Are remakes always lazy? Do any tell the story better than the original? Here's a few for consideration. (Please note: I can't sort by title because some remakes have a different title from its respective original, so I'm sorting in order of adding, in order to keep the pattern of original:remake clear).
A list by DRDMovieMusings
22
Items on this list67%
Average Rating41h 38m
Total Runtime$2.1B
Total Revenue1
Ocean's Eleven
Rat Pack. Vegas. Original cool with a darker edge and unforgettable kick-in-the-head ending, but Angie Dickinson is underutilized. In the meantime, Eee-oh-Eleven!
Movie
August 10, 1960
2h 7m
$2.8M
2
Ocean's Eleven
New cool. Sumptuously shot. Better character arcs, and Debussy!
Movie
December 7, 2001
1h 56m
$450.7M
3
Bedtime Story
Niven is slick, but Brando is weird, and Shirley Jones is underutilized.
Movie
June 10, 1964
1h 39m
$0
4
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
Caine is suave and sophisticated, Martin is crude and wacky, and Glenn Headly...well, "isn't she wonderful?!"
Movie
December 14, 1988
1h 50m
$42M
5
Total Recall
Arnie's peak camp - fun, funny, silly violence, lots of over-the top action with Ronny Cox, Michael Ironside and Sharon Stone.
Movie
June 1, 1990
1h 53m
$261.3M
6
Total Recall
Drop the camp, loose the silly fun, get grittier. To appreciate this movie, it might be better to forget Arnold and Ronny Cox altogether and get into this edgier story with Colin Farrell, Kate Beckinsale and Bokeem Woodbine.
Movie
August 3, 2012
1h 58m
$198.8M
7
The Thomas Crown Affair
Haven't seen it (yet), but I loved the remake, so I'm curious about the original.
Movie
June 26, 1968
1h 42m
$14M
8
The Thomas Crown Affair
Pierce Brosnan and Rene Russo sizzle. And the original Faye Dunaway grants her blessing with a delightful role here!
Movie
August 6, 1999
1h 53m
$124.3M
9
Pet Sematary
I read the book, a real tragedy. Movie was pretty true to it.
Movie
April 21, 1989
1h 42m
$57.5M
10
Pet Sematary
A twist that strayed from the original was...interesting...I guess. Otherwise, not sure this was any necessary improvement.
Movie
April 5, 2019
1h 40m
$113.1M
11
The Manchurian Candidate
This one proved difficult to imitate.
Movie
October 24, 1962
2h 6m
$7.7M
12
The Manchurian Candidate
The original has higher ratings and ROI - seems there wasn't much to be gained through this effort.
Movie
July 30, 2004
2h 9m
$96.1M
14
Cape Fear
This movie was unpleasant viewing for me. However, it reviews competitively with the original, made plenty more money and, interestingly, has three actors from the original — Peck, Mitchum, and Balsam —their blessing!
Movie
November 15, 1991
2h 8m
$182.3M
15
Sabrina
Billy Wilder apparently had a thing for young ladies falling in love with older men they can't have, and then attempting suicide over it (see also The Apartment). Not sure what that's about but, otherwise, it's hard to go wrong with Audrey, Bogey, and Holden!
Movie
October 15, 1954
1h 53m
$10M
16
Sabrina
It takes some serious cojones to redo a movie that originally starred heavyweights like Audrey, Bogey, and Holden, but the casting in this remake is pretty darned good - Ford and Kinnear are solid. Ormond doesn't have quite the...I dunno, daintiness? frailty? of Audrey, but she's okay here, and this remake's Paris scenes alone are worth it!
Movie
December 15, 1995
2h 7m
$53.7M
19
The Day of the Jackal
Have yet to see it (yet) but, by all accounts, a splendid, taut thriller.
Movie
May 16, 1973
2h 23m
$16.1M
20
The Jackal
Bruce Willis portrays the bad guy deliciously. There's plenty to enjoy in this rendition.
Movie
November 14, 1997
2h 4m
$159.3M
21
The Truth About Charlie
Thandie and Mark and Tim tried, but stick with Audrey and Cary and Walter.
Movie
October 25, 2002
1h 44m
$0