A remake of The Birds is in the offing. Tippi Hedren, who starred in Hitchcock’s version, wonders why:
A couple of years ago, when they were first thinking about it, they called and asked what I thought about a remake of ‘The Birds’… And I thought ‘Why would you do that? Why?’ I mean, can’t we find new stories, new things to do?
That was my first impulse too. But then it occurred to me that we take for granted there being multiple productions of a work of drama. No one raises an eyebrow over the nth production of King Lear or The Importance of Being Earnest. What’s the difference? Maybe, there isn’t one – or not enough of one to justify that first impulse. Perhaps, though, the difference there is, is just that Hitchcock’s classic is still there, available to be watched, as a classic live theatre production can’t be; and also there’s the suspicion that a remake won’t improve upon what is one of Hitchcock’s half dozen finest movies.