Why oh Why?


Why would they remake an oscar winning film and only eight years after.

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Wouy naught?!

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Both movies were good. Justification enough.

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You're right. Both were good, which is not usually the case. Often, the remake stinks. Not the case here. I do, however, prefer the original. Probably because I'm a fan of William Powell, and a [ very big ] fan of Aline MacMahon. Frank McHugh is in both of them. Which release do you prefer?

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The original; the remake seems overacted. I also think the end scene in the original was really touching (Rocky alone at the bar). 'Til We Meet Again was good but didn't quite grab me the way One Way Passage did.

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I agree with you regarding the acting. Brent wasn't too bad, but Oberon was way over the top; too melodramatic. However, that style of acting seemed to be acceptable 75-80 years ago. Anyway, I prefer the earlier film's cast. Kay Francis and William Powell were always solid, and you probably won't find a bigger Aline MacMahon fan than I am. I probably have at least 15 of her films in my library.

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I often wondered the same thing because there was a time when the studios were really cranking out the remakes; both for good movies and not so good ones. Then one day while watching TCM I heard the answer and it made sense.

Like all good businesses, the studios wanted to maximize revenues while minimizing costs. Remaking a movie for which they already owned the rights to the story was far less expensive than finding and buying the something new and untested. There would also be fewer risks associated with remaking a movie especially one that had already been successful.


Woman, man! That's the way it should be Tarzan. [Tarzan and his mate]

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