Remakes are certainly a source of contention in Hollywood. But they’re also nothing new. They didn’t just magically start appearing in the late 2000s and early 2010s, although they certainly started to become a lot more common around then. Most of the time, they serve nothing more than needless cash grabs that are the result of studio desperation to depend on familiarity as a means to get people to go see something. Oftentimes, they fail miserably. But there are certainly those times when they work.
The 1988 remake of the 1958 schlock classic The Blob is a great example of a remake that works. If you were to watch the original, you would absolutely see how it is not only conceptually, but even tonally, silly. This isn’t a jab at the original at all; that’s just how elements of horror and science fiction were around this time in the film industry. What the 1988 remake intended to do, and succeeded at, was take the core concept of the original and fit it into the direction that the horror genre had gone by the late 80s. It’s a ruthless, gory film driven by shocking kills. It never allows you to get attached to any single character. Any character who comes into the narrative that you might like or immediately connect with could be gone in an instant.
In keeping elements of the original intact, The Blob focuses on a small-town community dealing with the threat of a giant supernatural blob that basically consumes people. As it claims victims, it grows and grows. On paper, this just sounds like a silly concept, but in terms of how it plays out in this 1988 adaptation, it channels elements of John Carpenter’s The Thing, punches up the graphic nature of the threat, and removes that certain innocence from a small-town setting that was so common in the 50s. It reflects how not only the film industry had changed by the late 80s, but even the world itself.
One of the most shocking kills in this movie involves a kitchen sink. It complements this film’s excellent use of practical effects. It’s a moment that you know is coming, but when it hits, you are left squirming at the idea of how horrible this kind of death is. But the film just doesn’t let go there. It takes the audience on a roller coaster of unexpected character deaths. As I stated earlier, it does not allow you to get attached to any character, no matter how sympathetic or likable they are. It dares to take risks. It dares to go against so many norms.
This remake is the product of a collaboration between two great creative minds: screenwriter Frank Darabont and filmmaker Chuck Russell. Both individuals certainly had a history of collaborating before this film. They would notably work together on sequels within the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, and both would individually see success in the aftermath of working on this film together.
Frank Darabont would go on to be one of very select filmmakers who could master the task of adapting Stephen King novels for the big screen. His directorial debut would end up being 1994’s The Shawshank Redemption. From there, he would adapt The Green Mile in 1999 and The Mist in 2007. Chuck Russell had a decent career in major studio genre films. His biggest hit would be the 1994 Jim Carrey blockbuster The Mask, which sat right in the middle of that big-screen trifecta that fully launched his stardom in the mid-90s. He would go on to direct the 1996 Arnold Schwarzenegger action film Eraser, which doesn’t exactly sit in the canon of some of his best work, but it is still a good time and one of the most underrated summer action films of the 90s.
Despite The Blob’s immense qualities as a modernized adaptation of a 50s schlock classic, it did not find the box office success it was seeking. Made for a budget of $10 million, it only managed to make back $8.4 million. It was initially perceived to be a lost horror film in a time when the genre had taken a bit of a downturn. By the late 80s, horror was certainly not what it was in the 70s and even at the beginning of the 80s. Films within the genre were becoming heavily dependent on further franchise installments. A Nightmare on Elm Street sequels were seen as getting worse, and Friday the 13th installments were not realizing the same quality as earlier movies in the franchise. The slasher subgenre was losing its edge. Creature features were certainly not on people’s radars, and the status of being a remake was not doing The Blob’s marketing any favors. But two factors contributed to the second life this film ended up getting.
By the late 80s, the video store and premium cable television were increasing in popularity. They complemented the convenience of being able to watch movies in your own home. You no longer had to wait a few years to depend on a network’s schedule to catch a film that had been out for many years in the comfort of your own home. You could go to your local video store and rent it for a low price, and outlets like HBO were premiering big studio movies on their platform for a monthly subscription price added to your cable package. Most notably, both of these outlets were allowing these movies to be available for home viewing less than a year after their theatrical release.
This is exactly where The Blob started to find a second life with audiences. Immense word of mouth from video store patrons and HBO consumers brought it right back to the public’s radar. By the late ’90s, it began to realize a cult following. Eventual syndication on cable television only increased its popularity, and when ownership of physical media was in full effect, it became a desired collector’s item. Shout! Studios notably released a great physical media print of the film.
A film’s life does not start and stop at the movie theater. But if there is one lesson that needs to be learned, even today, it’s to take that risk and chance on a theatrical release. Theatrical attendance has certainly declined over the years. People don’t wanna take risks on movies because they assume it’s not worth their time. In 1988, potential audiences made that mistake with The Blob.
While there are so many factors to blame, from the marketing to the distribution tactics to the simple fact that people just might not have been interested in the way a remake of a 1950s movie was being sold to them in the late 80s, The Blob still survived. Today, it is recognized as one of the best horror remakes of all time. It has its own identity in relation to the creature feature it adapted and remains a popular staple within the genre and a popular viewing choice around Halloween season. Which is why right now would be a great time to watch it if you’ve never seen it. Currently, you can stream it on Tubi.
