former government programmer responsible for the nuclear defense system should be Matthew Broderick. Not only would this be a great nod to the original could prove to be a chance for the well known comedic actor to take on a role that is not in his usual wheelhouse.
That sweater screams former programmer.
Directing the WarGames remake would be no easy task. With the critical acclaim the first film received it would be a big “don’t fuck this up” moment for whoever was in charge. You would need a director that can make a powerful thriller with minimal action. Someone who can make a story about character that are not directly interacting for a lot of the film interesting and entertaining. You would need Denis Villeneuve. His first American movie, Prisoners, had me on the edge of my seat for nearly all of the 150 minute run time. Not only that, but the way he framed the characters took people that mostly worked on their own and linked their stories to perfectly fit together. That is exactly what the WarGames remake would need.
Well, that and updated special effects…
Nuclear war was a fear in the past and it still remains at the back of most minds today. With the unstable conditions in other countries, terrorism, and a looming conflict with North Korea (probably) now is the perfect time to bring WarGames into the present. With enough tweaks, a great cast, and a strong director WarGames could be the movie Red Dawn tried to be. It could prove that early 80’s movies inspired by the Cold War are a great source of inspiration for films today. History repeats itself constantly, but not as often as Hollywood.
