The Great Ape King is returning.

As Hollywood throws money into another re-make, King Kong being helmed by Peter Jackson (the bearded one behind Lord of the Rings), it seems wisdom has deserted the Studio execs.

The question is, why?

It seems that the remake is becoming an ever more popular vessel in the Hollywood moneymaking fleet.

The two main types of remake are, the remake of an old Hollywood movie and the remake of a foreign film.

Both have their pros and cons.

Some, like “The Italian Job” (F Gary Gray, 2003) bare very little resemblance to the original, just cashing in on the title while at the other extreme films like “Psycho” (Gus Van Saint, 1998) are shot for shot re-makes.

He took one of the classic films in history and in one fell swoop, he destroyed it.” (see here).

So why would anyone want to do it again?

The original (1933) is a great movie watching it as a child 40 years after it was made the movie had a very profound effect on me.

Fay Wray becomes the object of Willis O’Brien’s apes affections and they both enter movie history.

The film was made at the height of the American Depression and as such works on many levels both as a piece of escapism while at the same time as an allegory for the monster gripping the nation.

The final sequence is one of the richest in movie history, it has become a part of wider culture, an iconic moment.

Film is one of the few art forms, which allow its classics to be re-made, music being the other main one.

No one attempts to re-paint a Picasso, or re-write George Orwell.

So why is it OK to re-make a piece of classic cinema?

There are of course many possible arguments to justify this, that cinema is often not an original source but adapts from others e.g. novels, comic books, video games, even theme park rides.

However these would usually be taken as an inspiration for an adaptation into a new work of art.

It can be argued that Hollywood remakes of European films, are translations and trigger interest in the originals.

Which is a sorry state of affairs really and only goes to underline Hollywood’s dominance.