Ask anyone about films and invariably you receive the same reply: “We prefer old films”. Why? The reason is simple — the films were simple. They aimed straight at your heart and stayed there. Those are the films that offer roots, tradition, culture and entertainment. Entertainment is the word that is missing from the art of film today. At its birth, over a century ago, the main goal of these “moving pictures” was entertainment. With the years they developed into a refined degree of telling a story simply, powerfully and entertainingly. The classics were the foundation on which the industry built itself. Many of the classics have been adapted for the screen more than once and in several countries, because classics retain their value and principles anywhere and at any age. When the art of film reached a certain peak, often referred to as the golden years, they produced gems that should be preserved and viewed again and again. So impeccably perfect, they simply could not be improved upon. One of these films is Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ written by Lew Wallace in 1880. It had been made twice, in 1907 and 1925, but when director William Wyler chose to handle the material in 1959, he produced a masterpiece epic, second only to Gone With the Wind, in box-office gross, amassing 11 Oscars for the first time in film history. This memorable production with Charlton Heston heading a superb cast was greatly embellished by the chariot-race scene that moved heaven and earth, becoming one of cinema's most famous sequences. It was directed by Andrew Marton, who was promptly called upon to direct, Wa Islamah, another religious epic on Islam and a historic achievement in Egyptian Cinema history. Composed by Miklos Rozsa, the musical score was the longest ever on film and became highly influential for the following 15 years. Acclaimed for its cultural, historic and aesthetic significance, it is preserved in the Library of Congress. Why would Hollywood remake Ben-Hur in 2016 when it was perfectly made in 1959? With director Timur Bekmambetow at the helm the result has no purpose. Smaller, less spectacular in every way, the new version performed dismally at the box-office. The slap-dash computer generated imagery has added nothing to this great classic. You are better off concentrating on your playstation game. It is a temptation to remake or rehash old ideas, no matter how trivial. Add a little crass sexual humour, some violence or gore and you think you have a winner. They went so far as to repeat Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho shot by shot and still fell short. Such attempts are pitiful. Once a classic, always a classic. Why mess with it? Can we improve on Beethoven or Shakespeare? We love them just the way they are. Unless filmmakers can contribute to the lasting enjoyment of the movie, they should stop forcing unnecessary special effects. Moreover, within a few months they will be considered old fashioned, just like your smartphone. Who are those multitudes of unknown actors invading our screens today? We love our stars and we miss them. No matter how often we see Cary Grant or Humphrey Bogart, Bette Davis or Katharine Hepburn, we never tire of them, not to mention the love goddesses Ava Gardner, Elizabeth Taylor and of course Marilyn Monroe. Today's actors do the job but few films are memorable, undeserving of all the Oscars showered on them. We like those old familiar faces, we understand every word they utter never tire of their style of acting. The new style of naturalistic acting has been taken a step too far. You might as well be watching a documentary. These signs reflect neither a healthy nor an entertaining art form. We delight in walking by the impracticable paths of melodrama with tears endlessly flowing. We enjoy the unstoppable laughter at the sinister comedy of a Charlie Chaplin or the improbably stilly antics of a Laurel and Hardy. No, they are not just films of their era, they have survived almost a century and show no signs of dying. Give us back the stories we followed over and over, thrilled as a child listening to the same fairy tale every night. Remakes are understandable since by now all the storylines and plots have been used, but improve on them, do not destroy them and send us rushing back to our dear old movies. For over a century we have enjoyed movie making and movie watching, but remakes such as Ben-Hur makes us wonder if this young art-form we call film has already burnt itself out. CGI is great technology but not a great art. When we reminisce about favourite movies it is the human drama and not the high-speed race that we remember. Titanic combined both arts and earned 11 Oscars, for the second time since Ben-Hur, can we not repeat that? Have we run out of great art, or should we wait for the birth of a new art form? Meanwhile, we have our old movies to comfort and entertain us. “The biggest electric train set any boy ever had.” Orson Welles (1915-1985)
