The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
7 remakes that top originals
Remakes: We hate them, until we don’t. “Why can’t Hollywood do something new?” is a moviegoer refrain as familiar as “Why did the trailer spoil the best parts?” I’ve repeated it myself. There are some good ones, though — unicorns that are exciting because they’re so rare.
“Dawn of the Dead” in 2004 springs to mind. “Dawn” 2.0 upends our skepticism with a spectacular opening. A surprising benefit of remaking a good movie is that low expectations are built in. We are prepared to be disappointed, so when we’re not, the movie seems even better.
It can go the other way, too. Gus Van Sant’s shotfor- shot remake of “Psycho” was an intriguing exercise that should be studied in film classes and not seen by anyone else, ever, because it added nothing to Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpiece.
The main thing a remake can bring to a movie is time. When Philip Kaufman remade “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” after Watergate, he connected that era’s paranoia to the Cold War suspicion that spawned the 1956 one. It may be the sturdiest movie property of all time — the 1994 and 2007 versions are also good, each addressing new aspects of the primal story of what happens when we’re not sure the people we love are the people we love.
A solid story is key to a good remake, as is a storyteller with a point of view. Actually, those things are important in any movie, and if it’s true that there are really only a handful of stories to tell, then maybe every movie is a remake? And maybe the key to a good remake is just to be a good movie, period.
‘ Dawn of the Dead’ ( 2004)
The story of zombie- attack survivors ( including Polley and Ving Rhames) who hole up in a shopping mall is faithful to the Romero original, but from the first mauling to the heart- stopping final credits, it is riveting.
‘ Invasion of the Body Snatchers’ ( 1978)
Simultaneously elegant and gross, this “Invasion” is terrifying (“It gets you while you sleep” we’re told of the creature who assumes human form). The next year’s “Alien” was informed by this gem, which has a topnotch cast: Donald Sutherland, Veronica Cartwright, Jeff Goldblum, Brooke Adams and Leonard Nimoy.
‘ True Grit’ ( 2010)
Reading Charles Portis’ hilarious novel gave me even more affection for Joel and Ethan Coen’s adaptation, which captures the peculiar tone and language of the book in a way the 1969 version didn’t attempt. John
Wayne’s Oscar- winning performance in the original was great, but the remake ( a term the Coens also rejected) is superior.
‘ Ocean’s Eleven’ ( 2011)
There’s really no comparison between this sleek, effervescent caper and the impenetrable Rat Pack crap on which it’s based. Director Steven Soderbergh chose an unbeatable cast and then let us in on the fun George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, Elliot Gould and others had.
‘ Heaven Can Wait’ ( 1978)
Its predecessor, “Here Comes Mr. Jordan,” was good, but Warren Beatty’s warm rom- com improves it. Beatty nails the wistfulness of a quarterback who dies, only to discover an incompetent angel took him 47 years before his time. The tender relationship between real- life former loves Beatty and Julie Christie is a thing of beauty, and supporting players Dyan Cannon, Charles Grodin, Jack
Weston and Buck Henry are sidesplitting.
‘ Casino Royale’ ( 2006)
The 1967 original’s enormous cast and five directors goofed around, and we didn’t get to have any fun, except listening to Herb Alpert’s banger of a theme song. But the snappy remake smoothly introduced Daniel Craig as a new James Bond, sped it up and dialed back the leering tone by slipping Bond into swim trunks that made him as much of a sex object as his Bond “girls.” ( And the late Chris Cornell’s theme is another banger.)
‘ Insomnia’ ( 2002)
Like “Cold Pursuit,” this one is based on a Scandinavian thriller that starred Stellan Skarsgård. Al Pacino leads Christopher Nolan’s atmospheric thriller, which captures the dislocation of Alaska’s endless daylight in the tale of a groggy detective, investigating a murder, who may be a villain as well as the hero.