Comparing 'The Day the Earth Stood Still'
Rick Bentley - Fresno Bee
Dec 10, 2008
A remake of the 1951 film "The Day the Earth Stood Still" opens Friday . The new version stars Keanu Reeves as the alien visitor Klaatu, who brings a serious ultimate to the people of Earth.
The original film, directed by Robert Wise, is considered by many film critics and historians to to be a classic. So, why remake it? Even Scott Derrickson, director of the new movie, was skeptical when he heard about the remake plans.
Derrickson finally decided there were good reasons for a do-over.
"In reading the screenplay, I was struck by the idea that updating this movie had tremendous value because the original being so rooted in the social issues of its time and such an intelligent and interesting, self-reflective commentary, coming from an American studio and an American filmmaker, on the Cold War," says Derrickson during an interview at the Four Seasons Hotel. "I loved the idea of being able to tell, basically, the same story but bring in these new social issues that we have now, these new, interesting messes that we've gotten ourselves into now in the world.
"That alone, seems to have value to it and made sense to me."
His version keeps the basic structure of the original film. But there are a few differences.
New: The spaceship lands in Central Park in New York.
Old: The spaceship lands on a baseball field in Washington, D.C.
New: The alien visitor Klaatu (Keanu Reeves) takes on a human form.
Old: Klaatu's (Michael Rennie) alien body is identical to humans.
New: Earth's final hope is Dr. Helen Benson (Jennifer Connelly), a scientist who must work with the secretary of defense (Kathy Bates).
Old: It is up to Helen Benson (Patricia Neal), a secretary at the Department of Defense, to save the world.
New: Klaatu comes to tell the residents of Earth their time is up.
Old: The aliens that Klaatu represents are not that concerned about Earth blowing itself up. They just issue a warning that any attempt to take violence to the stars will be met with total destruction.
New: "Save the planet" is the central theme.
Old: The Cold War is the core political theme.
New: Klaatu visits McDonald's.
Old: Klaatu goes to the Lincoln Memorial.
New: Klaatu gets a sense humans are worth saving when he hears music by Johann Sebastian Bach.
Old: The first clue for Klaatu that humans have a good side is found in the words of Abraham Lincoln.
New: Making the Earth stand still is a punishment.
Old: Klaatu makes the world stand still for 30 minutes as a show of what the aliens could do if provoked.
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