Jan
21
Matt Reeves has been on the defensive lately over his remake of Let The Right One In, the Swedish horror film that received rave reviews last year, including a rare five star rating in SciFiNow. The director claims that it isn’t another Twilight clone, but a much darker, emotional story that has echoes of a coming-of-age tale. Whether the Cloverfield director’s efforts are successful or not, we decided to look back over the last few years at other English language ports of foreign language films, and at what’s coming up.
Quarantine
Released: 10 October 2008
Director: John Erick Dowdle
Original film: [Rec] (Spain)
Released almost immediately after the Spanish original, Quarantine received much lower ratings in the press than its predecessor.
The Orphanage
Released: 2011
Director: Mark Pellington
Original film: El Orfanato (Spain)
Quite why El Orfanato needed to be remade is beyond us, but with Guillermo del Toro’s involvement, there’s a bit of hope at least.
Let Me In
Released: 1 October 2010
Director: John Erick Dowdle
Original film: [Rec] (Spain)
Matt Reeves’ remake has the blessing of the author, but can it maintain the tension and artistic subtlety of the Swedish-language original?
The Ring
Released: 18 October 2002
Director: Gore Verbinski
Original film: Ringu (Japan)
Still probably the best J-Horror remake out there, Verbinski balances some lovely camera work with a genuine feeling of dread. Imitations abounded.
The Eye
Released: 1 February 2008
Director: David Moreau, Xavier Palud
Original film: The Eye (Hong Kong/Thailand/Singapore)
The basic premise itself is sound, but some atrocious acting combined with an incomprehensible plot made The Eye a laughing stock of horror remakes.
Our 
provides all the latest Sci-Fi news, reviews, previews, interviews and spoilers, while our 
fan page is the best place to communicate with other fans of the SciFiNow magazine.
provides all the latest Sci-Fi news, reviews, previews, interviews and spoilers, while our fan page is the best place to communicate with other fans of the SciFiNow magazine.
Not seeing subtitles as a barrier, I’ve seen all 5 originals, and have no desire to see remakes – certainly not so soon! After 20 years – fine. The following year – just taking the piss.
Yep, the only decent remakes are The Ring and Quarantine was not bad. I quite liked The Grudge remake, although the original was much scarier. The remake of Dark Water and The Uninvited were equally bad. I don’t understand why people need to remake classic foreign films – subtitles are not evil! Slightly (only slightly mind) looking forward to Let Me In, but it won’t be anywhere near as good as the original!