re: Original Movies Vs. Copycats. Which were better?

quote:

---

I guess i can think of things like Manhunter being better than Red Dragon. But is it really a copycat? They are both based off the book.

---

Yeah, that's not a copycat, just a remake.

Not sure I would include the "race to the box office" genres either - Armegeddon/Deep Impact, etc. It's not really a copycat if the same idea is being launched at the same time.

When I think of "copycat" I think of the 1970s when a movie would hit and other studios would try to capitalize and replicate the formula. Disaster movies like Towering Inferno, Earthquake and the Poseidon Adventure. Blacksploitation movies like Shaft, Superfly, Foxy Brown. The Airport movies. Jaws had a few ripoffs (like Orca). Star Wars inspired a few duds as well. Ironically you could argue that Alien was an obvious copycat mashup of both Jaws and Star Wars, the two biggest hits of the decade, but it still stands so well on it's on two feet due to brilliant directing and production design.