Movie/ tv remakes

[Ghost89]

This evening I’ve just watched the tv remake of classic 80’s show The Equalizer. The new show has of all people Queen Latifah as the titular character. While it was watchable it wasn’t a patch on Edward Woodward’s character who was very well dressed, calm but you just knew he was extremely dangerous. Another case of gender reversal for the sake of it.
But it got me thinking…what remakes do you like or loathe?

[myothernameis]

This evening I’ve just watched the tv remake of classic 80’s show The Equalizer. The new show has of all people Queen Latifah as the titular character. While it was watchable it wasn’t a patch on Edward Woodward’s character who was very well dressed, calm but you just knew he was extremely dangerous. Another case of gender reversal for the sake of it.
But it got me thinking…what remakes do you like or loathe?

Tonights episode of the Equalizer, also had a dr who connection

The dr was male, but now female, and Chris North, who appeared in revolution of the daleks.  So far as sex changes go, dont think tv programs should change the original characters

But as far as the first episode goes, I liked it

[Ghost89]

It was watchable. Just cos it has Queen Latifah in it doesn’t mean it has to have rap music when she gets into a fight. The original was grittier and in many ways ahead of it’s time covering storylines that involves child pornography, domestic violence amongst other things. Latifah has some very big shoes to fill and I do think there were better choices than her.

[The Film Director]

Many (most?) remakes tend to be inferior IMHO.

One notable exception is His Girl Friday, Howard Hawks' 1941 remake of the 1931 film The Front Page .... having said that I haven't seen the 1931 film. 

[Ali Katt]

The Thing obviously. I used to like The Fly when I was younger, don't really watch yucky stuff anymore. Shaft remake in terms of pacing and story better than the original, but less cool in a kitschy way.

The TV movie of 12 angry men is said to be really good, but I've never seen it.

Shit: singing detective, get carter is sort of ok but pointless, Brighton Rock, Italian Job.

[Liverpool]

Heat. Michael Mann remade his own film "LA Takedown" and made one of the best thrillers of the 1990s.

[The0neAnd0nly]

The Thing obviously. I used to like The Fly when I was younger, don't really watch yucky stuff anymore. Shaft remake in terms of pacing and story better than the original, but less cool in a kitschy way.

The TV movie of 12 angry men is said to be really good, but I've never seen it.

Shit: singing detective, get carter is sort of ok but pointless, Brighton Rock, Italian Job.

The 90s version with James Gandolfini? If so I've seen it and absolutely fantastic. The original ain't half bad either!

Cant think of any decent remakes myself. Dune looks fantastic but the recent remake of The Stand was absolutely rubbish.

[opel70]

The only originals for me are Adam West & Burt Ward as Batman & Robin. And of course the original Batmobile. Wish tv would show the series again.
Though have to admit Christian Bale was very good.
Same applies to the puppet Thunderbird series. Anything newly done after that was not worth watching

[opel70]

Equalizer series  with Edward W in the 80's was a great watch. Never got to grips with the films starring Denzil Washington, well not after remembering Edward's role. Thanks for the tip, I'll take a look at the new version.

[PunterNumber69]

Dunkirk - loathe

Italian Job - loathe

The Day The Earth Stood Still - a bit meh. The original was more dramatic with fewer special effects

Robocop - love

[The Film Director]

Shit: singing detective, get carter is sort of ok but pointless, Brighton Rock, Italian Job.

Gus van Sant's remake of Psycho .... why oh why. 

[winkywanky]

Gus van Sant's remake of Psycho .... why oh why. 

Trying to cash in?

Some things are just best left alone, in all their magnificence.

[Davey Dykes]

Cape Fear.

 Bob Mitchum and Bob De Niro both put in fine performances, maybe a fag paper between both versions. Excellent.

[Ali Katt]

The 90s version with James Gandolfini? If so I've seen it and absolutely fantastic. The original ain't half bad either!

Cant think of any decent remakes myself. Dune looks fantastic but the recent remake of The Stand was absolutely rubbish.

Also directed by William "the exorcist, French Connection, Cruising" Friedkin

[Ali Katt]

Not really a remake, but the 2012 film Dredd is a huge improvement over Stallone's crap 1995 Judge Dredd.

Both Hitcher films are good, as are the hills have eyes. Very rarely watch horror films though.

[Ali Katt]

Cape Fear.

 Bob Mitchum and Bob De Niro both put in fine performances, maybe a fag paper between both versions. Excellent.

I like both. I think I like the 60s Lee Frost version a little bit more.

[myothernameis]

There also the remake of Dune, due to be released in the cinema soon, so far from what I have seen it looks good

[Ali Katt]

There also the remake of Dune, due to be released in the cinema soon, so far from what I have seen it looks good

Dune is a weird one. It was considered a flop given how expensive it was, but it's never gone away due to the reprinting of the book, the videogames and the board games.

[george r]

any remake of a film or tv i have seen has been shit compared with the original !!

[PunterNumber69]

Total Recall - I preferred the remake. You may now beat me to death.

[mr.bluesky]

It was watchable. Just cos it has Queen Latifah in it doesn’t mean it has to have rap music when she gets into a fight. The original was grittier and in many ways ahead of it’s time covering storylines that involves child pornography, domestic violence amongst other things. Latifah has some very big shoes to fill and I do think there were better choices than her.

Have to agree. I quite enjoyed the two film versions of The Equiliser with Denzil Washington but having a female in the main role doesn't seem to work. A bit like having a female Dr. Who  A couple of  Poor re makes I'm not impressed  with is Magnum P.I and Hawaii five O. The film versions of Starsky and Hutch were also poor.

[LLPunting]

Sorry OP, the premise that an over-weight, outta-shape woman with the lumbering martial arts skills of a pot of silly-putty is a highly skilled Black Ops operator is beyond stretching.  This isn't even woke, it's cynical chasing of the woke buck by a bunch of opportunists who care little about the social agenda and just want the guilt-ridden, white production money to line their pockets (or the exploitative black money ripping their "brothas").  The fight scenes are terribly choreographed and cut to mask the fact that QL can't do what her character reputedly can.  In that she's a reflection of Edward Woodward but at least he was obviously a crippled. elder gent.

Another tired rehash (that's getting progressively worse) is S.W.A.T. TV series.  The movie "remake" with Colin Farrell was pretty lame too.

New Total Recall vs Orig Total Recall?  Kate Beckinsale and Jessica Biel...  tried too hard with the tech and "grittiness" and tried to leave behind the 80's era camp and silliness of the action romp.

WestWorld started strong and is trying to keep up the standards it set for itself but is losing itself.

Early trails for the new Dune made a good impression, the latest official trailer seems to be veering on a woke course that perhaps is revealing the weaknesses of studio-slave producer interference.  That would be a crying shame as the director and cast (despite Zendaya) could really do (and probably did) a great job for the untampered footage.

Kevin Hart's "The Upside" was a poor remake of the much better but still a tad saccharine "Les Intouchables".  Bryan Cranston has the chops to replace Francois Cluzet in that role but the direction and script alterations let him down and the general presence of KH's ego kept shaking things apart.

Loads of other US series rehashes that did good or bad in their early efforts but got worse as they outstayed their welcome.  E.g. Moonlighting -> Castle -> whatever came next, Doogie Howser -> Good Doctor...

[CoolTiger]

Magnum P I. Have not watched the newer version.

[mr.bluesky]

Magnum P I. Have not watched the newer version.

You haven't missed much . It is on the Pick channel ( sky 159) tonight at 9pm 

[WDFORTE]

The day of the Jackal, 1973 Edward Fox film, brilliant; just superb.  Well the Yanks shat on that one with the Bruce Willis remake, just terrible.

Get Carter, 1971 Michael Caine, superb.  The Stallone remake as expected was bollocks.

[Stevelondon]

I had forgotten “Les Intouchables”

I watched (tried too) the Kevin Hart one……….. just couldn’t do it. Total crap.

[Davey Dykes]

Supposedly The Big Lebowski is the Coen brothers remake of The Maltese Falcon. I couldn't say as I've not seen TMF for probably 4 decades and the only thing I remember about it was it starred the ever excellent Humphrey Bogart.

The Big Lebowski is easily in with a shout of being my all-time favourite film. I really need to watch TMF again sometime.

[Chorley]

The 90s version with James Gandolfini? If so I've seen it and absolutely fantastic. The original ain't half bad either!

Cant think of any decent remakes myself. Dune looks fantastic but the recent remake of The Stand was absolutely rubbish.

If the trailer for Dune is even anything close to the actual film its going to be the most epic release for many many years. External Link/Members Only

[myothernameis]

I like the remake of mcgyver, think its even better than the original series

[Davey Dykes]

Scrooge.


Albert Finney. 1970.


End of discussion. Thank you.

[Ali Katt]

Scrooge.


Albert Finney. 1970.


End of discussion. Thank you.

Not really a remake but I liked Scrooged. The TV series A Christmas Carol from a few years ago is good as well. A lot of people like the Muppet version, I think it's a bit irritating as an adult, Michael Caine plays a fine Scrooge though.

[Ghost89]

Have to agree. I quite enjoyed the two film versions of The Equiliser with Denzil Washington but having a female in the main role doesn't seem to work. A bit like having a female Dr. Who  A couple of  Poor re makes I'm not impressed  with is Magnum P.I and Hawaii five O. The film versions of Starsky and Hutch were also poor.

I really enjoyed the equalizer movies. I was concerned when I first heard a movie was being made as I loved the tv show but when Denzil Washington was cast I thought if anyone could do it it would be him. As for the tv show there was surely better than Queen Latifah. Magnum PI was awful. Didn’t even make through the pilot.

[mr.bluesky]

I like the remake of mcgyver, think its even better than the original series

In my opinion the original was shit and the re make even worse

[Stonecold]

In my opinion the original was shit and the re make even worse

The remake is awful. Its aimed at millennials with Tik Tok attention spans

[PepeMAGA]

The remake of the prisoner was OK, but no where near as groundbreaking or original.

Not quite a full remake, but the snider cut of justice league was a massive improvement on the original.

[Ghost89]

The original Dawn of the Dead was superior in every way to the remake.

[Liverpool]

WestWorld started strong and is trying to keep up the standards it set for itself but is losing itself.

Is this a remake? I thought it was either a continuation of the Westworld films or a standalone thing in the Westworl universe.

[mr.bluesky]

Is this a remake? I thought it was either a continuation of the Westworld films or a standalone thing in the Westworl universe.

Yes Westworld was a brand new series based on the original film starring  Yul Brynner. I thought seasons 1 & 2 were good but season 3 lost its way a bit. Another re make not as good as the original was " Planet of the Apes" with Mark Wahlberg.  Not as good as the Charlton Heston version.

[LLPunting]

Magnum P I. Have not watched the newer version.

Don't bother, it has no charm, no charisma and even the attempt to make "Higgins" an English hottie fails to excite.  I just downloaded the old series and was entertained by the better, cheesier efforts of yesteryear.  Didn't realise I'd missed the "lads" so much.

[Ghost89]

Don't bother, it has no charm, no charisma and even the attempt to make "Higgins" an English hottie fails to excite.  I just downloaded the old series and was entertained by the better, cheesier efforts of yesteryear.  Didn't realise I'd missed the "lads" so much.

I couldn’t make it through the new one. As you say no charm at all. Tom Selleck and the rest were brill. There was some cheese and even a couple of crappy episodes in there but loved the original all the same.

[WDFORTE]

Hawaii five-0 1968 onwards with Jack Lord, superior in every way to the remake.  I even had the theme tune as my ring tone for a bit.

[Corus Boy]

The Thomas Crown Affair.

The original Steve McQueen and Faye Dunaway, sex free sex scene, is just one part of the movie that cannot be beated, let alone McQueen's 'King of Cool' acting.

Pierce Brosnan and Rene Russo just didn't cut it for me!

External Link/Members Only

[petermisc]

You have to very sure of what you are doing to remake something that was shite!  So, in general, they only remake something that was good in the first place.  Remaking an already good film because you think you can do it even better is just conceit. 

As far as I can see, the only reason to remake something is if the original is really dated (such as in black and white), or was in a different language.  A case in point is the Magnificent 7, the original 1960 version was an all-time great, based on a Japanese-language film. The 2016 remake was eminently forgettable - why did they bother?

American remakes of English originals, particularly comedies, are guaranteed disasters.  I would far rather watch the original version of The Ladykillers, for example, even though in B&W, than Tom Hanks' truly-cringeworthy leaden-footed remake.  I just dread to think what he would have done with Kind Hearts and Coronets.

Sequels are a very mixed bunch.  Occasionally better, but in most cases, a poor shadow of the original.  A remake is just a sequel, where they can't even bother to think-up a follow-on plot-line.

[Ali Katt]

You have to very sure of what you are doing to remake something that was shite!  So, in general, they only remake something that was good in the first place.  Remaking an already good film because you think you can do it even better is just conceit. 

As far as I can see, the only reason to remake something is if the original is really dated (such as in black and white), or was in a different language.  A case in point is the Magnificent 7, the original 1960 version was an all-time great, based on a Japanese-language film. The 2016 remake was eminently forgettable - why did they bother?

American remakes of English originals, particularly comedies, are guaranteed disasters.  I would far rather watch the original version of The Ladykillers, for example, even though in B&W, than Tom Hanks' truly-cringeworthy leaden-footed remake.  I just dread to think what he would have done with Kind Hearts and Coronets.

Sequels are a very mixed bunch.  Occasionally better, but in most cases, a poor shadow of the original.  A remake is just a sequel, where they can't even bother to think-up a follow-on plot-line.

I thought Lady killers remake was quite funny, not a patch in the original which is a masterpiece. No doubt Coen Brothers took on the project and Intolerable Cruelty to fund more personal projects like A Serious Man.

[Ali Katt]

The Thomas Crown Affair.

The original Steve McQueen and Faye Dunaway, sex free sex scene, is just one part of the movie that cannot be beated, let alone McQueen's 'King of Cool' acting.

Pierce Brosnan and Rene Russo just didn't cut it for me!

External Link/Members Only

Really nice photography in the original as well.

[PunterNumber69]

The Pink Panther with Steve Martin - awful

I actually don't really like Steve Martin. He's too full of himself.

[mr.bluesky]

Hawaii five-0 1968 onwards with Jack Lord, superior in every way to the remake.  I even had the theme tune as my ring tone for a bit.

  a great theme tune. Probably the best TV series theme tune ever. ( book him Danno  )

[petermisc]

The Taking of Pelham 123.  Would be hard put to say whether I preferred the Travolta remake, or the Mathau original.  Very different films.  However, consensus seems to be that the Mathau version was much better.

[Corus Boy]

The Taking of Pelham 123.  Would be hard put to say whether I preferred the Travolta remake, or the Mathau original.  Very different films.  However, consensus seems to be that the Mathau version was much better.

I would be voting for Walter Matthau version, better acting, not heavy on special effects and that small dry, humour stoy line.

[Gordon Bennett]

The trouble with remakes and book adaptations is it is inevitable that you get a deluge of "not a patch on the original/the book" comments. It gets kind of dreary irrespective of whether it's true or not.
Ultimately the film needs to make money today. It needs to attract today's paying customers who probably have different sensibilities and expectations and attention spans.
I notice many recent blockbusters have Chinese backing and thus have infantile levels of plot/exposition that presumably plays well to hoardes of Chinese teen cinemagoers. The audience calls the tune basically.