"Movies “you can’t make today”. 🙄" Topic

Okay. They would offend you know who. But they were great.

Blazing Saddles

Animal House

Just a sample or two. TMP is not politically correct. Duh.
Suggest your own. Justify them, if you must! Try to not be obnoxious. 😄
I have a few more I could add in, but I'll wait.

Zulu

Glory

The Wild Bunch ?

Revenge of the Nerds

Glory? It's the only Civil War movie you can make today. Very politically correct.

Carry on up the Khyber

A favorite of mine 'Up the Chastity Belt' would nave troubles with Sherwood forest where the men were 'merry and gay' and with Mr Smith the black smith.

x42

Porkys
Blues Brothers
Most of the "Carry on" series

Monty Python's Life of Brian

Airplane
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
It's a Wonderful Life
Rocky

Bad News Bears.
Drunken coach. 12 year olds smoking. Jolly good ethnic slurs. Bad language all around.
Tatum O'Neil as a 12 year old sex object.

I am rather puzzled at some choices for movies that can't be made today. Please try to explain why.
"It's a Wonderful Life"??? Unless it's a smart alec response?

Most of the Johnny Weissmuller Tarzan movies. Savage Black tribes, with their "torn between two tall trees" executions. Cowardly Black porters who must be beaten.

The thing these lists tell me most is that the compilers very rarely get to the cinema to see modern films.

They still make Tarzan flicks – sure without Johnny Weissmuller. The equivalent family friendly "update" is probably the Jurassic park films.

The only films mentioned so far that would be very challenging these days (IMO) are Up the Chastity Belt, and Temple of Doom. I don't know "Bad News Bears" but as described that does sound like it'd need some major rewrites – but apart from the Tatum O'Neil comment the rest was all in The Holdovers.

Of course you could make a Blues Brothers type film – whether anyone would want to see it without John lee Hooker, Steve Cropper, Duck Dunn, Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles et al is another question (probably a no). Did you guys not see SINNERS this year? What a great film.

My advice – check your assumptions, try actually going to see a new film (that isn't Star Wars or Marvel) and you may find that creativity isn't dead. Or just sit at home and moan like an old person…

(That comment isn't a direct aim at the OP, it's a generalisation)

I specifically mentioned Johnny Weissmuller Tarzan movies because of the blatant racism.

"Without a major rewrite" is exactly my point. I'm saying that you can't make that movie AS ORIGINALLY DONE today.
The racism and sexism that's in many are exactly why they can't be made today.
There's certainly none in the Jurassic movies. So they're not qualifying.

Personally, I wouldn't touch Citizen Kane because it's as boring as hell. But I'm a Philistine. 😄

I get that, it's why I can't watch Temple of Doom anymore – Even then what the heck were they thinking?

I can't think what the issue would be with the Blues Brothers – except that it already exists.

I think a close examination of the whole Jurassic series will find some sexism – but at least the last film overturned the "buddy who won't make it to the last reel "trope.

Kane is a solid gold classic, so I heartily agree that you are a philistine

Exodus and Cast a Giant Shadow because they depict the founding of the state of Israel in a positive light and depict Arab opponents as evil.

As mentioned, just about any Civil War film with the exception of Glory because the South is generally depicted in a positive light or at least not depicted as evil (Gone With the Wind for example).

Any film depicting British India, such as Gunga Din, because they generally depict the English as benevolent and the native population as evil.

Any Charlie Chan film because of the perceived racial stereotypes. I guess that should be expanded to include any film where an ethnic character is depicted by an actor who is not a member of the depicted ethnic class (Mr. Moto or any film depicting the American west).

Any film depicting the Catholic Church or Christian characters in a positive light (Bells of Saint Mary's, Boys Town).

Walking Tall, if it mirrors the original, because many people now believe that Buford Pusser was his wife's assailant.

OFM, this is a great topic and also scary when I consider the films that would not have been made or that are currently not shown because of where society has gone.

The Enemy Below, you're not going to find the US Navy supporting a film and dropping live depth charges.

The Cowboys, no way Hollywood would now allow children to ride horses in and around a large herd of cattle.

Hatari, Zoo's are evil now, so trapping animals for them is bad, no way Hollywood is going to put any high paid actors in close proximity to a wild rhino or any other wild animal.

Of course, in this day and age, Hollywoods answer would be to use CGI for the above 3 movies.

Whole categories. Watch Sands of Iwo Jima, Flying Leathernecks or Strategic Air Command--or 12:00 High, come to that--and try to remember the last movie in which career military were the good guys--not as lone dissidents, but as professionals trying to accomplish a mission, even if it meant being mean to subordinates.

I think the most recent movie in which a policeman attempting to punish the guilty and uphold the law was depicted as a good guy might have been Dredd.

A husband and father genuinely trying for what's best for his family? Probably something more recent than Undercover Blues, but it doesn't come to mind. Hmph. Maybe Hawkeye and Iron Man in the Avengers movies.

Which is why I sit here with a stack of DVDs--and paper books--which the studios can't park in vaults, and the sensitivity committees can't censor.

Blazing Saddles.

Tropic Thunder

Any fantasy, ancient, or other historical movie set before the 21st century where every scene doesn't have the diversity of a bar in LA or NYC.

The Dirty Harry movies.

"My advice – check your assumptions, try actually going to see a new film (that isn't Star Wars or Marvel) and you may find that creativity isn't dead. Or just sit at home and moan like an old person…"

I see a lot of movies, including many quite challenging ones.

I still think you'd struggle get Carry on up the Khyber made now with the Khazi of Khalabar as a blacked up Kenneth Williams. Not sure who a modern Kenneth Williams would be, Alan Carr?

The others? Not so much. Someone mentioned Durtty Harry, why not ffs? It is a blueprint for every lone vigilante action film made since 1970.

As the OFM said, anything packed with blatant racism might be an issue, hopefully we've moved on these days, although looking at the world around us I do wonder.

You Only Like Twice- Sean Connery ‘disguised' as a native Japanese
Live and Let Die- Black American and Voodoo Stereotypes
Dr. No- islanders as superstitious rubes and a stereotype Asian villain
Breakfast at Tiffany's- Mickey Rooney as a Japanese Man shouting Miss Go-wightwy!

Yes. Those Bond movies certainly check the racism boxes. 😄

@Martin Rapier – welcome to the "not an old person" club!

I agree, blackface actors wouldn't be acceptable. That doesn't make a Carry On unmakable – they made the last one in 1998 (it wasn't a big hit) and there have been persistent attempts to reboot the series in the last 10 years. The main obstacle would seem to be that not that many people really want to go and see one (i.e. there's no money in it).

Who'd be the Khazi of Khalabar? Romesh Ranganathan I guess, and they'd probably write the part a bit differently (no-one is asking for a scene by scene reshoot I hope – what's the point?!).

I can't get sad that films that are blatantly racist "can't be made today". Films which depict racism certainly can and do get made (BlackkKlansman for example – features relentless racism).

The Royal Flash (or any movie version of the Flashman series as Flashman is a self-admitted rapist.)

Yes, Flashman did rape Nareeman, but he wryly admits "It was the only time I found it necessary."
So, 1 out of his 435 conquests.
But, yes. A cad and a bounder. He cheats at cricket too! 😱

* Not a pearl-clutcher

Drums aka The Drum.
Flame Over India aka Northwest Frontier
55 Days at Peking
Gunga Din
Khartoum

-- seems like most Colonial or Wild West topics would raise eyebrows today and get rejected.

Age of Consent torpedoed Michael Powell's career and that was made in 1969!

Any Beatles movie? (Because the group is no more)

Fantasia.

Try getting a movie audience to sit still for two hours of classical music ….

Ooh, that reminds me: Song of the South! They won't even let us see it today.

@Piper
+1 on both

Lolita
Pretty Baby
Do I really have to explain why??? And it's a damn good thing that they can't be done today.

I'm going to assume this topic is concerned with films that raise issues of racism and/or sexism, and not just issues of theme or politics or being simply un-commercial. Otherwise this topic would be vast indeed. (E.g., Network. The Americanization of Emily. Dr. Strangelove.) Or anti-war movies that some might see as unpatriotic (The Victors. How I Won the War.) Et al.

I still love those old Weissmuller Tarzans, I gotta admit. I knew they were cheesy when I saw them on TV as a kid, but they are endlessly entertaining still. You just have to accept them for what they are. I saw those before I ever read any of the novels -- those are wholly different, of course, and not so dumb, but would be still objectionable today for other reasons.

We would get home from Mass.
After breakfast, my brother and I would sit down (actually lay down on the floor) to watch Tarzan movies. My sister would come in, and without so much as a "bye your leave!" switches the channel to Shirley Temple movies!

Pacey pacey! Oona tonna beebee! Poy poy!

Politics? Naaaah.

Blazing saddles was remade as Paws of Fury.

I was watching it with my kids thinking it was another animated movie and then realised part way through that it was a remake.

My oldest was horrified about Zulu as she didn't know that Rorke's Drift was a historical battle.

I'd have a hard time explaining "It Ain't Half Hot Mum" to the kids.

I have to say, when I've thought about putting on TS&TF Colonial games at conventions, among strangers, and the public, it has often been a thing I've pondered -- what might the reaction be among some observers? If I set up a big Zulu War game, will it be seen as racist, white men killing black me? Africans with spears while Europeans have rifles? Will it spark outrage?

And the same when the Gulf wars or Afghanistan war were raging, "the War Against Terror", etc. -- will a game on the Northwest Frontier be seen as anti-Muslim? Or fan the flames of Islamophobia? How might this be taken out of context? Will it irritate a US veteran who served in Iraq or Afghanistan?

I bet the same issues arise for many modern conflicts, e.g. the Irish wars 1916-22, Arab-Israeli wars, and so on. Some people might have personal or family stakes in 20th century fights.

It's a Wonderful Life?

Please explain. It is one of the great movies of all time. Families gather around the TV every Christmas to watch it.

I will add "Gone With The Wind." I could see a remake of "Khartoum" made today. "55 Days at Peking" is a great movie, I don't see any problems with it.

I strongly suspect that "It's A Wonderful Life" is a snarky nomination. And also that it will survive to the final round. 🤷🙄

The Dam Busters. Just ask Peter Jackson, but don't mention dogs.