It's a Television-styled Theatrical Film Version of . . . a Television Show?

In light of this, it should come as no surprise that film versions of television shows have proven so appealing to the film industry. On the one hand, there is the natural counterintuitive response: That of "why should I go and watch this on the big screen when I can see it on TV already at home?" However, the "televisionation" of film is already so pronounced that this does not enter into the audience equation. Instead, it is more likely that the viewer does not even observe the postmodern irony of going to a theater to watch a warmed over retread of a television series of the past that likely possesses none of the original actors (let alone writers), nor any of the charm of their beloved television show. Of course, this last point assumes that the theatrical remake is of a show that they enjoyed in the past, which also doesn't seem to matter in practice. Equally, for the film industry's part, they likely find a television property cost effective both because of this built-in audience, and also the fact that these projects often require considerably less in the way of development than would original ideas.

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