Warning: This article contains spoilers for Speak No Evil (2024)
Horror remakes are known for changing the tone or cinematography style, but some movies, likeSpeak No Evil, alter the originals more significantly. The announcement for the Hollywood version ofSpeak No Evilwas surprising because the news broke one year after the release of the original 2022 Danish thriller. The original movie was quickly lauded as one of thebest horror movies of the last five years, setting an extremely high bar for the 2024 version starring James McAvoy.
Surprisingly, the 2024 version of the film thrived against all expectations because the creative team chose to diverge from the original in many ways – most notably, theending of Hollywood’sSpeak No Evil. This movie isn’t the first remake to completely change the source material.Many remakes have set themselves apart from the originals in theme, narrative style, plot, and characters, with varying levels of success.
Black Christmas
The original is a clear winner whencomparing the 1974 and 2019 versions ofBlack Christmas, partly because of how the new version completely changes the ending. Rather than having a simple premise, the movie introduces a supernatural element at the last moment.The fraternity brothers are using an incantation and black liquid to possess new pledges with the spirit of the misogynistic Calvin Hawthorne.
The inclusion of spirits diminishes the crucial messages about rape culture and the patriarchy, which is also a shift from the commentary about abortion in the originalBlack Christmas. Unfortunately, due to poor execution of the themes and significant narrative changes, the remake simply isn’t as good as the original movie. The writers would have been better off updating the themes, keeping the subtlety in the script, and leaving out the supernatural twist entirely.
The 1977 movieSusperiais only loosely related to the 2018 film of the same name. Although they have the same basic premise, the visuals, the color palette, character arcs, and violence are all different. The technicolor of the original might be more interesting to look at, but the darker, more muted color palette of the remake contributes to the frightening tone. The dancing is more central to the plot rather than being a background element. However, the most significant change comes in the form of the ending.
Every Horror Movie Releasing In 2024
2024 has already seen some great horror movies with more coming, including sequels like Smile 2 and new movies by A24 like Heretic. When are they out?
Rather than defeating the witch in the remake ofSusperia,Suzy ends up being the true witch.She kills the imposter and slaughters all the fake’s followers, creating a bloody good time for viewers. Suzy also grants the wishes of the followers who previously worshipped her. Ultimately, both versions of the movie have a lot of great things to offer, but the ending of the remake is more entertaining to watch.
At face value, there are very few differences between the originalEvil Deadmovie and the 2013 remake. Five characters go to a cabin in the woods, where they read a book bound by human flesh that summons a demon who conjures Deadites. However, the two horror movies are entirely different when it comes to their tone and visuals. In the remake, the five main characters don’t go out to the cabin for a fun time. They’re trying to help Mia detox from her opioid use disorder.
In the original movie, the book is titledNecronomicon Ex-Mortis, whereas it is calledNaturom Demontoin the remake.
When she starts seeing things, they believe she’s hallucinating. This story element gives the movie a somber tone from the start.Evil Dead(2013) only gets more horrifying, dark, and serious as time goes on, removing the comedic elements in the original movie. The violence is more disturbing to watch with closeup gore and body horror, like a person cutting off their own arm. Despite having similar storylines and premises, the two couldn’t offer a more different viewing experience, which makes both the movies contenders for thebest movie in theEvil Deadfranchise.
Though they share the same source material and name, the 1933 movieThe Invisible Mandiffers greatly from the eponymous 2020 movie. The original film focuses on the mad scientist Griffin, who finds a way to turn invisible but soon realizes he can’t reverse his visibility after taking the serum. Contrastingly,the remake of the movie focuses on the fear of technological advancements rather than scientific discoveries. The main character, Cecelia Kass, is the ex-partner of a wealthy, abusive man who develops technology to turn invisible at will. Unlike the original, this isn’t a permanent state of being.
While the original incorporates dark humor, the newer version is somber and tense. Moreover,The Invisible Man(2020) focuses on the themes of abuse, trauma, control, power, and how all these topics interact with one another. The only significant thematic crossover is the exploration of sanity. Ultimately, the deviations from the original movie allow the story to feel more relevant to modern audiences.
The remake ofA Nightmare On Elm Streetis often accused of being a copy and paste of the previous movies, offering nothing new that sets it apart. However, the movie is entirely different when looking at it through the lens of the new Freddy Krueger backstory. In the original movie, Freddy was a child murderer prior to his death, killed by the parents living on the street he terrorized. His targets as a ghost are the children of the people who killed him.
In the remake, the villain was a child molester before his death,Freddy Krueger’s initial origin story. His targets as a ghost are the kids he previously sexually abused. With this in mind, A Nightmare On Elm Street (2010) becomes a tale about confronting and overcoming past trauma. The teens are survivors who can’t move forward from their past.This creates a powerful allegory, changing the perception of the events, even if they’re technically the same.
While both movies follow the basic premise set out in the Stephen King book, the two theatrically releasedmovie adaptations ofCarriehave very different character arcsfor Carrie and Sue. One of the most significant shifts is Carrie White’s personality. In the 1978 version of the movie, Carrie is apprehensive of her abilities and does not use them by choice. Even the scene where she wreaks havoc on her classmates seems to happen in a trance rather than a fully conscious state.
In the 2013 version ofCarrie, the titular main character happily embraces her telekinesis and uses it of her own accord.While this makes her feel more empowered, it also gives her a villain arc from the beginning. That being said, her upbringing and bullying still impact the final act of the movie. Additionally, the endings go in very different directions for Sue Snell. In the newer movie, Sue ends up being pregnant and in a mentally stable state rather than having PTSD.
The 1980 movieProm Nighthas very few elements in common with the 2008 version outside of the prom setting. The original film has a murder-mystery element with an unknown, masked killer. The story offers multiple possible suspects. Ultimately, the narrative in the 1980Prom Night is one of revenge, with the villain seeking retribution for an old covered-up murder. The newer movie has an entirely different structure, characters, and story.
The killer’s identity, Richard Fenton, is known from the start ofProm Night(2008), removing the murder mystery component. Fenton was previously a teacher who became obsessed with a student named Donna Keppel, making his motivation stalking and fixation. By theend of the newerProm Night, Fenton has killed almost all of Keppel’s family. Interestingly, the new story could actually be a reference to the character Mr. Sykes from the 1980 movie, who behaved in a creepy and predatory way. Sadly, neither of these movies is particularly great or memorable, even for horror fans.
When it comes to movie remakes, one usually beats out the other. Both versions ofMy Bloody Valentineare equally compelling, partly because they have very different approaches to storytelling. The 1981 version ofMy Bloody Valentinehas a heavy focus on the curse of the town and the lore, making the titular holiday central to the plot. However,the 2009 version of this story has almost zero connection to Valentine’s Day, making the timing of the murders coincidental. Harry just so happens to come back to town at that time.
The newer version of the story also leans into the exploitation film genre, incorporating more sex and gore. The red herring character has different possible motives, with the original featuring revenge and the remake featuring homicidal rage. Lastly, the 1981 version ofMy Bloody Valentinedoes a lousy job of hiding the killer. The list quickly gets narrowed down to three options. The 2009 movie does a better job of keeping The Miner’s identity a secret until the end.
LikeSpeak No Evil,The Vanishingstarted out as a foreign film, and its ending was changed to be more hopeful. The original Dutch movie,Spoorloos,ended with Rex drinking drugged coffee and waking up in a box buried underground. He dies in the same way Saskia does as Raymond sits above ground reading a newspaper about the characters’ disappearances. With the original ending, the movie makes a bleak commentary about how people become evil.
However,The Vanishing(1993) alters the story by having Rita, the new girlfriend of Jeff (the American equivalent of Rex), find him and Barney (Raymond). She kills the kidnapper, and Jeff and Rita go on to write a book about their experience. This changes the core message of the ending to be about never giving up on love, a much more sappy message. Unfortunately, the new version of the movie wasn’t well-received like 2024’sSpeak No Evil. Because of this change,The Vanishingis widely regarded as one of the worst Hollywood remakes of international horror movies (viaCollider).
The basic premise ofSpeak No Evilremains the same across both movies. Two couples and their children meet on vacation, and then one of the couples is invited to go to the other’s house for a week. It’s eventually revealed that the duo whose house it is kills other couples and kidnaps their children. However, 2024’sSpeak No Evilchanges the original moviein the way that the twist is revealed and the ending. In the original version, Bjørn discovers the truth. The 2024 movie has Ant, the kidnapped son of Ciara and Paddy, expose the truth to Agnes.
Agnes
When the original film wraps up, Abel (the Danish version of Ant) has drowned, and Patrick and Karin have brutally murdered Bjørn and Louise by stoning them to death. They’ve also taken Agnes as their new child.Hollywood’s version of the movie ends with Louise killing Ciara and Ant killing Paddy.The surviving couple drive off with Ant and Agnes in the car. UnlikeThe Vanishing, the new ending ofSpeak No Evildidn’t ruin the message or themes because the two movies are complementary to one another.
