Remake

What is the Science Fiction Premise?

Remake envisions a future in which movie production has become thoroughly computerized. Old famous actors are readily synthesized, new movies can be created by redoing old ones with new actors, and all of this is under the control of the copyright holders of the moment.

Is the science of the premise explored?

Without diving too deeply into the computer science, Remake extrapolates from our general understanding of computer-generated imagery and its steady movement towards creating photo-realistic scenes. It is not deep, but it is well done.

More distinctive, in some ways, is the notion of how movies are stored in an effort to prevent piracy. Instead of simply placing the movies on a disk some where, they are put into a system that cycles them perpetually. To access the master copy of a movie, you must be able to tap into this continual stream.

Is the impact of the premise on an individual explored?

We are offered two major glimpses into this future. The main one is through the eyes of a movie editor who is empowered to remake movies. He is a movie buff and very knowledgable about old movies, but he is being asked to adjust them and thereby "freshen" them up. Being in need of employment, we experience his struggle to reconcile what he is doing with his love of movies.

The second character is a woman who longs to become a dancer in the movies. Since any new movie can draw on the best dancers of the past, there is no longer a demand for movie dancers. Indeed, there are not even teachers from whom she can learn the art.

What drives the story forward is the movie editor's fascination with the woman who insists on becoming a dancer and her almost bullheaded refusal to accept that the world has changed to the point that her dreams are not achievable.

Is the impact of the premise on society explored?

The impact of this changed approach to movie-making is portrayed through the shallowness of the movie business. (Frankly, it seems the author is making fun of the current movie business every bit as much as the imagined one.) Actors and acting are thoroughly devalued. New computer techniques are the main topic of interest. And, almost no energy is spent on creating new stories with novel plots.

How well written is the story?

This book is easy to read and short. It is more a novella than a novel.

The book does have some discussion of time travel in it, which is somewhat confusing. Frankly, I did not find these discussions useful or important and tended to ignore them. That decision might have led me to miss something, but I enjoyed the book nevertheless.

Can I recommend the book?

This book is fun. It is a humorous dig at an industry that we love to satirize. It is also a sensible, albeit, hyperbolic, extrapolation of computer capabilities and where they might lead. As important, however, while the characters do not achieve all their objectives, they do transcend their limitations in some most intriguing ways.

Tar Daddoo