Does it suck or does it not suck? Such are the questions that weigh heavy on society as we witness the plethora of remakes and reboots aiming to cash in on nostalgia. The latest defendant in the court of public opinion: The Rocky Horror Picture Show remake, which released its first trailer yesterday:
Less than 24 hours after posting, the trailer has received more than a quarter of a million views, with roughly equal numbers of Likes and Dislikes. People in the comments are saying they want it to beat Ghostbusters for most-disliked trailer on YouTube, while others are saying that everyone should calm down until they've seen the movie, and others still are arguing that this brief glimpse is all they need to know it's definitely trash. In short: the internet gonna internet.
I think the reason for all this hubbub and ruffling of feathers is that, while The Rocky Horror Picture Show is a timeless treasure, it is also a product of a very specific time. Remaking it in 2016 with glitz, glam, and saturated backdrops makes it feel a little ... fake, right? Something feels off, like I'm watching a special episode of Glee instead of a true-to-source remake. It's too neat, too clean.
Ah well. Laverne Cox looks like she's having fun as Dr. Frank-N-Furter. Even if her performance is inevitably going to be compared to Tim Curry's turn as the Transylvanian transvestite, maybe I can enjoy it all the same. Consider my vote to be a cautiously optimistic "Like."
