Movie remakes have long been a Hollywood staple , with directors take one-time classics or hidden gems and adding their own spin , often prefer for bold originative risks . While not all remaking hit the sign , some manage to surpass their source stuff . The unspoiled movie remake testify that some report deserve to be retold and can radiate even brighter the 2d ( or third ) time around .
FromThe Wizard of Oz(1939 ) toScarface(1983 ) , the greatest movie remake ever breathe new life into forgotten or familiar tales , almost always enclose unbelievable account to a new contemporaries . These often become even more pop than their predecessors , praise for the way they reinvent sure-enough musical theme and utilise refreshful perspectives to transform genres , intensify narratives , update visuals , or all of the above . Even cinephiles may be surprised to learn that some of their favorites are really remake of lesser - known films .
10. The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999)
Based on Patricia Highsmith ’s eponymous 1955 novel , The Talented Mr. Ripleyis a psychological thriller that follows Tom Ripley ( Matt Damon ) , a young man and make out yard bird artist , who is sent to Europe to retrieve the spoiled and much wealthier Dickie Greenleaf ( Jude Law ) . When he fail to convince Dickie to return home , he before long comes up with a plan drive by jealousy of Dickie and his expatriate girlfriend Marge Sherwood ’s ( Gwyneth Paltrow ) lavish lifestyle .
An earlier adaptation , Purple Noon(1960 ) , undertake to stick around close to the source material but betray to attain the same psychological complexness of conductor Anthony Minghella ’s version . The 1999 remake explores Ripley ’s sociopathic tendency in a more denotative way , for the most part succeeding thanks to anincredible performance by Matt Damon . The film also more in effect depicts class envy and forbid desires , which all wager out against a lush 1990s esthetic .
9. A Star Is Born (1954)
Since its 1937 version , A Star is Bornhas been redo four time , but none surpass the 1954 musical send by George Cukor . Featuring Judy Garland in one of her most clap performance , it keep up Esther Blodgett ( Garland ) , a gifted singer with big dream describe by fleet idol Norman Maine ( James Mason ) . As Esther ’s career rises under the stage name Vicki Lester , Norman ’s falls mostly due to the weighting of his potomania and grow insecurity . The two are get in a passionate yet ultimately tragical passion story .
The 1954 remake ofA Star is Bornintroduced the musical format , emphasise Garland ’s gift through unforgettable songs . Garland and Mason were at the peak of their powers , and their interpersonal chemistry was easy to see through the ups and down of the characters ’ relationship . Vibrant prepare pieces and groundbreaking cinematography also ensured that memorable scene felt big than life , complementing the rightfully emotional and iconic narrative that would extend to be tell across generations .
8. Ben-Hur (1959)
Ben - Hur : A Tale of the Christ(1925 ) was a applaudable attempt at telling a wholesale tale , but it does n’t hold a candle to the 1959 version , which stands as a massive achievement in filmmaking . Director William Wyler’sBen - Hurtransports viewers to ancient Rome , where a flush Jewish prince in Roman - occupied Jerusalem , Judah Ben - Hur ( Charlton Heston ) , is devastated when his childhood booster turned Roman officer , Messala ( Stephen Boyd ) , betray him . Judah endures grueling hardship after being condemned to slavery , which fuels his desire for retaliation . This leads him to the world of chariot racing , where he finally catch his shot .
With its 11 Academy Awards , including Best Picture , Ben - Hurcemented itself as a landmark in cinema history . It ’s a technically brilliant film , best remembered for its legendary chariot race in the Circus Maximus , which became one of movie theater ’s most electrifying sequence . Ben - Hurremains one ofthe greatest heroic poem ever made , and its impact on the music genre and filmmaking as a whole can not be hyperbolise .
7. The Fly (1986)
In a classic story of a skill experiment gone amiss , Jeff Goldblumstars as outre scientist Seth Brundle , who is unveiling a hack - edge teleportation gadget . However , during an experiment , a common housefly enters the teleportation pod with him , splice their desoxyribonucleic acid . At first , Seth is gleeful to be feel seemingly electropositive strong-arm enhancements like superhuman strength , legerity , and stamina . This agitation before long turns into revulsion when he transforms into a fantastical human being - fly hybrid .
The Fly‘s 1958 reading is a camp product of its time , tell the same narrative with more vestigial hard-nosed effects . Director David Cronenberg ’s remake is considered the more impactful reiterate , thanks to its extremely elaborated and disturbing organic structure horror makeup work , one of the filmmaker ’s hallmark . Aside from being more visceral , Cronenberg’sThe Flyalso require a more psychological approach as it chronicle the admirer ’s arduous transformation .
6. The Departed (2006)
Director Martin Scorsese’sThe Departedis both a remaking of the 2002 Hong Kong movieInfernal Affairsand is loosely base on the real - life Boston Winter Hill Gang . The 2006 picture show remakes the Hong Kong thriller into a Boston crime saga that be two men living double lives : Billy Costigan ( Leonardo DiCaprio ) , an secret cop penetrate the Irish mob , and Colin Sullivan ( Matt Damon ) , a mob mole embedded within the Massachusetts State Police . In the desktop , ring boss Frank Costello ( Jack Nicholson ) and Captain Queenan ( Martin Sheen ) assure their several operations , which do n’t go as plan .
The Departedis an excellent example of an American remake done right . It seamlessly adapt the story and tension while creating something totally fresh in a familiar setting . Every scene crackles with the tension of lives hanging by a train of thought , especially since the protagonists ’ true personal identity are always on the verge of exposure . This all leads to an volatile break level that is still among the most shocking endings in the crime genre , forthwith cement the pic as one ofMartin Scorsese ’s best works .
5. Casino Royale (2006)
Featuring a charismatic performance by Daniel Craig in his first appearance as the British super - spy , Casino Royalemarked a tonal shift for theJames Bondfranchise . The 2006 film centers on Bond ’s other days as a fresh minted “ 00 ” agent , during which he ’s task with dismantling a terrorist mesh . for do so , Bond enrol a gamy - stakes poker game at Montenegro ’s Casino Royale to bankrupt Le Chiffre ( Mads Mikkelsen ) , a moneyman for global terrorist act . The British Treasury official Vesper Lynd ( Eva Green ) works alongside Bond , and their partnership soon turns into a complicated romance .
Far from the 1967 spoof reading ofCasino Royale , the 2006 adaptation of Ian Fleming ’s firstBondnovel is a reinvention of the picture serial publication . Directed by Martin Campbell , it strips the iconic spy of his common gadgets and bravado to reveal a gritty , more human 007 . This remaking jettisoned the refugee camp of earlier movie , offer a darker and more emotional take on the world ’s most famous private agentive role .
4. Dune (2021) & Dune: Part Two (2024)
Acclaimed filmmaker Denis Villeneuve turned out to be the perfect match for the notoriously“unadaptable ” sci - fi novelsby Frank Herbert . 2021’sDuneand its 2024 sequel , Dune : Part Two , weave a saga of epical proportion that chiefly follow a young noble , Paul Atreides ( Timothée Chalamet ) . Paul is thrust into a dangerous political game as his house takes control condition of Arrakis , the universe ’s sole source of the invaluable spiciness melange . He commence to distrust a conspiracy as he learns more about the mysterious Bene Gesserit , the local Fremen , and his father ’s enemies .
When equate the films to David Lynch ’s dense and uneven 1984 variation , it ’s clear that Villeneuve ’s modern storytelling and spectacular visuals attractively transform Herbert ’s visual modality onto the bragging screen . The recentDunemovies picture a magnetize cosmos set far into a unusual and absorbing future . For sci - fi fan , peculiarly , these modernDuneadaptations might be the pinnacle of the genre and represent how much has changed .
3. The Thing (1982)
plant in Antarctica , conductor John Carpenter’sThe Thingcenters on a team of research worker at a remote outstation who encounter a shape - transfer alien able of perfectly mimic its victims . Led by the chopper pilot R.J. MacReady ( Kurt Russell ) , the group struggles to maintain control as they mistrust each other . With the extraterrestrial infiltrate their outpost one individual at a time , thing get messy as the pressure mounts to retrieve out who is no longer human .
The Thing from Another World(1951 ) used John W. Campbell ’s novelette to stage a Cold War allegory , but Carpenter takes a different approach by in full embracing the source material ’s horror . With its pioneering particular outcome , it demonstrate body horror and grotesque scenario in an unprecedented room . This is also why it was n’t a hit when it first premiere , andThe Thingonly later came to be appreciated as an influential craze classic that reshaped the sci - fi and repulsion genres .
2. Scarface (1983)
Al Pacino stars as the ruthless Tony Montana in one of thegreatest gangster motion-picture show of all fourth dimension , 1983’sScarface . coiffure in eighties Miami , the film chronicle Tony ’s advance and precipitate as he goes from being a impecunious Cuban refugee to a violent , larger - than - life history kingbolt of the metropolis ’s drug empire . As Tony ’s success and control of the cocain - fueled industry grow , so does his obsession with wealth and status . His paranoia and egotism before long get the best of him , and his blunders finally bestow up and lead to one of the bloodiest climaxes in motion-picture show story .
Brian De Palma’sScarface(1983 ) is a gloriously over - the - top reimagining of Howard Hawks ’ 1932 translation , which many fan may not even know about . De Palma ’s direction is unapologetically sheer , portraying the excess and moral decay of the era with a spectacular flair . Though it was ab initio knock for its extravagant violence , Scarfacehas since become a cultural phenomenon celebrated precisely for this unflinching perspective .
1. The Wizard of Oz (1939)
Director Victor Fleming’sThe Wizard of Oz(1939 ) is a cinematic marvel is a universally adore adaptation of L. Frank Baum ’s Graeco-Roman novel . Judy Garland deliver a career - best performance as Dorothy Gale , a Kansas farm girl swept away by a tornado to the magical solid ground of Oz . Alongside her cad Toto , she goes towards the Emerald City to seek aid from the nominal virtuoso who might grant her wish to retrovert home . She also befriend the Scarecrow ( Ray Bolger ) , the Tin Man ( Jack Haley ) , and the Cowardly Lion ( Bert Lahr ) . Even as the Wicked Witch of the West ( Margaret Hamilton ) plat to intercept them , Dorothy perseveres in her pursuit to escape .
The plastic film ’s earlier 1925 silent adaption is seldom associated with Dorothy ’s story , as it ’s the dazzling 1939 film that do to redefine modern fantasy cinema . The Wizard of Ozwasn’t the first to use Technicolor , but it popularise it through a legendary present moment where Dorothy launch the door to a coloured mankind , mark a key variety in movie theater . Several decades later , The Wizard of Ozremains a ethnic touchstone , with its bequest felt in the genre and in late hit likeWicked .
