Inferior remakes

[zen007]

Remakes can be tricky as on one hand, films hope to bank on a tried and tested concept, but on the other hand, are expected to maintain or even surpass the set standards while also appearing relatively fresh.


From the top of the mind recall, below are a few remakes that could have been better or more impactful, in the order of release:


The Magnificent Seven (1960): Looks competitive until you see Seven Samurai (1954).

A Fistful of Dollars (1964): The film still works (may not have aged as well as I would prefer) but Yojimbo (1960) remains superb even today.

Never Say Never Again (1983): A fun film but Thunderball (1965) is a classic.

The Vanishing (1993): 1988 version is far too engaging.

Mission Impossible II (2000): Notorious (1946) is in a league of its own.

Dark Water (2005): The original 2002 version is more emotionally engaging.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011): I like the 2011 remake but the 2009 version has its charm.

The Secret in Their Eyes (2015): 2009 version is among the best films that I have seen.


Then there are other obvious examples such as the Psycho remake.


Which are the remakes that could have done a better job or where the original has aged relatively better?

[kylor]

Total Recall
RoboCop
Pet Sematary
Aladdin
Carrie
Child's Play
Dumbo
Footloose
Lady and the Tramp
Overboard
Pinocchio
Point Break
Poltergeist
Psycho
Rollerball
Scoob
What Men Want
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

[BudBaxter]

I believe the correct response is: Almost all of them.

[Mikezilla3k]

The Ring.

Turns Sadoka from a tragic figure to a lame "bad seed" character....as well as throw a ugly blue filter on everything.

[zen007]

Originally Posted by BudBaxter

I believe the correct response is: Almost all of them.

Not necessarily as An Affair to Remeber (1957) is rated as highly (or even higher by many) than Love Affair (1939). Similarly, The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934 v 1956), Scarface (1932 v 1983), Dracula (1931 v Bram Stoker's Dracula 1992), etc.

[RossyG]

In what parallel dimension is Coppola’s Dracula considered better than the Bela Lugosi version?

But yes, as stated by BudBaxter, almost all remakes are inferior. A few more honourable exceptions… (and these may be subjective)

The Maltese Falcon
The Fly
John Carpenter’s The Thing
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)
The Blob (1988)
Ocean’s 11

[BudBaxter]

Originally Posted by zen007

Not necessarily as An Affair to Remeber (1957) is rated as highly (or even higher by many) than Love Affair (1939). Similarly, The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934 v 1956), Scarface (1932 v 1983), Dracula (1931 v Bram Stoker's Dracula 1992), etc.

Yes, obviously there's a few, hence the 'Almost all of them'. I don't agree on your Scarface or Dracula examples, but it's all down to personal opinion. IMHO, The Thing (1982), The Fly (1986) & Ocean's Eleven (2001) are all much better than the originals.


But if you're asking what remakes are inferior to the originals, this is going to be a very long thread.

[zen007]

Originally Posted by BudBaxter

Yes, obviously there's a few, hence the 'Almost all of them'. I don''t agree on your Scarface or Dracula examples, but it's all down to personal opinion. IMHO, The Thing (1982), The Fly (1986) & Ocean's Eleven (2001) are all much better than the originals.


But if you're asking what remakes are inferior to the originals, this is going to be a very long thread.

On Bram Stoker's Dracula and Scarface, as I said, as highly rated (or higher) as the originals.

Per general IMDB ratings:

Dracula 1931 7.4
Bram Stoker's Dracula 1992 7.4
(I would give 1992 version an edge esp. for Gary Oldman, the score, use of colors, etc. However, likely to take Nosferatu 1922 over both )

Scarface 1932 7.7
Scarface 1983 8.3

[Winslow Leach]

The PSYCHO remake.

[Lee A Stewart]

THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL (2008)
HELLBOY (2019)
GODZILLA (1998)
THE MUMMY (2017)
RED DAWN (2012)
GET CARTER (2000)

And the worst of all . . .

BEN-HUR (2016)

[John1701D]

Originally Posted by BudBaxter

But if you're asking what remakes are inferior to the originals, this is going to be a very long thread.

Yeah a thread about remakes being better than the original would be more interesting.

[BluBonnet]

The Charade remake is an unfathomable desecration of cinematic arts

[Alan T]

Friday the 13th and A Nightmare on Elm Street remakes

[BudBaxter]

Originally Posted by BluBonnet

The Charade remake is an unfathomable desecration of cinematic arts

Oh man. In the long, dark history of bad remakes, that's probably near the top of the list. The studio clearly had no faith in it either, as they put the twist on the poster.

[zen007]

MI II (2000): Notorious (1946) is in a league of its own.

[blakninja]

Never Say Never Again (1983) is a remade of Thunderball (1965)?

[Jay H.]

Tony Scott's Taking of Pelham 123 is so bad, I had to watch the original. It couldn't possibly be as terrible as the remake, right? It quickly became one of my favorite movies of the 1970s.

[wonderer99]

There are many. Evil Dead isn't one of them. And unpopular opinion, neither is Total Recall

[RFK]

Some bad tv remakes
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (TV Movie) 1998
Night of the hunter (TV Movie) 1991
The Bad Seed [TV Movie] [1985

[dallywhitty]

Originally Posted by RossyG

In what parallel dimension is Coppola’s Dracula considered better than the Bela Lugosi version?

I dunno, but I wish I lived there. It is better.