The American remake of the acclaimed Austrian horror movie Goodnight Mommy is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video, starring Naomi Watts as the titular mother. Watts herself is no stranger to horror remakes, having starred in Gore Verbinski's 2002 update on The Ring, which adapted the Japanese original to great success.
Hollywood remakes of international horror films have a long and decidedly mixed track record, with even the best-intentioned filmmakers running the risk of feeling like they're cashing in rather than truly inspired. But some have broken the typical remake curse and been good (or even great) movies in their own right.
The Uninvited (2009) - 33%
Inspired by Kim Jee-woon's twisted psychological thriller A Tale of Two Sisters, The Uninvited follows a young woman who is discharged from a mental hospital only to return home to a house haunted by her dead mother. The film came near the tail-end of the Asian horror remake craze and was even produced by The Ring's Walter F. Parkes and Laurie MacDonald.
The Uninvited didn't receive the best reviews, with many critics finding the movie's plot too predictable and the scares uninspired. However, others found things to like about the film, including Roger Ebert, who praised lead actress Emily Browning as "an ideal heroine for a horror movie."
The Grudge (2004) - 40%
Ju-On is one of the most popular J-horror franchises, with plenty of tense atmosphere and haunting imagery, so it makes sense that Hollywood would take a crack at their own version. 2004's The Grudge is a remake of the Japanese series' third and most popular installment, keeping the story in Tokyo but making the main character an American exchange student played by Sarah Michelle Gellar.
Despite mixed reviews, The Grudge was a box office hit on a modest $10 million budget. It also spawned a small franchise of its own, with the most recent entry being the quickly forgotten horror film of the same name.
Dark Water (2005) - 47%
A remake of an acclaimed Japanese ghost story, Dark Water may have had an English-speaking cast headed by Jennifer Connelly and John C. Reilly, but it still had an international pedigree. Brazilian director Walter Salles (The Motorcycle Diaries) helmed the project, his first foray into Hollywood filmmaking.
Dark Water has a middling Tomatometer score, almost split right down the middle, and many critics thought it worked better as a drama than a horror film. Variety's Todd McCarthy said it best when he wrote that the movie was "dripping with...claustrophobic atmosphere, but ultimately...just another mildewed, child-centric ghost story of little import or resonance."
Funny Games (2008) - 51%
Austrian auteur Michael Haneke's films are rarely for the faint of heart, and Funny Games ranks as arguably his most disturbing work. The home invasion movie about a family terrorized by a pair of implacable killers pulls no punches in terms of brutality, and has had a profound influence on American directors like Jordan Peele.
Haneke came to the States to remake Funny Games with an English-speaking cast, including Tim Roth, Michael Pitt, and perennial remake favorite Naomi Watts. However, as the Rotten Tomatoes consensus says, some critics took issue with how the movie chastises the audience, and being a shot-for-shot remake leaves little to differentiate it from the original other than a new cast and language.
Quarantine (2008) - 55%
Before Paranormal Activity kicked off the early 2010s found footage craze, Spanish zombie movie Rec gave audiences a tense, thrilling ride, and it's often considered one of the best of the found footage genre. Sadly, its American remake Quarantine couldn't live up to its source material, but some critics were quite positive, with the staff at Bloody Disgusting calling it "expertly cast, edited and staged with expert meticulousness and precision."
The movie also helped bring more attention to Rec, which had previously been fairly obscure. Co-creator Paco Plaza told Entertainment Weekly that Quarantine "moved a spotlight onto our film...everyone knew that it existed, this tiny Spanish film."
13 Sins (2014) - 64%
Director Daniel Stamm's follow-up to The Last Exorcism, 13 Sins takes the premise of a down-on-his-luck man taking a series of morally questionable challenges and running with it to create a pitch-black comedy. It's based on the Thai film 13 Beloved, which didn't get much play in America but was well-liked by those who saw it.
13 Sins may ape movies like Saw and Falling Down a bit too closely, but its tension and sense of humor means that there's still plenty for genre fans to enjoy. Mark Webber gives a solid performance as lead character Elliot Brindle, as does Ron Perlman as a detective trying to solve the crimes Elliot leaves in his wake.
Suspiria (2018) - 65%
Dario Argento's Suspiria is one of the Giallo pioneer's most iconic films, with a unique, satisfying horror aesthetic that is almost a character unto itself. Any remake would have a hard time following Argento's lead, so Luca Guadingno took his remake in a very different direction, keeping the basic premise but adding new themes of German guilt about Nazism, and a much colder color palette.
The 2018 Suspiria may have polarized critics and viewers, but it's definitely a gorgeous-looking movie with fantastic cinematography and some creepy imagery. Dakota Johnson also gives it her all Susie Bannion, a young dancer who gets caught up in a witches' coven.
The Ring (2002) - 71%
As the movie that started the trend of Hollywood J-horror remakes, The Ring has a mixed legacy, and the slew of poor imitators may be a reason some are embarrassed to admit to liking it. However, the film still holds up as a well-made supernatural horror flick, helped immensely by Gore Verbinski's direction and Naomi Watts' strong performance.
Hideo Nakata's Japanese original is a classic of the genre, so it makes sense that it would be the first one to receive a major remake. Critics generally gave The Ring positive reviews, with a particular focus on how it utilizes visuals, sound, and atmosphere to creep audiences out rather than excessive gore.
We Are What We Are (2013) - 86%
Director Jim Mickle may not be a household name, but he's a great filmmaker with some impressive work in both film (Cold in July) and television (Sweet Tooth). One of his most acclaimed movies is We Are What We Are, a remake of a Mexican horror film about a reclusive family who engages in cult-like practices.
Surprisingly for a film about cannibalism, We Are What We Are features little in the way of gore, instead building tension with an oppressive atmosphere and engaging performances. A highlight among the cast is Ozark star Julia Garner in one of her earlier cinematic roles.
Let Me In (2010) - 88%
Swedish vampire film Let the Right One In is one of the masterpieces of 21st-century horror, a tense, unbearably creepy tale of the supernatural as well as an engaging coming-of-age story. With such a pedigree, one might be worried that a remake wouldn't be able to capture that magic, but Matt Reeves' Let Me In succeeds where so many others fail.
The plot points are no surprise to fans of the original, but Reeves' first-rate filmmaking ensures that they are effective even if one has seen them before. Kodi Smit-McPhee and Chloë Moretz are also great choices for the lead characters, being actors with talent beyond their years who make Owen and Abby's relationship both heartfelt and disturbing.