MovieChat Forums > Shadow of a Doubt (1943) Discussion > The 1991 Remake (Possible spoiler alert)

The 1991 Remake (Possible spoiler alert)

posted 10 years ago by amyghost
2 replies | jump to latest

Why'd they bother? Mark Harmon isn't a bad actor, but was by no means anywhere close to Joseph Cotten's handling of the role. The actress who played Young Charlie was forgettable, and with the possible exception of Diane Ladd, so was the rest of the cast.

Biggest mistake they made was having Uncle Charlie turn out to be an imposter at the end. Robbed the film of pretty much all of its power and point. This is one case where it definitely pays to stick with the original, and helps demonstrate why so many remakes are totally unnecessary.

[–] ItsEddieHaskellBeyotch 10 years ago

I'm usually not one for remakes, especially for a film as good as this;but I wouldnt mind seeing a theatrical remake done closer to the original. The ending to the '91 version is about as awful as the TV remake of The Bad Seed.

When theres no more room in Hollywood, remakes shall walk the Earth.

[–] greenbudgie (2355) 2 years ago

A better remake to try is the 1958 version entitled 'Step Down To Terror.' It offers some changes but it is recognizable as a remake of the Hitchcock original. The fugitive is a brother-in-law to the woman who discovers his secret. Charles Drake is the playboy murderer in this one and does a pretty good job playing a villain who uses charm to hide his criminal ways. Rod Taylor is the investigator on his trail. It only has a 76 minute running time so it doesn't flesh out the story or characters in the same way but it's worth watching.