Remakes: Worse than They Once Were?

[Verisimilitude]

Originally Posted by Moviemaniack1993

I really enjoyed these remakes:

King Kong
The Amityville Horror ('79 version stayed true to the book but was lame)
House of Wax
The Hills Have Eyes (remake is one of the better horror films recently)
The Omen (I don't buy Gregory Peck and Lee Remmick have a child at their respective ages in the film, and I like Marco Beltrami's score better than Jerry Goldsmith's for the movie. Plus Mia Farrow as Mrs. Baylock and the scooter scene trump the original)
Poseidon (the original is way too campy for me, and Peterson's effects when the ship capsizes are incredible. The acting could have been better but the film is pretty nerve wracking)
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (I am probably one of the few who hated the original, but this remake was spot on and actually scary. Here's hoping Marcus Nispel can do it again with Friday the 13th)

Your list frightens me (although I accept it's preference )!

The Omen remake lacks the suspense, was essentially a needless remake cash-cow that offerred nothing new from the original except being a pale imitation. It lacks the same caliber of acting and Donner's direction was superior. Gregory Peck was very believable in his role, and believe it or not older career driven people do father children! Dismissing Goldsmith's iconic score in particular main theme....blasphemy!

In my opinion, The Amityville Horror remake was passable but nowhere near the original. It was just formulaic (e.g. put in pretty people!lack of characterisation etc) like many horror films today. The original film is one of the only films that has that slow-burn effect, to a truly terrifying finale that has always scared me (I particularly remember seeing it as a young child on TV).

What remakes lack today are decent writing, characterisation and the clout of the actors we had years ago (Peck, Steiger, Price etc).