Ranking the Ten Best Horror Remakes
For the most part, remakes are an exercise in futility. Often pale imitations of former brilliance, it’s hard to look at remakes without thinking of the original film. Most of the time remakes feel like cynical cash grabs — looking at you, Disney — rather than interesting explorations of familiar material.
The one genre that proves to be an exception to that rule is horror. Yes, we get the occasional fiasco, like the Nightmare on Elm Street mess that Michael Bey produced in 2010, but for the most part, horror is a genre primed for remakes/reboots/requels.
Today we’re looking at ten remakes that either offered something interesting to an established property, did their original source material proud, or completely eclipsed the originals.
10. Dawn of the Dead (2004)
Remember when Zack Snyder wasn’t making 3-hour superhero operas?
In 2004 Snyder remade the classic zombie flick Dawn of the Dead, offering fans a movie with visceral thrills and some interesting character work. The opening, when nurse Ana (Sarah Polley) realizes that something horrible has happened while she slept, is still one of Snyder’s strongest and most atmospheric bits of filmmaking. Ana wakes up to a nightmare and must fight her way out of it.
While the film follows the same basic beats as the 1978 original, there’s a bit more action to be had in Snyder’s remake. This is both its biggest asset and fault. Snyder excels at primal action, and there’s plenty of zombie fighting to be had in Dawn of the Dead. Who doesn’t want to fight zombies on a fortified bus?
But while Snyder certainly brings excitement to the film, it lacks the metaphoric commentary that George A Romero’s original contained. Think of this remake as a cool action remake that won’t make you clinically depressed. While no one can beat Romero for cynical views of human nature, Snyder makes up for this lack of introspection with some truly kickass action sequences.
Plus, Snyder envisions a zombie apocalypse where the undead doesn’t bother dogs, and that’s an Armageddon I can support.
Dawn of the Dead is rated R and available via AMC+, Peacock, and Philo.
9. My Bloody Valentine 3D (2009)
When a mining accident drives one man to madness, he begins killing people he believes responsible. He attacks a group of teens partying in the mine, prepared to continue his spree. The police manage to chase off the deranged miner, but he escapes into the tunnels before they can capture him.
Ten years later, the survivors of the mine massacre are reunited when Tom (Jensen Ackles) returns to sell his father’s mine. He’s only back in town a day before the killings start again.
A remake of the 1981 campy Canadian slasher, My Bloody Valentine 3D succeeds not because it elevates or changes the material, but because it knows EXACTLY what type of movie it’s adapting. Director Patrick Lussier delivers on the kitschy premise of this film by making a movie that’s both bloody and funny if you have a dark sense of humor. Filled with ludicrous kills, goofy dialogue, and amusing performances, My Bloody Valentine 3D fully captures the spirit of the first film. If you were lucky enough to see it in a theater, those 3D effects are perfectly cheesy — exactly what you want from a B-horror film.
This movie is especially fun if you’re watching with a crowd. It’s the type of movie that invites shouting at the screen and MST3000-type commentary.
My Bloody Valentine is rated R and available on Prime, Tubi TV, and Starz.
8. Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992)
When Jonathan Harker (Keanu Reeves) is sent to provide counsel to the mysterious Count Dracula (Gary Oldman), all hell literally breaks loose. Harker’s fiancée Mina (Winona Ryder) is a dead ringer (ahem) for Dracula’s lost love, and the blood-sucking vampire now has his sights set on winning her as he feeds on the rest of London society.
Not precisely a remake of a particular Dracula movie, director Francis Ford Coppola adapted Bram Stoker’s book more than any movie (hence the title). But Dracula has been a familiar screen presence to audiences for decades, including the arguably most beloved portrayal by Bela Lugosi.
Coppola sticks closer to the book than most previous adaptations and makes some fascinating creative choices that make an incredibly well-known story seem fresh. Now, I’m not arguing that this movie doesn’t have its problems (yes, I’ve heard Reeves and Ryder lurch through their English accents), but the fundamental craft at the base of this film can’t be denied.
Coppola hired costume designer Eiko Ishioka to reimagine the image of Dracula, and the result is stunning. The Japanese influences on the designs make a fascinating change to the typical capes and tuxedos audiences were used to. The film also feels like a classic 30s film because most of the effects were done in-camera. Gary Oldman’s shadow was a projection, the trains are models, and even the rats are real — the only post-production optical effect is the blue flames. This gives Dracula a charmingly old-fashioned, yet innovative feel. If you’ve dismissed this movie because of some terrible British accents, give it another look, it’s truly a testament to the craft of filmmaking.
Bram Stoker’s Dracula is rated R and is available to rent/buy from your favorite VOD service.
7. Fright Night (2011)
Charley (Anton Yelchin) is living the dream in Las Vegas. His mother works most nights leaving him to get into mischief and see his girlfriend Amy (Imogen Poots) when he wants. But when an old friend convinces him that his new neighbor is up to no good, Charley agrees to investigate. Turns out, neighbor Jerry (Colin Farrell) is a vampire and one that isn’t keen on Charley interfering with his feeding.
Fright Night was unfairly maligned in 1985, and it was unfairly maligned again in 2011. This is the sort of campy late-night horror that is fun to watch at a party but has a couple of genuine scares in it along the way.
The remake updates the location and occupations of a few characters, but the basic story beats are the same. The biggest assets to the movie, however, are Farrell’s Jerry the vampire and David Tennant’s loopy Peter Vincent. Farrell is a delightfully low-key menace, calmly explaining to Charley that he’s going to eat his mom and girlfriend if he doesn’t knock it off. And Tennant is offering up an absolutely unhinged impression of a Criss Angel-style magician who Charley attempts to recruit to stop Jerry.
This is the type of mass-market horror movie that will be a hit at a Halloween party. Pop it in and see how many of your guests can resist the pull of vampire Jerry.
Fright Night is rated R and is available on Hulu, Prime, The Roku Channel, Tubi TV, Freeform, and ABC App.
6. The Invisible Man (2020)
Cecilia Kass (Elizabeth Moss) finally works up the courage to leave her abusive husband, tech giant Adrian (Oliver Jackson-Cohen). In retaliation, Adrian kills himself and leaves her his fortune — if she can prove she’s sane.
That might be a bit tougher than it sounds because suddenly everything in Cecilia’s life goes wrong. Horrible emails are sent from her personal computer to her family. Fires start whiles she’s cooking. And most concerningly, she feels like she’s being watched constantly.
Are all these problems a manifestation of her trauma? Or has Cecilia’s husband found a more creative way to hound her?
Writer/director Leigh Whannell twists the tale of H.G. Wells’ classic character into something that closer resembles Sleeping with the Enemy than any of the classic Universal movies that featured the Invisible Man. This isn’t the first time the Invisible Man has broken bad in a movie. We have the dubious Hollow Man who broke bad as well. But typically, the Invisible Man is a more tragic figure.
Here, he’s a monster and a pretty effective metaphor for lingering trauma. The Invisible Man is a tense thriller about a woman who is literally and figuratively haunted by a menace she can’t see. Whannell beefs up the story with some brilliant set pieces that will have you scrutinizing every inch of the screen for a hint of movement.
The Invisible Man is rated R and available via Freevee.
5. Suspiria (2018)
Susie (Dakota Johnson) travels from her small town in America to audition at Berlin’s Helena Markos Dance Company. Though she thrives at the school, something is odd within the walls of the dance company. Dancers disappear, the teachers have odd clandestine meetings, and there might be something sinister in the choreography.
Is Susie going to fall prey to an evil plot? Or are all dance schools like this?
A remake of legendary Italian Giallo director Dario Argento’s most famous film, Suspiria was going to be a tough sell to those who love the original. And that’s why director Luca Guadagnino didn’t try to remake it. Yes, some familiar beats are in the story — American girl at a Berlin dance school, witchy doings, murder — but Guadagnino fleshes out characters and story to create something that feels wholly different.
While Argento’s film is a classic, it is — as the kids say — mostly vibes. It’s a play on color and shooting style that’s visually stunning. Guadagnino seems to try to invoke the inverse, his color palette and shooting style more muted. Instead, Guadagnino works on adding context to the story and agency to Susie’s character. But don’t think this remake skimps on the gore. There is a bone-crunch dance sequence that will have even those with iron stomachs squirming.
If you’re a fan of the original movie, or just like a good arthouse horror flick, give Guadagnino’s Suspiria a chance. Also, where else are you going to find a film scored by Radiohead’s Thom Yorke and starring Tilda Swinton in three roles?
Suspiria is rated R and available on Prime and Xumo.
4. The Crazies (2010)
On a sunny day in Ogden Marsh, Iowa, the local drunk walks onto a baseball diamond with a shotgun. Sheriff David Dutton (Timothy Olyphant) tries to talk the man down but is forced to kill him. Soon, other townspeople have violent outbursts, killing and maiming as if they’ve lost their sense of humanity.
Before David can figure out what’s going on, the military quarantines the town, taking people’s temperatures and killing those who aren’t deemed normal. David must fight to get his pregnant wife out of quarantine before the whole town is exterminated.
A remake of George Romero’s 1973 film, The Crazies packs quite the punch in only 101 minutes. Director Breck Eisner fills the movie with beautiful shots that keep threats on the edges of the frame. The audience is never sure where the next threat is coming from, but they do know it’s coming, and that’s the point.
While both movies keep nearly the same story beats, Eisner’s film is a bit more sanitized (in that a father no longer attempts to assault his kid on camera). I would argue that while not as taboo, Eisner’s kills are pretty effective. Also, Romero never met a dystopian ending he didn’t like. And while 2010’s The Crazies ends on an arguably more positive note, the film does retain a lot of Romero’s pessimism. This is not a feel-good flick. But it is a disturbing one.
Watching townspeople calmly slaughter their families or turn into violent monsters is pretty horrifying. If you’re up for a gritty watch that will have you side-eyeing your neighbors, give this flick a go.
The Crazies is rated R and is available to rent/buy via your favorite VOD service.
3. The Fly (1986)
When a fly accidentally finds its way into his teleportation device, scientist Seth Brundle’s (Jeff Goldblum) DNA is merged with the insect. At first, all seems fine. Brundle continues to romance his girlfriend Ronnie (Geena Davis) and plan for his future as a scientific genius.
…then his ear falls off.
By the time Seth realizes he’s been fused with a fly, there’s no going back. As his thinking and impulses become more primal, he becomes a danger to Ronnie. Can his humanity win out?
Look, ain’t NOBODY gonna out-gross David Cronenberg. The 1958 version also involved a teleportation accident and a mad scientist, but there’s a reason that director David Cronenberg’s remake is considered the definitive edition of this film. The movie combines Cronenberg’s trademark body horror effects, two absolutely riveting performances to make a film that seems singular, even if it is a remake. While the original film was a hit, and is credited with making Vincent Price a horror genre actor, nothing compares to Jeff Goldblum’s slow slip from humanity — or corrosive vomit abilities.
The Fly is rated R and is available to rent/buy from your favorite VOD service
2. The Blob (1988)
When a meteorite crashes near a small town in California, a piece of pink slime rolls out of it. Not initially too intimidating, this slime is actually a sentient creature that can metabolize everything it touches. Ass the blob eats, it grows. What was once an adorable little jello mold is now a town-consuming juggernaut, hellbent on getting bigger.
First things first, Chuck Russell’s remake of The Blob stands out because it’s actually scary. While absolutely no one can beat the bouncy theme song of the 1958 original, both the effects and the acting in the first film were a bit…B-movie. This includes having Steve McQueen play a rowdy teen when he was 28 years old. Still, there’s a kitschy, silly fun to be had with the original film, though not many scares.
Russell’s film, however, is a huge tonal shift. People are melted when the blob grabs them, and you get the pleasure of hearing and witnessing their suffering. And even as the town bands together to defeat the alien goo, people die in horrifying ways. The other thing that makes Russell’s film stand out is the writing (the script was crafted by Russell and Frank Darabont). While we get the usual teenagers vs the aliens yarn in the 50s film, the 1980s movie works to set up real characters and themes. You’ll care about the townspeople in The Blob because they seem like people.
Watch both films as a double feature and it’ll be hard to believe you’re watching the same story. It’s like having Stephen King adapt a John Waters film. The only thing missing from Russell’s redo is a boppy little tune about the blob and it would be a perfect remake.
The Blob is rated R and is available to rent/buy from your favorite VOD service.
1. The Thing (1982)
On an isolated research station in the middle of Antarctica, a US research team prepares to hunker down for a long winter. Before they can, a husky runs into their base, chased by grenade-wielding Norwegians. The Americans kill the armed Norwegians and take in the dog.
Big mistake.
It turns out the dog wasn’t really a dog, just an alien lifeform that can copy any organic material it comes into contact with. And now it’s on their station.
Have a fun winter, everyone!
The best John Carpenter film is also the best remake (possibly ever). The Thing is a tense, funny, and utterly horrifying movie. It combines all the things that make John Carpenter great — social satire, visceral horror, and casting Kurt Russell — with a story that’s updated and upgraded from the 1951 original. Carpenter moves the action from Alaska to the more isolated Antarctica, ladens the film with awe-inspiring practical effects, and just enough pathos to have you lose your faith in all humanity.
Bolstered by outstanding performances by Kurt Russell and Keith David, The Thing will stay with you long after viewing. It’s also the perfect movie to pop in as the weather gets colder. But don’t blame me if you side-eye your dog afterward.
The Thing is rated R and is available to rent/buy from your favorite VOD service.
