FEATURE: Remakes That Are Actually Worth Watching

For the most part, remakes of movies often turn out quite terrible, not doing much justice to the original. This can lead to frustration as you feel as a dedicated fan of a particular movie, you've sort of been betrayed as that iconic and timeless movie has been turned into a complete mockery. However, there's the rare occasion that remakes turn out to be much more than you expected, something that for the most part stays true to its original counterpart, whilst providing an all-round fresh perspective. Here's some remakes that are absolutely worth your time.

Scarface (1983)

Surprisingly, a lot of people are still unaware this is a remake of the original 1932 movie. Well, it's not that surprising considering the amount of success the 1983 remake has had since its release - and it's success it rightfully deserves as Al Pacino once again pulls off one of the best performances in cinema history, making for a remake which can be watched over and over, whilst maintaining a level of entertainment that keeps you engaged consistently. It's fair to say Scarface has comfortably stole any limelight the original had, but its worth checking out both movies either way.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)

When a horror movie is remade, you don't generally expect good results - often the original narrative is completely butchered (no pun intended) and the characters are for some reason always annoying without meaning to be. However, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake took a big risk as the original was already a massive cult hit, so if the remake turned out bad, a lot of people wouldn't be very happy. Fortunately, it's one of the best horror remakes ever, which ticks all the right boxes, whilst throwing in a healthy dose of creative death scenes as well as a Leatherface that is just as terrifying, if not more.

Halloween (2007)

Instead of going off-track completely like a lot of other horror remakes, director Rob Zombie took the original formula and altered it in a way that suited his other movies, which are generally popular among horror fans, and so when it was revealed he'd be tackling the Halloween remake, you practically knew what kind of style the movie would be. It's massively bloody and violent, whilst containing a gripping narrative as well as a reimagined Michael Myers which seemed to surprisingly well.

The Departed (2006)

Pretty confident I'm not alone here, but it seems to be the general consensus that America like to ruin foreign movies, but there's occasionally the exception, which is The Departed - a remake of the 2002 Hong Kong flick; Infernal Affairs. There's so much going on here that is able to define The Departed as the better version, whether it's the casting, the immense amount of tension played upon throughout, and other themes that aren't for the faint of heart, whilst providing a quirky twisted sense of humour. 

Three Men And A Baby (1987)

Although it's massively predictable and generally ridiculous, Three Men And A Baby is still one of the better remakes due to its ability to make you laugh and feel good through comedy that really isn't that funny in the slightest, yet you'll still find yourself giggling quite a bit anyway. A movie with Tom Selleck, Ted Danson, and Steve Gutternberg on the same screen is certainly "interesting" to say the least, but their chemistry works very well and is perfectly suited to this type of movie.

Honorable mentions...

12 (2007)

Ocean's Eleven (2001)

King Kong (2005)

Let Me In (2010)
The Fly (1986)
3:10 To Yuma

Don't bother with this lot...

A Nightmare On Elm Street (2010)

Psycho (1998)

The Karate Kid (2010)

The Wicker Man (2006)

Friday The 13th (2009)

My Bloody Valentine (2009)

Prom Night (2008)