Sometimes, when Hollywood remakes a world cinema hit, it really can improve on it.
Something which had previously given you great pleasure gets twisted to such a degree that only pain remains.
It isnt always such a total disaster, though.
Every now and then one of those Hollywood remakes defies all the odds and actually works.
Here are a few examples of world cinema remakes that werent a total disgrace.
Those cold android eyes peering out from under the brim of that slate hat inWestworldcemented that as fact.
It wasnt for the first time, though.
In so doing, he became part of one of the best westerns in cinematic history.
Of course, as the name would suggest, Yul didnt do it on his own.
He was joined on screen by what reads as a whos who of movieland tough guys.
The villagers decide to hire seven masterless samurai to aid in their defense.
In the hands of the Hollywood studio, not all that much was changed.
There are, of course, a few other changes here and there.
Charles Bronsons character, for example, was a combination of characters from the original.
The times and places may have changed but it is still true to the source material.
All that and one of the best movie theme songs ever!
The other two had their eyes set on transferring their successful television careers to the big screen.
In stepped Leonard Nimoy with his remake of the award winning French comedy,Trois Hommes Et Un Couffin.
The result, Nimoys first directorial effort outside of theStar Trekuniverse, wasThree Men And A Baby.
The film turned out to be the biggest success of 1987 at the American box office.
No doubt, modern audiences would findThree Men And A Babyto be tooth numbingly twee.
The general mechanics of the two films remained the same.
Both feature a trio of bachelors whose lives get rocked by the sudden arrival of a baby.
Perhaps inevitably, though, the French version is more explicit about the bed hopping activities of the men.
Even the one in the Steve Guttenberg role gets tons of action!
They both arrive at the same place, only at different speeds.
Typically, though, there are some changes which were so unnecessary to be laughable.
InTrois Hommes Et Un Couffin, the same character is a flight attendant.
Both films were good but, for once, the Hollywood version was better.
Though, the less said of the follow upThree Men And A Little Lady,the better.
Dont go rushing to the tube sites just yet!
Chef Chu, goes through the extensive rituals of preparing an elaborate family meal time and time again.
Yet, he has lost his own taste for both food and life.
A story which, no doubt, plays itself out around family tables throughout the world.
The Taiwanese family becomes a Mexican-American family and the food porn is scrumptious Mexican food instead of Chinese.
Despite the location and cultural changes, the rituals of evolving family life are the same.
Lees version is, by far, the superior version, butTortilla Soupstands on its own nonetheless.
However, the true star of the film is Hector Elizondo as the father and chef.
If one thing is certain, it is that neither film should be watched on an empty stomach.
Pitts first punt that year at becoming more than just a pretty face wasSe7en.
La jeteemay only last 28 minutes, but once seen it is difficult to forget.
Paris has been destroyed and survivors of the destruction are living underground.
Rather than war, the underground population of 2035 has fled the effects of a devastating disease.
Again, prisoners are recruited as so-called volunteers as part of a time travel experiment.
Instead of Paris, Bruce Williss character is sent to bleak representations of 1990s Baltimore and Philadelphia.
Watching,La jeteewith modern eyes, it is easy to see why Gilliam was drawn to the project.
The unsettling futuristic vibe fits comfortably into his portfolio of previous work such asBraziland evenTime Bandits.
By doing so, it manages to create an identity of its own without being disrespectful to its roots.
