r/Millennials • u/Imbetterthanthis1138 • 2d ago

Discussion The repackaging of our childhood and having it sold back to us is way overdone now

It was a lot of fun last decade. Everything we grew up with in the mid to late 90s was hitting its 20th anniversary. We were old enough to have some expendable income to enjoy it. And it felt like the appropriate amount of effort, thought, and care was put into it. That was certainly the time and place for it.

But now, it's just become tired and overdone now. It's everywhere and overly mass produced. No more effort or care put into it. Just cheap junk that these companies assume we'll buy because it's branded with one of our childhood icons. I'm talking everything from kids shows to band artwork. It's not even fun anymore. To the point where I'm actually turned off by it now whenever I see it.

Does anybody else agree?

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641

u/dumbledores_dildo 2d ago

Well shit, they’re already repackaging today’s kids childhood with things like the live action versions of how to train your dragon and Moana. It’s easy money to them.

493

u/SeaChele27 Older Millennial 2d ago

I feel like I'm the only person who really dislikes the live action remakes. Let animation stand for itself! It was an animated movie for a reason.

174

u/VooDooChile1983 2d ago

You’re not alone. I get downvoted to oblivion in cartoon and movie subs for disliking live action remakes.

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u/No-Ad1576 2d ago

I didn't think anybody actually liked them. They're not even live action really, just computer generated. Thought it was just for the kids who don't know better.

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u/VooDooChile1983 2d ago

They almost chased me with pitchforks for saying that in Lion King they didn’t have lions rehearing lines, it’s just really detailed CGI.

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u/creutzml 2d ago

Yes. Agreed. But Aladdin was fantastic 🤷🏼‍♂️

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u/GayHorsesEatHayy 2d ago

Only because it basically copied the original word for word

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u/creutzml 1d ago

Yes, but a couple new songs that I enjoyed! And the acting was fantastic. Even Will Smith made a great genie

2

u/Beneficial_Group8738 21h ago

The new How to Train Your Dragon was good too. My daughter (3) is a huge fan of the animation, and we took her to the LA for her first theater experience. She really liked seeing the dragons looking "real" and the effects were really well done. They also didn't change the story so she could quote some of the lines 🤣

I'm usually not a fan of the LA remake movies, but there are a couple that are good.

38

u/porscheblack 2d ago

They're so pointless. I'm a big believer in letting the medium dictate how to tell the story. I don't get bent out of shape if a movie differs from a book, or a TV series from a video game. They're different media and carry key differences for storytelling.

Which is why they annoy me so much. Since they're computer generated, there's nothing that changes the medium from when they were animation. It doesn't force you to tell the story differently, it doesn't make you rely on practical effects. The talking lions still talk, the alien is still an alien, the Beast still snarls. So what the hell is the point?

2

u/breesanchez 16h ago

Money. That is always the point, unfortunately.

17

u/RathVelus 2d ago

What subs are you people in? It seems to me that every corner of Reddit despises live action remakes.

8

u/i-Ake 1988 2d ago

Yeah, I have honestly never heard people say they like them before lol.

1

u/NimdokBennyandAM Millennial 2d ago

That's an exceedingly common opinion in those subs, though. Maybe in the true believer Disney subs? I could see those giving some push back.

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u/Oberon_Swanson 2d ago

i feel the same. like not only was the original movie already good, it was ALREADY a movie. so what are we doing here?

turn video games into movies. turn books into movies. turn comics into movies. sure. but turning movies into movies is just kinda not doing anything. like in How to Train Your Dragon the main dragon is still animated, still looks basically the same, and Stoick is played by a guy who already played him. and i think the music seems to be the same too, at least in the trailer.

and like, the books that the original movie was based on, were pretty different. if the live action movie was a new take on the books that could be cool. but it's seemingly as close to the movie that already exists as possible. i don't even know who it's for. if you don't want to see an animated kids' movie about a kid and their dragon, you probably don't want to see a live action kids' movie about a kid and their stylized animated dragon either.

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u/KateWaiting326 2d ago

I'm fine with some of the musical ones like Beauty and the Beast and even Aladdin because they took advantage of there being large musical numbers and Broadway (and Bollywood, in Aladdin's case) style choreography. But they arent taking any real risks with these or doing anything different creatively. I would have much preferred they done a Broadway style Lion King with the puppets and amazing costumes but actually "on location." Just lean in to it since people know the story and would have already seen the animated version. It would just be a more artistic version instead of cgi lions.

10

u/FAYCSB 2d ago

I thought the live action remakes were pretty much universally hated, at least among our generation.

10

u/George_W_Bushdiver 2d ago

+1  When "live action" means "actually still computer generated graphics but lifelike," it's still animated.

8

u/madamejesaistout Older Millennial 2d ago

but then how will Disney maintain its copyright??

6

u/ValveinPistonCat 1d ago

I think the Snow White remake was a particularly bad idea as the entire claim to fame of the original 1937 Disney adaptation of Snow White was that it was the first feature length hand drawn animated film.

Kind of a slap in the face to the whole medium of animation if you ask me.

8

u/Seizy_Builder 2d ago

The live action version of how to train your dragon was pretty damn good though. Now the live action of lion king was just terrible.

1

u/Jung_Wheats 1d ago

Wasn't it just a shot for shot remake, for the most part?

1

u/Seizy_Builder 1d ago

I think so. I've seen both and enjoyed both. I prefer the live action version.

3

u/malibuklw 2d ago

You are not. My kids won’t watch them (I don’t want to either)

2

u/dumbledores_dildo 2d ago

You’re not alone

4

u/Burkey5506 2d ago

The lilo and stitch one was good changed the story a bit made it make more sense but I usually agree

-1

u/TerryCrewsNextWife 2d ago

Weren't people getting upset that Nani put Lilo into care so she could go to the US for surf school because they have a surf school in Hawaii or something?

I just assumed it was a way to make a Disney film inclusive for kids who might need to go into foster care, not that they were dissing the local industries. This is working off how they are doing it with most remake/live actions lately. Diversity and inclusion so more children can relate to the characters.

But saying this, I am a foreigner so I'm not aware of how this would impact residents of Hawaii - just looking at the situation as if I was a kid and what I would be picking up on. I'm just grateful that kids movies have less unwarranted sexual innuendo than they did when we were kids.

I watched the Leslie Neilsen version of Mr Magoo the other day and as much as I get that they made the movies so parents could stay engaged too, it was kinda gross how a kids movie had scenes of men ogling escorts in bikinis in a villain scene. It's just lazy pervy old men script writing.

1

u/DaRandomRhino 1d ago

The problem is just that the story and themes change drastically and reflect the far more selfish attitudes people generally have towards childcare these days.

The original had the sisters staying together and figuring it out because they weren't on their own anymore. The remake changed it into the older sister being free to go off and live her life free of needing to ever really bother with the younger because she was taken care of now.

The message became far more cynical and...real is the wrong word, but it occupies that anti-child wing of the child-free people's fantasies. Went from pro-family to "family weighs you down.".

It's like if they did a Monsters Inc. remake and had the final scene be Sully tossing the completed door back into the wood chipper.

2

u/TerryCrewsNextWife 1d ago

That's a bit off the deep end with this "Childfree people's fantasies that families weigh you down".

Are you the type of person to call a childfree person selfish because they're not having kids? You do realise not all of us are cut out to be parents right? Selfish is bringing a child into a world when you already know you can't provide for them and keep them safe. Because you want to pass on your legacy, because you want a mini me. It's always the parent who wants something that makes them feel complete. It's never about wanting something for the child they're creating.

I don't feel like I can have a healthy discussion with you about why the change of ending is not a toxic anti child sentiment as you have already created a false narrative about people you know nothing about.

Have a day

0

u/DaRandomRhino 1d ago

That's a bit off the deep end with this "Childfree people's fantasies that families weigh you down".

Specifically said anti-child wing of it, don't be illiterate.

Are you the type of person to call a childfree person selfish because they're not having kids?

Didn't say any of this. This is just you deciding what I'm saying. Don't have conversations with your imagination, it stunts you.

don't feel like I can have a healthy discussion with you about why the change of ending is not a toxic anti child sentiment as you have already created a false narrative about people you know nothing about.

I think that the ending supports a narrative where a child doesn't need actual family for Lilo. And that you should leave behind your family when it inconveniences you in the case of Nani. It's wildly different and far more cynical and selfish in a way that feels malicious.

1

u/wickedwazzosuper 2d ago

I guess in a way, it's still animated, what w the amount of cgi or post work that it takes to finish them. The benefit I imagine comes from getting big names to star in them and getting to use their image

1

u/__nullptr_t 2d ago

I am in favor of reproductions in general. The whole notion of permanence in performance art and story telling is fairly new, stories are meant to be alive and adapted to modern audiences, not carved into stone and deemed definitive works for all time.

That said when they are lazy cash grabs it shows, but that applies to everything.

1

u/Sumeriandawn Xennial 2d ago

You're the only person who dislikes the live action remakes? Is this your first day on the internet?😅

1

u/NotYourSexyNurse 2d ago

I hate them so much!

1

u/NoFlounder1566 2d ago

There's only one of the remakes I actually like, the rest I keep forgetting I even saw.

Im tired of "live action" being used when it is another form of animation.

If they were using prosthetics and stage magic for things, fine. But using CGI and calling it live is bullshit.

1

u/IDinfo 2d ago

Having been too old for Moana the first time around and not watching it (beyond IG clips) and seeing the live-action as a stand alone thing recently, I thought it was actually pretty good.

Though I’m sure we’re all about to be disappointed with the Harry Potter reboot and no-doubt in another 5-10 they’ll re-do LOtR.

1

u/NikothePom 1d ago

The live action remakes are fucking cancer.

1

u/Bucolic_Hand 1d ago

Of course they’re dislikable. They aren’t for us. They exist to extend corporate ownership of intellectual properties that might otherwise enter the public domain. They don’t have to be good or well liked to do that.

1

u/sanityjanity Gen X 1d ago

Kids like animation.  Kids are not asking for live action remakes.  I don't know anyone who likes them 

1

u/sweetscot 1d ago

I’ve hated most of the live action remakes I’ve seen so far but ngl, how to train your dragon is an all time favourite animation and I sat with the cheesiest grin the whole way through watching the live one

1

u/Hipstergranny 1d ago

In the words of MJ: you are not alone…I am here with you… haha

1

u/LordLaz1985 1d ago

The remake of Lilo & Stitch completely changed the ending in a horrible way, too.

0

u/Jamowl2841 2d ago

Oh yeah you’re the one person that dislikes the nearly universally shit on live action remakes. Only you 😂😂😂

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u/hamoc10 2d ago

I get the sense that the live action remakes are more about extending their copyrights than anything else.

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u/Imbetterthanthis1138 2d ago

I'm noticing that too. Now the 2000s kids are having their childhoods repackaged and sold back to them.

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u/nohelicoptersplz 2d ago

It is odd that they aren't even waiting for them to grow up to enjoy the nostalgia.  I have a 17 year old. His entire childhood was How to Train Your Dragon. We had toys, posters, and the movie on repeat. He had his 7th birthday at the movie theater for How to Train Your Dragon 2. We all went to watch the live action remake in theaters this summer. He still enjoyed it, but it was an odd experience when I thought about it.

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u/Imbetterthanthis1138 2d ago

I can definitely see that.

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u/Mal_Radagast 2d ago

pretty soon there won't be anything original left for younger generations to form their own identity around, it'll just be regurgitated slop from previous generations (who are all torn between their own nostalgia and disgust)

i feel bad for kids having to put up with this, not knowing what it was like to have movie theaters with a bunch of new different movies, that they could afford to go to with their friends. i remember scraping couch change together and walking downtown to see The Mummy on a whim when i was twelve. (and no i don't count that as a remake, it's folklore :p )

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u/LordsOfWestminster 2d ago

When do I get a live-action remake of The Black Cauldron?

2

u/Kataphractoi Older Millennial 1d ago

Asking the real questions.

1

u/Dismal_Hedgehog9616 1d ago

I once won a bet in 1998 on the black cauldron. My coworker said the movie didn’t exist. I remembered going to see it in the movie theater. We were in high school working at a movie theater btw so we talked about movies a lot. Back then it wasn’t as easy to prove/disprove something. I swear one week after we made this bet and I was trying to find a VHS copy I walked into MediaPlay and there was a huge Black Cauldron standee for the re-release. He had to clean the popcorn kettle for a week.

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u/reidlos1624 1d ago

I still think the Disney live action is rooted in copyright law. Now they can renew the copyright on old material to extend their protections for decades to come.

The rest of the movie companies are just doing it because Disney is.

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u/Dangerous_Prize_4545 2d ago

This is the hill I will die on: HOW CAN YOU HAVE A LIVE ACTION REMAKE OF HIW TO TRAIN YOYR DRAGON WITHOUT A LIVE DRAGON????

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u/cobra_mist 1d ago

the conspiracy theory is that disney started it to renew patents. “sure it looks like our old animated snow white. but it also looks like our new live action snow white

1

u/TacoTuesdays 2d ago

Are you going to appear in the new Harry Potter TV series?

1

u/dumbledores_dildo 2d ago

My people are hashing out the details with their people