Usually it's a song - sometimes when you hear it, you didn't even know it was a remake. Bob Dylan may have written it, but despite Hendrix goofing the words, he made "All Along the Watchtower" better. U2 not so much, although I do like Dave Matthews' version. I love Steve McQueen, but I prefer the Pierce Brosnan version of "Thomas Crown Affair." Ashton Kutcher's "Guess Who" against Sydney Poitier's "Guess Who's Coming To Dinner" is a joke, though. You don't see a lot of great art work redone . . . Duck lip Mona Lisa selfie? Now there's an abomination. And, the lists go on. Focus: What is your favorite remake? Anything that's been copied and improved. What's the worst remake? Alt. Focus: What would you like to see remade?
I love both versions of 'The Thomas Crown Affair,' but definitely shade towards the Brosnan one. I also love 'The Underneath' which is a remake of 'Criss Cross,' a 1949 Burt Lancaster film. The Departed is a tremendous remake. I like 'Infernal Affairs' a lot too, but there's something about 'The Departed' that gets me. I also loved the newer 'Clash of the Titans.' This may have a lot to do with Gemma Arterton, to whom I would do things that are hopefully illegal in this country. In music, I really find 'Bang a Gong' by Power Station superior to the original (though I like the T-Rex version a lot as well). I also like the version of 'Hotel California' in 'The Big Lebowski.' Maybe not as much as the original, but I've heard the original a billion times, so maybe the different version is nice. Not sure this qualifies as a 'remake' but Lou Reed's 'Sweet Jane' with Mick Ronson (the live version) I find to be far superior to the Velvet Underground version. Ones I didn't like? The Amazing Spider Man with Garfield/Stone. I love both actors, but I really liked the McGuire/Dunst version. I just felt the newer one had a much darker, more isolated feel, and frankly the story was a bit boring to me. One's I'd like to see remade: M*A*S*H. I love the Sutherland/Gould one, but I think they could really do a great remake today. Also, a lot of 50's - 60's sci fi flicks could be improved with today's special effects.
Does the original Evil Dead 2 count as a remake? Even though its a sequel, its basically the same movie, with the same actors, with a bigger budget. As far as movies go, its a massive improvement over the first one. Then again Im just a sucker for campy Bruce Campbell films (Bubba Hotep anyone?) As far as other remakes, I think any remake that first comes to mind when the title is referenced is evidence of a successful one. Scarface is a good example. Does anyone ever think of the 1930s one or do they just think of Al Pacino sitting behind a desk with a mountain of coke and an M-16?
"Hurt" by Johnny Cash is far superior to that garbage the Reznor put out. So much so in fact, that Reznor "gave" the song to Johnny. I'd post up a link but the youtube is blocked at the office.
I think there are a lot of good film remakes, but they're usually not the ones pumped out by studios for cash. I think the Coen Brother's True Grit was excellent. Although, they claim it wasn't a remake of the film, but another adaptation of the book. A Fist Full of Dollars was essentially a remake of Yojimbo and it was great (although arguably not better than the original). Cronenberg's The Fly is probably better than the original and a truly haunting movie. Generally these remakes are good, because talented directors were inspired by the original and wanted to make something else of high quality.
George A.Romero's Dawn Of The Dead is hailed by many critics as the greatest horror film, but Zach Snyder's remake is its own marvellous, bloodthirsty beast-- and still Snyder's best film. The Eagles' cover of Steve Young's "Seven Bridges Road" is incredible. Perfect harmonizing and my favourite song by that band. Alt-Focus I always wanted to write and direct a remake of Peter Bogdonovich's Targets.. It's a spine-tingling thriller about a disturbed (and cowardly) Vietnam sniper that goes on a rampage at a Drive-In movie festival. I can't think of a better thriller premise if I wanted to.
The remake of Les Diaboliques is a pure insult to the greatest psychological horror film ever made. It just plain sucks.
The original, subtitled La Femme Nikita was amazing. The remake? Shit. The original, subtitled Girl With The Dragon Tattoo movies? Loved them. The remake? Not so much. It seems that when a production tries to "Americanize" a movie they generally don't do it well. Not so much a remake as it was a continuation of a series, the latest The Thing (2011) did a great job as a precursor to the original 1982 movie of the same name. It's like you could watch the 2011 movie, then throw in the 1982 version and it just carries on where it left off it a temporally backwards way. The naming was fucking confusing, but I enjoyed the movies very much.
Heartbearts by Jose Gonzalez is better than the original by The Knife. Torn by Natalie Imbruglia is actually a cover of a band called Ednaswap, obviously way better as its guilty pleasure classic.
The remake/prequel of The Thing is a loving adaptation by filmmakers who obviously loved the 1982 version and wanted to make a true-blue companion piece to a nightmarish horror movie. I was very satisfied with it, my only slight complaints are 1) CGI, since they originally filmed the remake with practical make-up effects and 2) it just wasn't as scary as the original. They were even smart enough to keep the flamethrowers in this one. It's uncanny and incredible how the two films line up when watched back-to-back.
As a horror fan this is absolute blasphemy. I much prefer the American remakes of The Grudge and The Ring. Scarier, better shot, I don't have to read the subtitles, which for a horror flick kind of takes you out of it. A few of us saw The Grudge opening weekend and we were all thoroughly creeped the fuck out. Second on Zack Snyder's Dawn of The Dead. I thought it was way better. Tighter, terrifying, great characters. People were walking out of that place, they lost their mind when those things started chasing people. Coppola's Dracula is the best version out there. I could watch that every day. The Thing remake? Pointless as Psycho. They re-shot the same movie. However, I can't imagine anyone trying to remake The Exorcist or Don't Look Now. They remade Carrie and guess what? Nobody cared, not even Stephen King. What's the point of remaking a good movie? They got the right idea with The Exorcist, they re-released it. And people went to see it. Who'd a thunk it. Remember The Shining TV miniseries? Jesus Christ, that was embarrassing. I was rooting for the ghosts. I really am waiting for a Dirty Harry remake. Or The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly only done with teenagers and riced out Hondas. One of these execs is going to shit the bed so bad, incite such irrevocable hatred remaking something truly beloved, blowing hundreds of millions in the process, that this nonsense will end. Concerning music, Metallica's Garage Inc is a double album of exactly how to cover songs. They put their own spin on 30 tunes, some of them (most) waaaaaay better than the originals. Diamond Head owes their career to that band. Thin Lizzy is an awesome band. Metallica's Whiskey In The Jar makes livers explode though. Alt. Focus: Ideally, nothing. There is a wealth of good, new stories out there to tell. If one MUST remake something shitty or something whose material was neutered for whatever reason.
I hear you . . . but, sometimes I enjoy digging in to the original when I would not have except for the remake. I love Otis Redding. I only really knew Dock of the Bay until the Black Crowes did Hard to Handle. That made me go back and hear the original, and I got more into his music. And, even though Otis is special, Aretha's version of Respect is much better.
Nobody can be Clint Eastwood except for him. That's why remaking anything he is in, is a bad idea. Its not about the story as much as it being just about him. He wasn't acting.
While we're at it, don't remake Schwarzenegger movies. Ever. Again. It can't be done.. Except maybe Hercules In New York.
And by extension, dont continue his series' without him. Predator 2 onwards sucked and although the last Terminator movie technically had him, it blew ass. But I guess theyre rebooting the original movie with Arnold in it? And Danaerys Targaryan is playing Sarah Connor or something.
It's another sequel called Terminator Genesis with Jason Clarke as John Connor and Jai Courtney as Reese. My guess is they'll motion-capture Arnie since he's old and doughy now.
You cannot be any more wrong. It tells the story of what happened before the original Thing, so much so that the first movie picks up EXACTLY where the second movie leaves off... you could take a break between the movies and think that you're just pausing a single movie to go take a piss. If you meant that they basically extended the original movie, then yes, I agree... but to say it's a "re-shoot" isn't true. The problem was they named both movies the same, so there is confusion. The first movie is, and always will be, my favourite... but again, the second is no slouch.