Comingsoon.net knows that there are plenty of remakes, reboots, and re-quels out right now, but what about the movies you might not have known were remakes? Check out the gallery below to see some films you might not have realized were based on pre-existing properties.
All too often, the definition of a remake is thought of as something high-profile like 1999’s The Mummy (which is itself a remake of the 1932 film of the same name) being remade as 2017’s The Mummy. However, this isn’t always the case. Oftentimes, a filmmaker’s remake of an older film proves to be far superior or far more successful than its predecessor. Other times, a filmmaker will redo their own movie from earlier in their career with a bigger budget and a better cast. Either way, these films are remakes, too.
By broadening the spectrum and expanding the definition of what a remake is, it’s much easier to see just how many films are remakes (and just how prevalent they always have been in the world of film). They aren’t a new phenomenon, and they probably aren’t going anywhere soon. With this in mind, let’s take a look at some of the most surprising movies you might not have known were remakes.
Movies remakes
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12 Angry Men (1957)
The version of 12 Angry Men that audiences know the best was released back in 1957. However, it had actually been released on television first back in 1954, then adapted into a stage play, then reached the big screen after that.
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Cape Fear (1991)
Martin Scorsese’s 1991 thriller Cape Fear was not a movie he wanted to make at first — he felt obligated to do it as part of a two-picture deal for Universal to thank them for helping finance a passion project of his, 1988’s The Last Temptation of Christ. The movie is actually a remake of a 1962 film, with all three of the film’s original stars cameoing in Scorsese’s take: Gregory Peck, Robert Mitchum, and Martin Balsam.
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Heat (1995)
Michael Mann’s 1995 crime thriller Heat has gone down in film history as being one of the very best of the genre. That’s why it’s so surprising to find out that it’s a remake of one of his own films, 1989’s L.A. Takedown.
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Just Go with It (2011)
Of all the actors in all of film, one of the last connections one could imagine would be Adam Sandler and Ingrid Bergman. That’s why it’s so weird that Sandler’s 2011 comedy Just Go with It is a remake of Bergman’s 1969 film Cactus Flower.
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Meet Joe Black (1998)
An incredibly strange romantic fantasy, 1998’s Meet Joe Black stars Brad Pitt and Anthony Hopkins. Its original version, 1934’s Death Takes a Holiday, clocks in at half of the remake’s nearly three-hour runtime.
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Ocean's Eleven (2001)
Steven Soderbergh’s 2001 crime thriller Ocean’s Eleven is so one-of-a-kind, it’s easy to forget that it’s actually a remake of a movie from 1960. The remake subs George Clooney, Brad Pitt, and Matt Damon for Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Sammy Davis Jr., among others.
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Scarface (1983)
1983’s Scarface remains one of the most iconic gangster films ever made, with Al Pacino easily giving the performance of a lifetime as Tony Montana. 1932’s version of the film comes from an equally iconic director, Howard Hawks, whose take on the violent gangster serves as the groundwork for Brian De Palma’s version.
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The Departed (2006)
Another knockout Scorsese film, 2006’s The Departed is one of the most impressive crime dramas ever. Maybe it owes a bit of that success to the trilogy of films from Hong Kong, Infernal Affairs I-III, that Scorsese’s film draws its story from.
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The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013)
Ben Stiller’s directorial effort The Secret Life of Walter Mitty earned itself mixed reviews back in 2013. The same goes for the 1947 version of the same name and its Italian remake from 1982.
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The Thing (1982)
John Carpenter’s The Thing is so influential and horrific, it remains a high point for 1980s horror. It’s all the more surprising to learn that it’s actually a version of a 1951 film called The Thing from Another World.
