The original Dutch film The Vanishing, adapted from Time Krabbe's The Golden Egg, remains to this day one of the most thoroughly chilling and disturbing horror thrillers ever made, it's deceptive pacing leading to a shocking conclusion which is difficult to forget. When director George Sluizer signaled that he was on board to direct the American remake fans breathed a sigh of relief, expecting him to deliver a new version every bit as impressive as the original. Jeff Harriman (Keifer Sutherland) goes on holiday with his girlfriend Diane Shaver (Sandra Bullock) - while stopping off at a gas station she vanishes without a trace, leaving Jeff confused and distraught as the days and weeks go by. After years pass and Jeff is still obsessed by her disappearance, a strange man named Barney Cousins (Jeff Bridges) arrives at his door and confesses to being responsible for her abduction and promises to show him what happened by making him go through the same thing. In terms of remaining faithful to the original, so far so good. We see Jeff following Barney's instructions, drinking the drugged cup of coffee which will reveal his girlfriend's fate, and sure enough he wakes up a short while later to discover that he's been buried alive. What should've been the end of the movie - dark, claustrophobic and full of despair - suddenly transforms when Jeff's new girlfriend Rita (Nancy Travis) arrives having followed him. Jeff miraculously somehow managed to climb out of his tomb, and with the help of Rita they kill Barney and celebrate their survival by selling the rights of the story to a publishing company. Few movies have so effortlessly destroyed the spirit of the original, with one critic at the time of its release referring to it as a "lobotomized Hollywood remake". Quite possibly one of the worst remakes of all time, it features the most annoying, pointless and laughable happy endings in the history of cinema. Quite an achievement. Which movies have you seen which you felt were ruined by a happy ending? Agree or disagree with the films on this list? Why not post a comment below and let us know?
