10 Horror Movies That Deserve A Remake (And Why)
If Hollywood refuses to make anything original, why not borrow from some good scary stories?
Remakes, reboots, and re-imaginings are all the rage in Hollywood. With a hesitancy from studio executives to invest in anything that doesn't seem to have an existing fanbase, a debate exists as to when, or even how to create a successful remake.
Perhaps nowhere is this more difficult than in the horror genre. Horror, by its nature, relies on shock value: major twists like those in Psycho or Sleepaway Camp cannot be replicated without losing their initial impact, nor can they be subverted to the point that audiences will feel cheated by their omission. It's truly a lose-lose situation.
So what dreadful tales of years past deserve a fresh coat of gore? Arguably, the best of the bunch that stand a chance at survival are not the ones that were wildly successful and left a grand legacy, but the movies that fall into two categories: those that can be improved by updating their effects and setting, or those that have a message that is could still resonate to this day.
The following list celebrates these macabre grandfathers of gross-out and examines why they could stand to be brought back into the collective nightmares of moviegoers everywhere.
10. Daybreakers
Daybreakers is the only film on this list that was released within this millennium, clocking in at a relatively spry eleven years old. This wholly original take on vampirism has the audience join the story well after the central conflict between mortals and the creatures of the night has ended. Vampires won, humanity lost; wait, what?
That unfortunately is only the initial dilemma facing the underpowered human resistance. With vampires firmly in control of the majority of the world, the natural ecological impact makes humans an endangered species. Vampires, for the initiated, require blood to survive. This film poses the question: what happens when the consumers outnumber their food source?
This is answered somewhat in the form of susiders, vampires sent into a beastial rage and form due to the lack of blood available. Humans, for their part, are caught in the middle, being captured in laboratories for harvesting in order to maximize their blood while the ragtag remnants are seemingly faced with the fact that survival may be the best they can hope for.
Daybreakers didn't get the attention it deserved, and, to be honest, didn't really capitalize on exploring the interesting premise it initially set up. Setting the film right up to go for the oft-tread "cure for vampirism," a remake could explore the symbolism behind the class disparity between the vampires, humans, and Subsiders, and offer a much more intriguing exploration into the innerworkings of an intriguing world.