Beware The Blob !
The Steve McQueen-Aneta Corsaut classic has already been remade once (in the ’80s), and now it looks like Hollywood is ready to give it another go.
While the film’s premise isn’t Shakespeare, the “alien run amok” monster movie has managed to be a lot of fun in both its incarnations — the 1958 and 1988 versions.
(Heck, the Larry Hagman-directed 1972 sequel Beware! the Blob was even fun in its own right.)
But this time around, there could be trouble. That’s because of the man behind the lens: Simon West. West has forged a career out of low-rent Jason Statham movies and the very first Rick Astley video.
The crowning achievement on his resume is The Expendables 2 , and given the extraordinary box office falloff of the third film, that’s not really a strong credit.
Generally, third sequels (and higher) in a franchise live or die by the performance of the film that came before it. In that regard, Expendables 2 was an utter failure, according to Box Office Mojo , hauling in $85 million on its own (against the original’s $103 million), but setting the third film up for its $39 million failure.
Other films on West’s resume haven’t been encouraging either — Wild Card , Con Air , The Mechanic , and that hideous remake of When a Stranger Calls from 2006.
It doesn’t look good.
One thing The Blob remake will have going for it, however, is the presence of Samuel L. Jackson. IMDb notes that the indomitable star is currently the only cast member that West and company have locked down.
Of course, this being Hollywood, these things are subject to change. In fact, this remake has already lost one big name in Rob Zombie, who was originally signed on to write and direct.
(Expect an entirely different sort of film out of Simon West.)
The two previous tries at The Blob have fared reasonably well with critics. The original has a 67 percent “fresh” rating from Rotten Tomatoes while the ’88 version barely makes “fresh” at 61 percent.
The first remake set its story in a small town not unlike that of the original, but it made some authentic updates reflective of the times that managed to help the story stand out without making it seem like a complete reimagining.
The log line for this 2016 version states the following.
“A strange life form used for government weapons testing consumes everything in its path as it grows bigger and bigger.”
Do you think The Blob remake (take two) will be worth seeing? Sound off in the comments section.
[Image via screen grab from 1988 version of The Blob ]
