In the pantheon of movies and making movies, it’s getting harder and harder to come up with completely original ideas that have never been done before. Often times these days, movies are adaptations, sequels, reboots, and remakes. Remakes, however, have been a part of movies since the early days of cinema.
Taking an established idea, refining it to make it your own, and putting your own spin on the film. Perhaps using newer technology for effects shots, bringing in new actors to change the film's atmosphere and vibe. While plenty of fans have their ideas about movies that should never be remade, there are plenty of movies that get remade and even remade again. Here 10 Movies That You Didn’t Know Are Remakes.
Scarface
Al Pacino tacked one more iconic role to his ever-growing list of iconic roles when he took on Tony Montana; aka Scarface. The actor had seen the 1932 original and wanted to produce an update. Brian De Palma was behind the camera, filming Oliver Stone’s script. Pacino and his ridiculous accent chew up scene after scene and deliver all kinds of quotable lines that, taken out of the context of the movie, are pretty good words to live by for plenty of the film’s fans.
The Departed
Brad Pitt’s production company had acquired the rights to the popular Hong Kong film, Infernal Affairs.
With his flair for mob movies, Martin Scorsese took the film, along with loosely using the story of Whitey Bolger to create the compelling Academy Award-winning film, The Departed - one undercover cop’s rise to the top of the underworld set against one undercover criminal’s rise to the top of the police force. The result was one of the new classics, one of the best films of the past twenty years.
Oceans 11
Steven Soderbergh defined what cool was in the early aughts. He took just about every cool and charismatic actor in Hollywood, topped them off with George Clooney and Brad Pitt, and made a fun heist picture. The idea wasn’t entirely original though. 41 years earlier, the coolest cats in the room were the Rat Pack. Led by the Chairman Of The Board, Frank Sinatra, he and his cool and charismatic friends made the original Oceans 11. The Rat Pack played veterans who ransacked five Vegas casinos while Clooney and company were career crooks going after three.
Heat
Directed by Michael Mann, Heat is hands down the greatest cop thriller of all time. If you haven’t seen it, or haven’t seen it in a while, go check it out right now...
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See? It’s Pacino and DeNiro at their finest and their supporting cast is on point. The shootout in the middle of L.A. is even used by several military battalions as a training video on how to take cover and return fire. It’s all pretty perfect, as far as a movie goes. Mann himself remade and retooled his own L.A. Takedown to make Heat.
The Thing
Simple movie logic fact - putting Kurt Russell in your movie immediately elevates up a few levels. Just check out Russell as Santa Claus in The Christmas Chronicles as proof. In the third collaboration between John Carpenter and Russell, they chose to remake the 1951 Thing From Another World. The horror director and the fresh-faced Disney kid turned budding action hero teamed up to deliver their own brand of sci-fi horror.
Meet The Parents
Avant-garde comedian Emo Phillips produced a low budget film, Meet the Parents. Both versions were written by Greg Glienna. Of course, the 2000 update starring Ben Stiller and Robert De Niro caught like wildfire and spawned two sequels - Meet The Fockers, and Little Fockers. The comedy is a nearly perfect uncomfortable scenario rife for tons of comedy. Guys get uneasy meeting a girl’s parents as it is, but when dad happens to be a CIA operative, it's much worse.
3:10 To Yuma
Adapted from a short story by Elmore Leonard, both the original and remake of 3:10 To Yuma are both big-time Western adventures. A rancher decides to take a dangerous job and bring an outlaw to justice.
The remake had an all-star duo of Russell Crowe and Christian Bale. But it was Ben Foster as Charlie Prince that actually stole the show in the James Mangold update.
Man On Fire
Long before Liam Neeson murdered a lot of people to get his daughter back, Denzel Washington as John Creasy went on a murderous rampage after his charge, Pita Ramos was abducted in Mexico City. As a Man On Fire, Washington plays a much different character than we’ve seen him before. Creasy is a retired operative turned alcoholic, depressed bodyguard. He is only just starting to come around, thanks to bonding with nine-year-old Pita. The original movie, from 1987 starring Scott Glenn and Joe Pesci, was originally slated to be directed by Tony Scott. Scott eventually got to remake the movie with Denzel.
Vanilla Sky
Tom Cruise as David Aames is trading in his good looks as an actor for his good looks as a media magnate, spoiled brat. He’s the heir apparent to his father’s massive media company and can have it all, whenever he wants it.
But things get real dicey once he falls for one girl while using another. This might not sound like the makings of neo-classic sci-fi film, but Cameron Crowe’s remake of the Spanish thriller Abre Los Ojos, Vanilla Sky is exactly that. Bonus points for both movies starring Penelope Cruz.
The Wizard Of Oz
There is very little left to be said about The Wizard Of Oz that hasn't been said over the years. It’s one of the first-ever truly classic films that holds up at any age in any culture. But for as many people that wish this all-time classic never be remade, it's seldom mentioned that the 1939 iconic film is itself a remake. Not only is it a remake, but it's also the fourth one! The most famous one prior was the 1925 version starring a young Oliver Hardy.