  I saw this movie the other night; I won't say which one because it is both potentially embarrassing and moot. I thought the movie was pretty good though, not the best I'd ever seen, but enjoyable. However, I remember the critics saying that this movie would suck because it followed the original formula too much. This got me thinking... obviously, since I wouldn't be sitting at my computer at 6:15 in the morning otherwise. Almost all movies follow a formula. Look at horror movies and B movies. Now, I've never actually seen a horror movie myself because I have a very active imagination and been known to have nightmares just from the previews, but even I can see the formula.
Every one of these movies has one monster or baddie who is bent on mutilation, mayhem, terror, (and every variation on these). And they always have a motive or reason for what they do (mutation, revenge (mostly used for sequels), take over the world, their mommy or daddy wasn't nice to them, etc. There's the person (usually a male) who figures out what's going to happen or that there's something out there to get them, but of course no one believes him. There's the dumb blonde cheerleader type who will at some point be running around in very little clothing and ultimately knocked off, probably from tripping. There's the scientist who says he knows how to solve the dilemma and save the world but he's killed before it happens.
Oh, and don't forget the token black guy who will also be killed. The only people to survive this horrific onslaught will be a man and woman who will at some point in the movie have the time to make out in some dark corner before the creature finds them and chases them again. And of course, they will survive. Horror and B movies are not the only ones to follow a formula.
Romantic comedies, anything with Jim Carrey (doesn't he ever do anything outside the box), thrillers, etc. There are very few original movie ideas out there. So for the critics to say this movie won't be good because it follows a formula is ridiculous. Almost every movie follows a formula, it's just the way it is. Just look at the number of sequels out there?! Halloween, Nightmare on Elm Street, Star Wars, Batman, Superman, Godfather, Star Trek, American Pie, Alien, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Indiana Jones, and I could go on.
I won't even get into the number of remakes out there that are never as good as the original. I give them credit for trying but if it ain't broke, don't fix it. And Saturday Night Live needs to stop trying to make a movie out of a skit. It doesn't work. ...and that's the way the cookie crumbles.... 
