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

These horror movie remakes totally over-delivered.

Speak No Evil James McAvoy
Universal Pictures

A lot of people really, really don't like remakes, and considering how often they're cynical, listless exercises in brand reinforcement, it's easy to appreciate why. 

They're often indicative of Hollywood's craven lack of imagination, to simply rehash a prior success for another go-around, and no genre is more prone to this than horror.

But not all remakes are created equal, and though we're usually right to be skeptical of them, every so often one comes along that performs far above and beyond reasonable expectations.

And that's absolutely the case with these 10 horror remakes, each of which avoided obvious pitfalls, defied our understandably low expectations and actually delivered a rock-solid result.

Everything we knew about these remakes pre-release suggested they wouldn't work, yet the filmmakers took their clear love for the original and offered up something that managed to respect what came before while, in most cases, doing something laudably different.

While few of us want to see horror remakes clogging up our multiplexes any time soon, these ones are proof perfect that "remake" need not be a dirty word when a committed cast and crew are behind it...

10. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre

Speak No Evil James McAvoy
New Line Cinema

When 2003's remake of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre was first announced, fans were irate, and though it ultimately performed well at the box office, critics of the era largely dismissed it as a pointless rehash of Tobe Hooper's unassailable genre classic.

And yet, time has been incredibly kind to Marcus Nispel's gorgeously grimy retelling, which while hardly "necessary" as remakes go, packs a surprisingly mighty punch amid a sea of anodyne, listless horror remakes also produced by Platinum Dunes.

Indeed, it doesn't get close to touching the 1974 original, but this remake nevertheless boasts appreciably gross visuals as shot by the original's own cinematographer Daniel Pearl, a solid cast - especially final girl Jessica Biel and a scene-stealing R. Lee Ermey - and some unique set-pieces which set it apart from its predecessor.

In an era where sanitised horror remakes were speedily churned out for a new generation every couple of months, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre at least understood the essence of its inspiration and delivered a fitting redo.

Contributor
Contributor

Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes). General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.