Hollywood remakes that don't suck

Svengarlic · **on:** August 08, 2014, 03:41:15 PM

The idea came to me after viewing a You Tube video about the top 10 lousy remakes. I was surprised that I had seen most of them, and ALL of the originals.

Without giving it much thought yet, I'm wondering how many remakes I've seen that were as good or better than the original. OK, two just popped to mind: The Maltese Falcon and Farewell My Lovely. I'm sure there are many more.

Here's the vid to jump-start your remake juices.

Svengarlic · **Reply #1 on:** September 07, 2014, 11:34:57 AM

It took damn near a month, but I thought of a good one: The Thing. I know that the original is highly regarded, but Carpenter's version fairly blew me away. He must be a very sick man!

"You gotta be fucking kiddin' me!"

Giff me dat fill-em! · **Reply #2 on:** September 07, 2014, 03:43:28 PM

Cloak & Dagger (1984) is said to be a remake of a 1966 film The Boy Who Cried Murder, which itself is a remake of a 1949 film The Window ...

Cloak & Dagger is a story of a boy who lost his mother and has a father that has little time for him, so he retreats into his video game hero's world. A chance meeting with a Scientist about to be killed plunges him into a world of espionage and danger to which, of course, no one believes him. It's a good movie that tops all the above referenced prior films. Dabney Coleman does an excellent job of playing the dad and the video game hero Jack Black.

The Boy Who Cried Murder
http://youtu.be/1AUxcp5g4cI

Cloak & Dagger
http://youtu.be/VFj4e-AmhTo

Svengarlic · **Reply #3 on:** September 07, 2014, 09:03:37 PM

Thanks for the contribution Fill-em. Always interested in good stuff that I missed. I will watch both. But before I do, let me ask you: for the best experience, which should I watch first?

Giff me dat fill-em! · **Reply #4 on:** September 09, 2014, 03:45:27 PM

I found out that Cloak and Dagger was a remake by visiting a website ... so see Cloak first (I haven't even seen The Boy Who Cried Murder)
... and I really like The Thing since it has Kurt Russell in it playing a gritty dude

Giff me dat fill-em! · **Reply #5 on:** September 09, 2014, 05:30:13 PM

Another remake that didn’t suck … Flubber

Flubber (1997)
http://youtu.be/SzMwUpDaYxM

The Absent-Minded Professor (1961)
http://youtu.be/QrwqIEIQuoY

BeAStooge · **Reply #6 on:** September 09, 2014, 07:38:55 PM

Quote from: Giff me dat fill-em! on September 09, 2014, 05:30:13 PM

Flubber (1997)

Film & TV Tributes

Svengarlic · **Reply #7 on:** September 09, 2014, 10:36:28 PM

Quote from: Giff me dat fill-em! on September 09, 2014, 05:30:13 PM

Another remake that didn’t suck … Flubber

Flubber (1997)
http://youtu.be/SzMwUpDaYxM

The Absent-Minded Professor (1961)
http://youtu.be/QrwqIEIQuoY

Might as well add the grand daddy of that franchise: "It Happens Every Spring" (1949) Ray Milland as a very absent minded professor that invents a a bouncy substance that repels the wood in baseball bats. A real dog of a flick. To think that Milland went from his Oscar winning role for The Lost Weekend to this bomb just 4 years later is pretty sad.

So that makes these a tri-fecta of remakes that don't suck!

Svengarlic · **Reply #8 on:** September 09, 2014, 10:58:25 PM

Quote from: Giff me dat fill-em! on September 09, 2014, 03:45:27 PM

I found out that Cloak and Dagger was a remake by visiting a website ... so see Cloak first (I haven't even seen The Boy Who Cried Murder)
... and I really like The Thing since it has Kurt Russell in it playing a gritty dude

He was surprisingly good in that Elvis TV movie, but my fave is definitely The Thing's MacReady. Man, he's played an awful lot of shit roles between "The Thing" and Miracle, the US hockey team movie.

EDIT: I viewed your clip for Cloak, and I realized that I rented and watched it with my kids on the VCR back in the 80's!

Svengarlic · **Reply #9 on:** September 19, 2014, 09:19:16 AM

I thought of another good one: Scarface. For me, this is a complete no-brainer. The only rub is that the two movies are SO different that if they had changed the title I would not have known I was watching the Paul Muni classic.

I think Pacino's version would have been better if a half an hour or so was trimmed from the second half of the film, which was a total downer. But the first half of the remake is so entertaining that I still prefer it....by a mile.

metaldams · **Reply #10 on:** September 19, 2014, 10:48:12 AM

Here are a couple of sound films that are superior to their silent versions, if you want to go way back.

Svengarlic · **Reply #11 on:** September 19, 2014, 12:42:49 PM

It's hard to compare silent's to talkies, for sure. I saw the Chaney Hunchback at about age 9 and was thrilled. Lawton's I saw a few years later. For me, the talkie version was better...much better. I was truly moved by Quasimodo's angst, and Esmeralda's fear and pity. Those emotions didn't come through as well in the original.

Svengarlic · **Reply #12 on:** September 20, 2014, 09:49:48 AM

The original 1958 production was excellent. I'll never forget the final scene: "Help meee!"

The David Cronenberg remake was at times disgusting. How many times must I see a 6'3" fly puke? But the story was good, the relationship between the principals compelling, and Jeff Goldblum totally re-defined the part. His performance made this gross-out fest well worth watching.

Svengarlic · **Reply #13 on:** September 23, 2014, 01:02:34 PM

I rented this one purely out of curiosity for Lindsay Lohan, who was getting scads of negative press for her scandalous behavior back in 2007. I was pleasantly surprised by the girl. But like The Fly, I enjoyed both Traps. I give the remake the nod because Lohan was better than Haley Mills, which was quite a task.

I realize that I may be the only member of this motley crew that has seen both of these family friendly flicks.

Svengarlic · **Reply #14 on:** September 26, 2014, 09:33:42 AM

Little known is that the monster hit Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid was a remake of the 1956 "B" movie The Three Outlaws. (the 3rd outlaw was "News" Carver) The Newman/Redford offering may be the best remake of all time. (as compared to this dog)

And yes...that's Gilligan's "Skipper" as Sundance.

Svengarlic · **Reply #15 on:** October 16, 2014, 01:56:09 PM

INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS (1978)

Tim Burton probably stole the idea of a dog with a human head for Mars Attacks! from this scene.

My first look at Angela Cartwright's (Danny Thomas Show, Lost in Space) little sister Veronica who cemented her scream queen persona in Alien.

I liked both films. Which was better? I don't know. I remember that when Kevin Mc Carthy looked directly into the camera as he spoke his warning it scared me silly. Here's a trailer from that original. Keep an eye out for an Addams Family and Leave it to Beaver player.

Signor Spumoni · **Reply #16 on:** October 16, 2014, 02:05:05 PM

For any fans - - StudioBacklots yahoo group said there is a plan afoot to reboot "Lost In Space."

My opinion: I infinitely prefer the original "Invasion of the Body Snatchers." I think it had a certain menace and doom which were not duplicated in the remake. Also, Donald Sutherland, whom I sometimes like and sometimes don't, had that '70s perm Brillo pad hair which really distracted me.

Svengarlic · **Reply #17 on:** October 16, 2014, 03:15:58 PM

Quote from: Signor Spumoni on October 16, 2014, 02:05:05 PM

For any fans - - StudioBacklots yahoo group said there is a plan afoot to reboot "Lost In Space."

My opinion: I infinitely prefer the original "Invasion of the Body Snatchers." I think it had a certain menace and doom which were not duplicated in the remake. Also, Donald Sutherland, whom I sometimes like and sometimes don't, had that '70s perm Brillo pad hair which really distracted me.

Another Lost? OMG, deal me out! I only watched the first remake because Mimi Rogers was in it.

Svengarlic · **Reply #18 on:** October 24, 2014, 07:06:27 AM

It's difficult to compare the two films. The original (1942) was the B movie baby of director Val Lewton and RKO, who specialized in using Columbia's 3 Stooges trick of borrowing old sets before they were dismantled, and employing unknown actors that were good and CHEAP.

The general plots are the same, but of course, the remake, released in 1982 was more sexually graphic. Neither film actually shows anyone torn to pieces, but the implied violence is enough.

The beautiful and exotic Simone Simon (recently displayed in the Mystery Actor thread) was a pretty good choice for the Cat Girl, and Nastassja Kinski was just as good. Less exotic perhaps, but a good deal more enigmatic.

The remake was true to the title as there were two cat people people munchers. The first should have been titled Cat Person. The best thing to result from the original was Lewton's green light to make I Walked with a Zombe a year later. Zombie was a truly creepy film, and equally successful at the BO.

The 1982 CAT didn't fare as well, but was quite successful later as the timing of it's release was perfect for the VCR explosion.

Umbrella Sam · **Reply #19 on:** August 16, 2017, 11:05:04 PM

I know that this isn't technically a remake per se, but I really enjoyed The Peanuts Movie. I thought that it was very faithful to its source material both in capturing its style of humor and the personalities of the characters. I could see the animation as being sort of off-putting to fans, since it is CGI, although unlike The Smurfs or Alvin and the Chipmunks, the characters actually do look like Schulz's original designs. My only problem is that the Snoopy and Charlie Brown segments feel a bit unbalanced, particularly towards the end, but the movie is still entertaining regardless. This is one of the few modern reboots that I think is actually worth watching if you get a chance.