Hollywood’s Best Remakes On 6th April, Bruce Willis will star in the new action-packed crime drama Death Wish directed by famed horror filmmaker Eli Roth.
Following an attack on his wife and daughter, Paul Kersey (Willis) dedicates himself to seeking justice for his family and also avenges other innocent victims he meets through his work as a doctor in a hospital. Set on bringing his own kind of justice to the city by whatever means necessary, the internet buzzes wondering who this hooded man is, asking “is he a hero, or is it wrong?” to take the law into your own hands.
As Death Wish is a remake of a 1974 film of the same name, we are celebrating its release on 6th April by looking back at some of the best remakes to have graced the big screen.
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
When the US remake of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was announced, fans of the books had mixed reactions. However, once it was released, the Rooney Mara-Daniel Craig version won the majority over. In comparison to the original, Mara and Craig’s versions of the main characters had more depth and seemed more human. Albeit, Noomi Rapace’s performance was utterly fantastic and kicked off her career, the relationship between the two protagonists in the original simply isn’t as convincing as it is in the remake.
True Grit
Even though the original 1969 True Grit was the type of film that seemed designed to win awards, that didn’t take away from the fact that John Wayne’s performance was absolutely outstanding. So naturally one of the things that intrigued people most about the remake was how Jeff Bridges’ would interpret the classic Western character. The result was astounding; it was nominated for 10 Oscars including Best Motion Picture, Best Actor in a Leading Role (Bridges), Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Hailee Steinfeld) and Best Achievement in Directing. All in all, it was very much a success.
The Little Shop of Horrors
The biggest difference between the 1960 and the 1980 versions of The Little Shop of Horrors is that the remake is a musical, and a great one at that. Another huge difference is the budget; the original was shot entirely in two days and cost a total of $27,000 whereas the later version had a whopping budget of $25 million. It almost feels unfair to compare them! Yes, the original did a very good job with the small amount of resources they had but it simply doesn’t compare with the remake. The songs are all brilliant, the performances are hilarious (in a good way), Frank Oz is the director and it stars Rick Moranis! It’s a hands down win.
Ocean’s Eleven
The original 1960 Ocean’s Eleven starred all five members of The Rat Pack (Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr, Peter Lawford, and Joey Bishop), so naturally, you’d expect no remake to live up to it, right? Wrong. The filmmakers of the 2001 version put together an equally iconic cast with George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon and Julia Roberts, improved the script and plot and also gave a nod of respect to the original.
King Kong
Now here’s an interesting one; King Kong was first released in 1933, was remade in 1976 and remade AGAIN in 2005. Kong has clearly remained a dear and favourite character to the world and as technologies evolve the story is retold time and time again to introduce it to a new generation. The story of a woman loving an animal that seems terrifying but actually just wants love reminds us of the humanity we are all capable of and gives us hope in a world full of horror. The second version has generally been accepted as not very good, but the 2005 version starring Naomi Watts was so brilliant technologically that it won three Oscars (Best Sound Mixing, Best Sound Editing and Best Visual Effects). King Kong will forever remain a favourite story and will inevitably be remade again and again to keep it relevant until the end of time.
Death Wish will be in UK cinemas on 6th April 2018.
