Plotlines from old movies

Poirot

Poirot

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Dr. Baker made an interesting observation in another thread. We have all seen old movies that are made anew, maybe a slight variation, or updating. For instance...There was The Shop Around the Corner back in the 40s I think, then In The Good Old Summertime in the 50s, and then You've Got Mail (Tom Hanks/Meg Ryan). There's Ocean's 11, then Ocean's 12...maybe even 13.
Plus there are tons of movies whose plotlines, or a variation thereof, would work so well on a soap. For instance...Gaslight...which tells of the man who married a rich woman, then proceeded to drive her insane by taking her things, so she would think she lost or misplaced them, dimming the gaslights which would be fine when she complained.
Right now, it would/could be a good plotline for Aiden, his late wife, Rachel. (In the movie, she survived, he went to jail)
What about Sleeping With the Enemy.....the gal who escaped from her controlling husband, new name, nice guy neighbor next door, and then the husband realizes she is not dead and finds her.

While You were Sleeping....the gal is in love with the guy in a coma, he doesn't know it, his family thinks they are engaged, he wakes up, no idea who she is, but thinks his accident caused him to forget. Meanwhile his brother has fallen in love with the girl, and actually, she with him as well.

Maybe Days is doing a variation on When Harry Met Sally with Melanie & Brady???
Without going all sci-fi.....how about some movie that could be worked into a plot for Days???
 
Variation on Sleeping With The Enemy......is Jordan, running away from the controlling and abusive Clyde, taking Ben along, changing names, on the run. She settles in Salem, meets the nice guy (Rafe) and the abusive guy finds her. Gee, will Clyde meet the same fate as Julia Roberts' abusive husband?

I like comedies, muscials and romantic movies so much, hard for me to come up with a movie that doesn't have those basic plotlines.

Right now I am trying to remember the one where a young woman finds an abandoned baby, and takes it in. In the movie, everyone thinks it is hers, I think she was a salesgirl...but since I want the baby finder to be Nicole......I just want Nicole to have a child.
 
Poirot I'm sure you remember they did Gaslight as a story on Guiding Light - it'd be hard to top their version for me. :love:

I'd like to see a His Girl Friday type storyline on Days, using Nicole as the Hildy Johnson character, and, failing Jack as the other reporter, have her working with Brady (who takes over direct control of the Titan Media division after declining profits force him to fire the director, or VP, or whatever). I'd also be OK with a new character interacting with Nicole in the workplace.

All the other movies I like are comedy or sci-fi - but maybe a Tommy Boy story could work on Days. Deadbeat/slacker son tries to save father's company from unscrupulous second wife - I picture Kate as the second wife, and a returned, Good Tony (a DiMera slacker since he's not evil) in this story.
 
Variation on The Great Gatsby. Brady learns that a young, wealthy woman whom he was infatuated with while living in Europe has moved to the Salem area. When she never appears at the Brady Pub, Club TBD, or even the Town Square, he starts throwing weekly lavish parties at the K-mansion, hoping that she will appear. And if she does, will she leave her loutish, cheating husband to be with Brady??

Variation on The French Connection. Rafe learns that major French drug dealers have an agreement with Clyde to bring high-quality "product" to Salem. Can Rafe learn the site of the big drug transfer, and if he does, will he catch the French drug kingpins??
 
robinsnest said:
Didn't they do a Gas Light story with Laura many years back and of course no one believed her since she has the history of mental instability.
Click to expand...

From what I can remember, Peter Blake had Laura's office painted with a poisoned paint so that it was driving her crazy. I think there was a vase with poison in it, too.
 
To further show how many plot lines there are for the writers to adapt, here are a few more from old movies.
Variation on Erin Brockovich: Reporter Nicole learns that a factory owned by DiMera Enterprises is polluting the Salem River. After Chad brushes her off with jokes about two-headed frogs, Nicole teams up with Justin to shut down the factory. Guided by Stefano, Chad fights back.

Variation on Animal House with some current events added: JJ and Rory join Salem U.'s rowdiest fraternity. Prissy Jenny worries that JJ's grades will suffer, that he'll be involved in a cheating scandal, or that he'll be accused of rape after a drunken frat party.

Variation on Risky Business: Needing cash and with Jen Jen out of town, JJ and Rory team up with one of Clyde's young, attractive hookers (who hates Clyde) to throw a "party" at the Horton house. Will Prissy Jenny return too soon and find out what's going on, or will an angry Clyde demand the the "party" profits?? Can love-starved Rafe, who joined in the event's fun, help JJ and Rory?
 
Would we see JJ dancing in his undies to Bob Seger in the Horton living room?!

th
 
My favorite Hitchcock movie is Suspicion, where a young woman married a virtual stranger quickly to get away from her rich but controlling family, then quickly begins to suspect he's a murderer. It looks like Hope and Aiden are already headed in that direction, sadly, but I'd much rather see it with Paige and some newbie, give Eve something to worry about for real.

I also like Spellbound, where a guy claiming to be a psychiatrist turns out to be a mental patient who is suspected of murdering said psychiatrist, but another doctor at the mental hospital falls for him and goes on the run with him to prove his innocence. With a few tweaks this would be a good story for Nicole, or perhaps the latest for Marlena and John.
 
Oh, my gosh, Spellbound was exactly that....spellbinding storytelling. With tweaks, somehow, I can envision Eric, Serena, with Marlena & John. .....

Back in the days of old, I used to think of Jennifer coming to work at the Spectator, with Jack as her mentor, as a sort of His Girl Friday....it was great storytelling.

I think the idea of "It's A Wonderful Life" could be wonderful story on Days. Some depressed soul for some reason, wishes they were never born.....Dream sequence, or whatever. How about Daniel?
No Melanie, No Parker, No relationship with victor, Bo is not saved via transplant from Chelsea because no Dan. The return of Jack is not hampered by Jen dating Daniel.
Lives were not saved because no Dr. Hero to rescue/save, etc.

I so want Jack back, and Steve (Patch), too.
 
Oh, my gosh, just thought of "Here Comes Mr. Jordan". A movie made and remade a few times. A guy is injured, dies, but it is discovered is too soon. Unfortunately, he cannot be returned to his body as it was cremated, so Mr. Jordan has to find him a new one. The guy has all his memories, etc. and now is in a new body, but wants to continue his old contacts. Loved the movies.

So.....let's bring Jack back,via Mr. Jordan, or Percy, Orville, Clarence, whoever. Maybe someone else being put into the Jack body......but however, I really do not care. I want Matt Ashford back in Salem. Change his look, his name, but bring him back.
 
They did something similar to that on OLTL - a popular character was killed off, fans reacted; the show then had him as a "ghost" for awhile who possessed an otherwise jerky guy, and he was able to win over his girl again. (They were really good about it too, showing him as both actors, à la Quantum Leap.)

I thought we were already watching It's A Wonderful Daniel Jonas Life, and that our narrator was Maxine... :wink:
 
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