10 Horror Remakes Everyone Expected To Suck (But Didn't)

7. The Ring

Gore Verbinski's The Ring kickstarted Hollywood's run of J-horror remakes throughout the 2000s, and arguably remains the standard bearer for glossy American remakes of international horror hits.

First and foremost, Verbinski and his cinematographer Bojan Bazelli did a fantastic job giving The Ring a distinct visual identity from both 1998's Ringu and Hollywood horror as a whole, the sickly green tint present throughout the film making it immediately recognisable from just a second's glance.

This speaks to the film's wider atmospheric achievements, relying less on gore and obnoxious jump scares and more on skin-crawling vibes and slow-building suspense. 

It doesn't hurt that Naomi Watts gives a terrific performance in the lead role either.

Ignore the thoroughly naff sequels that followed, but for a remake that seemed primed to be nothing more than a hollow, style-over-substance rehash, it's impressively effortful filmmaking from start to finish.