Original vs. Remake: Which is better?

[Lanolin]

Lynx how can you talk about video games here? You will give the impression that all you do is play video game all day! How can you know about all the remakes and how good they are if you don't play the original and the remake?
It must take you a lot of time to do this.....like all day! And maybe all night too! It won't let you stop and take breaks right? I don't think you can actually pause a video game.

Or what do I know, I don't ever play them.

 

[Mem]

Suspending disbelief?

What about the New King James Bible, or the New Improved Version of the Holy Bible?

There's Bibles, then there's BUYbles!

More like suspending thinking. I mentioned I like the book A Long Way Down more than the movie. I think it was because I was able to 'hear' the writer which brought me to tears at one point (it was a kind of happy cry, the best kind btw), but the movie must've missed that certain element in its translation.

I've heard the original english version of the Bible (sanctioned and authorized by King James himself!) was first published in 1611.

Since it's copyright has expired, and it's in the public domain, anyone can remake it.

There's AV and then there's TV....

You can't plagiarize the KJV because the copyright has expired, which means you can copy it word for word and resell it all you want and neither King James, nor any of his household, can sue you for plagiarism because, for one, he's dead, but mostly because the copyright has expired.

 

[HealthAndHappiness]

Taking a big, deep breath here, as this is the first poll style I've ever created (and I've got no idea what I'm doing with it

They do it to our music!
They do it to our movies!
And yes, they even do it to our video games!
(And I'm sure there's things they do this to that aren't even listed and if you think of them then please share).

The original of something ... or the remake?
Which version do you prefer?

Or maybe you are more inclined or peeved over movies that come out, then release a 2nd, 3rd 4th part to the story (Like Toy Story)?

I know, I know, most of us are inclined to say "The original of course!"
But every now and then a remake comes out that is done just as well or better than the original (or so I've heard a few people say).


So, in this thread, please share with us the original version (as far as you know it to be) and a remake of it and tell us which of the 2 you like better.
Then the rest of us will get the chance to (if we want to reply to it) tell you if we agree or disagree, and those of us who feel real adventurous (and so inclined to do so) can also talk about why we agree or disagree to which is better.

So, I'll start with this one.
This was actually what recently got me thinking about this topic.
I was driving along, listening to the Christian radio station one day and heard this older, familiar song.
And I was like "Hey! I remember this song!" But as it kept playing, I was like "No.. just no! This ISN'T my old familiar song! What did they do to it!!!!???" (In this case, I much prefer the original)

Rankin Bass

OR

 

[Mem]

 

[Lanolin]

Spot the difference

 

[HealthAndHappiness]

I remember that sweet sugar smell as a kid and really liked that cereal. I don't have the luxury of eating that now, but sure am tempted!

 

[HealthAndHappiness]

Spot the difference

Sugar to honey

I hope nobody uses that as proof for the Mandela Effect.
It wouldn't be you, but someone will.
Lol

 

[Mem]

I remember that sweet sugar smell as a kid and really liked that cereal. I don't have the luxury of eating that now, but sure am tempted!

Sugar to honey

I hope nobody uses that as proof for the Mandela Effect.
It wouldn't be you, but someone will.
Lol

I read that it still contains as much sugar as a glazed donut so, they didn't really change anything, I don't think... I've yet to try a box of "Honey Smacks" though.

 

[Mem]

Spot the difference

Dig'em's hat is sideways now.

 

[HealthAndHappiness]

I read that it still contains as much sugar as a glazed donut so, they didn't really change anything, I don't think... I've yet to try a box of "Honey Smacks" though.

Same here.

The cereal companies just changed advertising with the times.
He looks like some bad artist tried to make him look trendy with that hat. The old logo was better. Was that your favorite?

My first memory of cereal was Quisp. The prizes were pretty good. I got one of those silly spinner beanies back then.


It looked like a Jewish Monika with a built in propeller inside a hoop. You could launch it off your head. Perfect for a 4 year old.

 

[Mem]

Same here.

The cereal companies just changed advertising with the times.
He looks like some bad artist tried to make him look trendy with that hat. The old logo was better. Was that your favorite?

My first memory of cereal was Quisp. The prizes were pretty good. I got one of those silly spinner beanies back then.

View attachment 291692
It looked like a Jewish Monika with a built in propeller inside a hoop. You could launch it off your head. Perfect for a 4 year old.

If I told my grandkids there used to be toys in cereal boxes, they'd think that I was kidding them.
And come to think of it, not even Cracker Jack offers their trademark "prize in every box" anymore.

 

[HealthAndHappiness]

If I told my grandkids there used to be toys in cereal boxes, they'd think that I was kidding them.
And come to think of it, not even Cracker Jack offers their trademark "prize in every box" anymore.

Wow, it's been a longer than I thought since I bought sweetened cereal. No little toys in cereal or prizes in cracker jacks? They used to advertise the new ones on TV Saturday mornings to get the kids to ask their mom's to buy them all the time.

I guess that keeps with the theme, original or remake.

 

[LifelongLearner]

AWESOME thread, GG, and GOOD JOB on putting up the poll!!

Many kudos to you!!!

I wrote about this in the other thread, but I hate the movie remakes they've come out with. From the "live-action" Disney slop to the butchering of some of my own favorite "classics," the result is just bland, boring slop.


View attachment 291522

And maybe this is just me, but you'd think anyone with a brain would know that trying to replace Arnold Schwarzenegger is a BAD idea right off the bat. Who on earth could compare to the personality and mad charisma he brings to most any character??!!!


View attachment 291523

Now, the scene where Alex Murphy is tortured and killed absolutely traumatized me in the original RoboCop, but I was never sorry for watching it. I loved the humanity they put into the story at the end where the company president says, "Nice shootin', kid! What's your name?"

And RoboCop, coming full circle with the humanity that never left him, says -- "Murphy." Even as a kid, that made me smile.

It's little touches like that, the things that pulled at your heartstrings, that I really miss from the movies I grew up with.

I don't know what it is about today's actors, but no one seems to have a personality or anything that really makes them stand out.

View attachment 291525


Christopher Reeve will always be "my" Superman. Yeah, today's movies have a lot better special effects and whatnot, but he played the role with heart and integrity (and refused to wear fake muscles, going to the gym and building up his physique on his own.)

I loved the way Mr. Reeve portrayed Clark Kent in such a humble manner. As a kid, I had a bigger crush on his Clark Kent than I did on Superman (because Clark, as a bumbling nerd, was so much more relatable to me.)

Now I do think Henry Cavill is very talented -- and of course, he's not exactly tough to look at -- but it just wasn't quite the same as Mr. Reeve.

I've been hearing lately that Mr. Cavill is slated to star in a remake of The Highlander:

View attachment 291526

I try to be optimistic but...

I'm pretty sure another one is about the bite the dust.

Le Sigh.

(I also gave up on movies and entertainment a long time ago. There just isn't anything worth watching.)

You've made my day Missus, deleted loads of stuff i now wish i hadn't as a newbie Christian. Definitely too wimpy for ultra violence, horror etc but the stuff in your comment is my cup of coffee, for sure.

Ditto with my music but stuff like this is creeping back in:

Curve - Forgotten Sanity https://curve.bandcamp.com/track/forgotten-sanity

 

[Lynx]

Lynx how can you talk about video games here? You will give the impression that all you do is play video game all day! How can you know about all the remakes and how good they are if you don't play the original and the remake?
It must take you a lot of time to do this.....like all day! And maybe all night too! It won't let you stop and take breaks right? I don't think you can actually pause a video game.

Or what do I know, I don't ever play them.

Well see, there's these things called product reviews. Vendor sites like steam and GOG have them, YouTube has review videos, they are all over Reddit... Lots of people play each game and post their opinions about that.

 

[Lanolin]

Well see, there's these things called product reviews. Vendor sites like steam and GOG have them, YouTube has review videos, they are all over Reddit... Lots of people play each game and post their opinions about that.

oh ok, but isn't that what you do as well?

I do book reviews, but mostly all I read is original. There will be some books that riff off the classics or update them but writers/authors generally respect each others work. They also don't want to be caught plagiarising.

There will be consequences for that.

Anyway, for me it's more a case of book to movie. How is a book adapted and is the movie as good the book? Was it true to the book or did they change it?

 

[CarriePie]

This various for me. As far as movies go, sometimes I think a remake is a lot better, but sometimes I think there is no way to top the original.

One of my favorite old movies, Carnival of Souls 1962, was remade with color in 1998 and I've yet to watch it because I think the original is such a masterpiece.
I think the remake of the The Blob (1988) was way better than the original 1958 version. I like the original version, but the remake is just so good. The remake is one of my top 10 movies.
The original The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) was eons better, in my opinion, than the 2008 remake.
The Last House on the Left (2009) remake was much better than the awful original from 1972.

Oh, and the original Friday the 13th was light years better than the 2009 remake. I took a personal day off work to go see it the opening day in 2009. The theater was so packed people were being turned away, some refused to leave and set on the floor. I was excited! However, I ended up wanting to chase whoever made that horrible remake with my own machete. Not really, of course, but it was such a terrible disappointment!

Sometimes I like both the remake and the original each in their own way. I always really liked the original The Magnificent Seven (1960), so I was reluctant to try the remake (2016). I did though, mostly because it stars Denzel Washington, and I was pleasantly surprised. I still really like the original, but I like the remake too. As I said, each in their own way.
And I might be alone in this, but I like the Road House remake (2024) as much or maybe more than the original. This is probably because I thought Conor McGregor was hoot. They are making a Road House 2, which I plan to watch. It doesn't have McGregor, but it does have Bautista!

Anyway, I could probably go on and on, but it really just depends on the movie. Sometimes the original really is the only one, but I usually like to give remakes a chance. Sometimes I do like them better.

 

[Lanolin]

Wow thats a lot of remakes of movies I've never seen.

The only horror movie I really like is Scream. It was a parody of the entire horror genre. Which I'm not a fan of. I kind of don't really get the whole 'We scare because we care' philosophy of horror movies. But its amusing to see it parodied.

Apparently horror movies are popular because they are the cheapest to make. I saw King Kong, but only the one that was filmed in NZ with Naomi Watts as the damsel in distress, with Peter Jackson at the helm. The movie theatre used in the film was the Civic.
It's kind of funny to see Auckland pretending to be New York.

It's a movie nerds pastime, to spot the locations used in movies, like how Utah stands in for the Middle East/Holy Land in the Chosen series. Your American accent is showing!

The Disney live actions remakes of the 2D animations are kind of hit and miss. Nobody could really top Robin Williams turn as the genie in Aladdin. Good try Will Smith.

We'll see how Moana does. Is Frozen is next in the works? They've already done...Lion King, Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, The Little Mermaid, Mulan..The Jungle Book...101 Dalmatians

I'm not hanging out for them but Disney is in the business of making children happy so they constantly have to come up with fresh stories. Which are based on the fairy tales. Recycling is the name of the game.

 

[HealthAndHappiness]

Sometimes I like both the remake and the original each in their own way. I always really liked the original The Magnificent Seven (1960), so I was reluctant to try the remake (2016). I did though, mostly because it stars Denzel Washington, and I was pleasantly surprised. I still really like the original, but I like the remake too. As I said, each in their own way.
And I might be alone in this, but I like the Road House remake (2024) as much or maybe more than the original. This is probably because I thought Conor McGregor was hoot. They are making a Road House 2, which I plan to watch. It doesn't have McGregor, but it does have Bautista!

Anyway, I could probably go on and on, but it really just depends on the movie. Sometimes the original really is the only one, but I usually like to give remakes a chance. Sometimes I do like them better.

Did you know that The old 1960 Magnificent Seven was a remake too?

One of my martial art teachers introduced me to the Japanese Classics.
One of my favorites was the Seven Samurai. That's one of the few movies I watched a number of times and a technical commentary.

"Akira Kurosawa both directed and wrote the screenplays for his films. According to the provided search context, Kurosawa wrote or co-wrote the screenplays for all the films he directed, including classics like Ikiru (1952), Rashomon (1950), and Seven Samurai (1954). He is credited as both Director and Writer for his entire directorial filmography. "

Some of the classic Westerns were based on the Kurosawa movies.

 

[Godsgirl1983]

I wrote about this in the other thread,

Thus where my inspiration came from

 

[Godsgirl1983]

Some may think of a remake as something being done by another artist or band, but I think of
it also in terms of studio vs live.

Ohh great observation /point here!