What's everyone's top remakes of the genre?

[HarryCanyon]

My top 19:

1. The Thing.
2. The Fly.
3. The Blob.
4. Invasion of the Body Snatchers.
5. Dawn of the Dead.
6. The Last House on The Left.
7. The Ring.
8. Cat People.
9. Night of the Living Dead.
10. The Hills Have Eyes.
11. My Bloody Valentine 3D.
12. The Toolbox Murders.
13. Willard.
13. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
14. Friday The 13th.
15. House on Haunted Hill.
16. The Wizard of Gore.
17. King Kong 2005.
18. 2001 Maniacs.
19. Halloween.

[Trash City]

I like remakes where the subject was a film where there is room for improvement in some way or other. There's no point remaking a movie if you can't improve on the original [I'm talking to you, Gus Van Sant!] This is where The Thing is, to my mind, the best horror remake of them all, because Carpenter realized the FX in the original... Well, "sucked" is probably being kind. Rob Bottin amped those up to 11 and the results are still great almost thirty years later.

The same goes for Cat People: the original was brimming with sexual tension, but because of the times, it had to be entirely repressed. Schrader's remake - helped immeasurably by Nastassja Kinski's feral intensity - brought all that out from the shadows and made it, rightfully, the focus of the movie.

Of the others you list, I enjoyed The Fly and Dawn of the Dead in particular. But far too many remakes don't bother to bring anything new or worthwhile to the party. If you're not going to bother, what's the point?

[HarryCanyon]

Well what did you think of the remakes to Night of the Living Dead, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, King Kong, The Hills Have Eyes, Last House on The Left, The Ring, The Blob, or Tobe Hooper's Toolbox Murders?

[urgeok2]

i was very impressed by Quarantine and The Grudge

[Ferox13]

WOW - Jim McLennan - theres a blast from the past. I used to read your printed Natasha Kinski obsessed fanzine years back (prolly close to 20)...I still have a pile of them around some where...

Anyway as for remakes..

The Thing is prolly everones fave but in a way it goes to the source material and interduces the 'shape shifting' concept rather than just being a remake of the 50's film..

Despite popular opinion I thought THE RING was really great and actually prefered it to the original (unlike all the other Asian remakes).

Weirdly I didn't like NOTLD remake when it came out but I've not watched it since - prolly time for a rewatch...

The first remake of Bodysnatchers is excellent though Ferrara's one isn't terrible it was kinda pointless.

I really hated Amityville Horror, The Fog, Cape Fear and a bunch of others..

Best non-horror remake is definally The Maltese Falcon with Bogart..

[urgeok2]

the fog and the omen were the 2 worst that i've seen

[Doc Faustus]

Definitely the Omen. It wasn't a movie I liked to begin with, but I could watch it because Gregory Peck rules. But without him, I don't think the movie works. I also didn't see what it brought to the table at all. TCM offends me most because it threw money at something that was once a model of ingenuity. TCM is cheap and ugly and it's meant to be that way. There's nothing all that scary about a mental deficient with a chainsaw unless he's coming at you.

[ChronoGrl]

Originally Posted by urgeok2

i was very impressed by Quarantine and The Grudge

Ditto...

I actually thought that both of those movies were better than the originals.

My Bloody Valentine 3D was fantastic as well. The Wizard of Gore remake was better than the original and I loved it. Also enjoyed Willard and House on Haunted Hill.

As for The Thing I don't consider it a remake; I consider it a second adaptation of the same source material.

[novakru]

hm
Another one

[roshiq]

Originally Posted by ChronoGrl

As for The Thing I don't consider it a remake; I consider it a second adaptation of the same source material.

Ditto.

My fav remakes:

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
Willard
The Hills Have Eyes
The Ring.