CBS -- of all places -- remade the original, masterful Fail-Safe, a cautionary tale about nuclear war, jammed full of big name movie stars (check out that cast!), and shot in black and white from Walter Bernstein's original screenplay. It's a very faithful remake, even though the production values (it's shot on video) are atrocious. That might be forgiveable, of course, I only recently discovered (thanks to the new DVD of the film, which restores Walter Kronkite's introduction) that it was shot and broadcast live.

It's a fabulous original film and a worthwhile redo -- but it comes about 20 years too late. Why waste time remaking a tale about nuclear war with the Soviet Union -- a country that no longer exists -- in this millennium? Don't we have bigger fish to fry these days? Still, it's worth a look if you're a fan of the original.