Do you think that Hollywood is lacking in originality and makes bad remakes of foreign films or remakes of its own films far too often? You’re right, it is, but it’s not their fault they prefer to remake a film that has already worked well rather than trying new things and breaking their necks. We will therefore look together at some examples of films that have had the most remakes throughout history, and you will see that this feeling of deja vu was justified.
1. Scrooge’s Funny Christmas: 9 films
But also a whole bunch of cartoons, an animated film and a series. In the cinema it was in 1901, 1935, 1938, 1951, 1970, 1984, 1988, 1992 and in 2009 that films arrived in theaters. It’s stupid because it’s always the same story and we almost had one film per decade which therefore tells the same thing but we have to believe that it continues to interest the spectators.
2. Les Miserables: 6 films
Well, I count the Disney cartoon of the 90s, but know that in addition to him the novel by Victor Hugo was adapted in 1934, 1935, 1952, 1978 and 2012 where we had the right to see Hugh Jackman in the role of Causette. A daring choice but one that paid off since the film won a few Oscars.
3. Oliver Twist : 6 films
And here I am not including the animated films or the series of cartoons in about fifty episodes, but Oliver Twist was adapted six times for the cinema in 1909, 1922, 1933, 1948, 2005 and 2008 and I haven’t seen any. Advise me the best in the comments and you will gain your weight in tomato paste.
4. Batman: 6 movies (and movie series)
We will count the series of films for one point but basically we were treated to new adaptations of the dark knight in 1943, 1966, 1989 (series of three films by Burton and Schumacher), 2005 (trilogy by Nolan), 2016 and 2021. Obviously, that’s a lot of opuses when we haven’t had any films about the employee who cleans up the Batcave and that’s sad.
5. King Kong : 4 films
Without counting the multiple crossovers against Godzilla, against Bin Laden or against the astonishing misunderstood auteur film “King Kong in the Cévennes”, the giant gorilla was entitled to four films in 1933, 1976, 2005 and 2017, including the unfairly unloved by Peter Jackson who was nevertheless very cool since there were super touching moments when Kong was looking at the sunset while being melancholy.
6. A Star Is Born : 4 films
You might have thought it was an original movie but nay, there had already been three movies (1937, 1954, 1976) before the 2018 remake. The thing is, the story doesn’t really change between movies, so apart from seeing Lady Gaga it wasn’t much use either, probably why he only got an Oscar (for the song Shallow which was original).
7. The Phantom of the Opera: 5 films
Five films in 1925, 1943, 1962, 1989 and 2004 and quite a few other looser adaptations or reinterpretations, such as the excellent Phantom of the Paradise by Brian De Palma who made it a kind of psychedelic rock opera quite tasty.
8. The Great Gatsby: 5 films
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel was adapted in 1926, 1949, 1975, 2000, 2013 and obviously the latest one did quite well since there were good actors, which I can’t validate as I don’t haven’t seen it. But there are fireworks at one point in the trailer so it looks cool.
9. The Jungle Book: 6 Movies
Once again we don’t even count the cartoon adaptations and despite that it was brought to the screen in 1942, 1967, 1994, 1997, 2016 and 2018 so we can say that we ate Mowgli in slibard who talks to animals and walks from vine to vine (it’s not impossible that I mix with Tarzan).
10. Robin Hood: 6 movies
And no I’m not counting the cartoon but on the other hand yes, I am counting Holy Robin Hood by Mel Brooks because I feel like it. But without talking about this parody, we still have five “serious” films in 1922, 1938, 1991, 2010 and 2018. It’s a shame because there are probably a lot of original scenarios just waiting to be be adapted and we are having fun with remakes of film remakes.
11. The Three Musketeers: 8 films
Well then, that’s the big mess, there have been plenty of direct adaptations of Dumas’s work but also some shady stuff of strange rewrites and I wouldn’t be surprised to see one happening in the space one day or another. That being said, eight films that tell more or less the same story is a bit stupid.
12. Bonus : Dracula
I don’t even want to count. Between the “real” adaptations of Stoker’s Dracula novel and films like “Dracula’s Bride”, “Dracula Returns”, “Dracula’s House”, “Dracula’s Garage” and all the mess it is not manageable to see everything.