One of my all time favorites.

Boring

Clever, believable, and super fun to watch. It totally has replay value.

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

So many films have been remade in recent years, and I'm always fascinated as to why. The only justifiable reason that I can see for remaking a film, is if the original had potential, but was in the hands of the wrong director. In the case of 'Rear Window', Alfred Hitchcock's original version was close to perfection. That being the case, why did anyone feel a need to remake it? While sticking to the basic storyline of a man confined to his apartment and becoming suspicious that a neighbour has murdered his wife, there are a few changes. Christopher Reeve plays the lead character, who is not a photographer but an architect, and has been pompously renamed Jason Kemp. Also the lead female role, played by Daryl Hannah, is not his girlfriend (to begin with) but his colleague. And there are some other differences here and there, such as the lack of exploration into the complexities of relationships, and the fact that Jason Kemp has two medical assistants on call 24 hours instead of an insurance nurse that visits daily. I suppose the makers deviated in these areas so that the film would not look like an exact copy of the original, but these differences do very little, and in some cases let the film down.For a thriller, this film hardly manages to mildly scare. Jeff Bleckner's direction does not labour on key points in the film long enough to generate much tension, nor is there much atmosphere. The film's soundtrack also does not help matters. The best part of the film is Christopher Reeve, who does stand out from a cast with little substance. Thelma Ritter's character of an insurance nurse in Alfred Hitchcock's version, has more spark than the two medical assistants in this film put together. Then again, that may be largely due to the relatively shallow script that the actors have to work with.That being said, this was a very needless remake. Not all of Alfred Hitchcock's films were classics, but when it comes to his best films, I don't believe it's possible to improve on them. Apart from this attempt, 'Psycho' has been remade, as well as multiple remakes of 'The 39 Steps'. Let's hope it stops there.

The idea is great since it comes from a master mind of suspense. The main actor is also great because he plays his own role as a crippled victim of a dumb accident. But at the same time something is wrong in the extraordinary exhibitionism of these Americans who do not know what a blind is and who broadcast every single of their sighs to the whole neighborhood through open windows and paper thin walls. It makes the voyeur in this case practically justified since there is no other way but hear and see. But that's too easy. It takes a lot of the secrecy of this voyeuristic knowledge out of the story. The suspense itself is even in many ways reduced, crippled. From a dark and frightening film we shift in this remake to a plain action film with a cripple as the main character who is beautifully rendered by Christopher Reeve, but that is not enough to make a great film. This remake is not really improving, nor even getting close to the original.Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, University Paris Dauphine & University Paris 1 Pantheon Sorbonne

While nobody expected this to be anywhere near as good as Hitchcock's classic, I found the film surprisingly engrossing. Some people might say Reeve didn't stretch his abilities, but I would argue that he still convinced me that he was Jason Kemp. Reeve's character is absolutely helpless, whereas Jimmy Stewart could still use his arms, and this made Reeve's character all the more vulnerable. It made for a more suspenseful, edge-of-your-seat film. I've read that this film was simply a showcase for the gadgets that Reeve uses to live life, but I think that's an unfair criticism of a thoroughly enjoyable, not to mention educational, film.The rest of the cast provides solid support, but it's Reeve's show all the way. I'm glad the accident didn't keep him away from acting. He's always been an underrated actor, except as Superman, so it's good to see a different role provide him with a high profile opportunity to showcase his acting ability. (If you're curious about Reeve's other great roles, I'd definitely check out Deathtrap, where he stole the show from Michael Caine and Dyan Cannon.)

It is not just another remake. They destroyed what was a good story line.Christopher Reeve plays on everyone's sympathy because he was paralyzed. He should have stopped acting before he made this show. It was pure trash. Next try to make something.