11 Movies That Prove There’s No Such Thing As New

In recent years, more and more sequels, prequels, and remakes have been made. Some researchers see an alarming sign in this tendency: the movie industry is not looking for something new but instead, it’s using old plots.

We at Bright Side want the movie industry to develop but we have to admit that sometimes, remakes don’t make the original worse, they just bring something new to the idea. More than that, many famous movies turn out to be remakes of older films — we’re going to talk about those in this article.

Sweet November, 2001

The sad drama with Keanu Reeves and Charlize Theron is just the modernized version of a 1968 film. And it’s not very good. Keanu and Charlize looked very convincing as a couple in The Devil’s Advocate, but something went wrong in Sweet November. They were both nominated for The Golden Raspberry for worst actor and the film was nominated as the worst remake. But we still love it, how about you?

• Original rating — 6.9
• Remake rating — 6.7

You’ve Got Mail, 1998

In 1940, a classic Christmas comedy The Shop Around the Corner was released. It was a simple story about a man and a woman trying to find love in a newspaper ad, and everyone enjoyed the film. There were several musicals and Broadway shows based on this film. But many people would still never see this story if it weren’t for the successful and moving remake You’ve Got Mail with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan.

• Original rating — 8.1
• Remake rating — 6.7

The Mummy, 1999

This film was supposed to be a low-budget horror film, but it became a really popular adventure movie. After that, there were 2 sequels and a spin-off: The Scorpion King. But the thing is, the 1999 movie is not the first — it’s a remake of a film that was made 67 years prior to that.

• Original rating — 7.1
• Remake rating — 7

Eight Below, 2006

A sad drama about dogs stuck in the middle of Antarctica got a lot of people interested. But not everyone knows that this is the American version of a Japanese film that was released in 1983.

By the way, the plot is based on a true story that happened to a Japanese expedition. From the 15 huskie dogs that were left alone at a station in Antarctica, only 2 survived.

• Original rating — 7.7
• Remake rating — 7.3

The Tourist, 2010

The spy thriller with Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp made some noise. It was a hit at the box office and was nominated for 3 Golden Globes, but the public had mixed feelings about it. Many people said that there was no chemistry between the characters and that the genre was hard to identify.

But the French thriller Anthony Zimmer that was the basis for the story of The Tourist was praised for its believable passion. You can feel the attraction between Sophie Marceau and Yvan Attal, and the final twist is simply mind-blowing.

• Original rating — 6.6
• Remake rating — 6

The Italian Job, 2003

This action film has everything: fighting, car chases, and an amazing cast. Mark Wahlberg, Charlize Theron, Jason Statham, and Edward Norton have a brilliant robbery plan but, of course, something goes wrong.

The same thing happened to the character of the original film in 1969 that is on the list of the 100 best British films of the 20th century. But there were fewer characters in the original film and the relationships between them were not as complicated.

• Original rating — 7.3
• Remake rating — 7

Unfaithful, 2002

This thriller about infidelity had a mixed reception by critics, but Diane Lane who played the main female character was nominated for an Oscar. The 1969 French film wasn’t a success in France but was loved by the public from other countries.

Some critics thought that the remake was worse because the original had more moral ambiguity.

• Original rating — 7.4
• Remake rating — 6.7

Insomnia, 2002

A dark thriller with Al Pacino in the main role proved that Christopher Nolan was a young but very promising director. But unlike most of his works, he didn’t write the script for this one. Insomnia is a remake of a Norwegian film with the same name released 5 years before the new version.

Nolan kept the key events of the original but changed the motives of the characters and the mood of the film. The Norwegian version is more violent and depressive and the protagonist, portrayed by Stellan Skarsgård, suffers from realizing how pointless everything is. But in Nolan’s version, Al Pacino is investigating a difficult case and acts like a criminal himself.

• Original rating — 7.3
• Remake rating — 7.2

The Shaggy Dog, 2006

The family comedy film about a man turning into a collie was popular among both adults and children. And if it wasn’t for the old Disney film, the 2006 film would never have happened.

By the way, in the original film, the man turns into an Old English Sheepdog when he puts on a magic ring. The film was a huge box office hit in the ’50s.

• Original rating — 6.5
• Remake rating — 4.4

The Woman in Black, 2012

A mystical thriller about a guy fighting ghosts is a remake of a 1989 horror film. Many plotlines were changed. For example, in the original film, the man is a happy husband and father, but in the remake — he’s a widower.

In the old film, the main character was portrayed by Adrian Rawlins, also known as James Potter in the Harry Potter films. But in the new film, the same character is played by Daniel Radcliffe who played Harry Potter himself.

• Original rating — 7.2
• Remake rating — 6.4

Sleuth, 2007

This psychological thriller is about a confrontation between 2 men connected with one woman. Her young lover, portrayed by Jude Law, is in a dangerous game with her old husband portrayed by Michael Caine.

The film revolves around the awesome dialogues between the characters that overshadow everything else. And it can even surprise the people that saw the 1972 Sleuth. In the old film, Michael Caine portrayed the lover, so he’s been on both sides.

• Original rating — 8
• Remake rating — 6.5

Which remakes did you like more than the original films? And which do you think only became worse?