It’s never a great story until it gets a remake. Cinema, like all the arts, has a history of great powerful stories that hide a funny secret: like Duchamp with his Monalisa with the mustache, cinema has been inspired and has stolen, in a good way, some great classic stories making them visually and narratively contemporary. From the masters to the pupils, these stories allowed the creation of something extremely original but timeless.
10 things I hate about you: the enemies-to-lovers love story between the young Heath Ledger and Julia Stiles has for sure won everybody's hearts back in ‘99. Not many know, however, that the rude, but secretly tough teenager Kat and her love story with the mysterious Patrick was actually inspired by the 16th-century comedy The taming of the shrew by William Shakespeare. That’s a twist for sure, and a genius way to add a sparkle in the creation of a timeless rom-com.
West side story: the troubled romance between Maria and Tony, because of their belonging to rival clans sounds a little familiar, doesn't it? The musical is indeed inspired by the most famous love story in the world, Romeo and Juliet, and adapted in the 60s New York City, divided between the locals and the Portorican immigrants.
Bridget Jones's diary: guess the famous Mr. Darcy isn’t just a coincidence here. The struggled love story between Mark and Bridget, full of misunderstandings and miscommunication is indeed inspired by one of the greatest love stories of all time, Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, of course adapted in a crowded and modern London, with a way funnier and clumsier protagonist that gives a hilarious kick to the 19th-century story.
Truman show: the touching story of the poster boy Truman discovering the fakeness of the world he has lived in, has moved people since ‘98. However not many know that the philosophy of the movie comes from one of Plato’s myths: the allegory of the cave is the structure and the moral of the movie, by which only the man that escapes his secure cave will find the real truth.
Body double: Brian de Palma is iconic on his own. But make a melting pot with his directing style, a splash of comic horror, and Hitchcock references and you’ll have a weird, iconic, and loud masterpiece. The movie is indeed a direct reference to some of the most memorable films by the master of suspense himself like Vertigo and Rear Window, transported to the cruel Los Angeles of the 80s. Craig Wasson will for sure make you laugh but keep you on your toes the entire movie.
Check out some of these iconic films and let us know other references!
