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Best And Worst Remakes/Rip-Offs Of 2013

No one can deny that most movie studios in Hollywood occasionally run a little low on originality. Luckily for them, there's over a century of classic films that can provide inspiration for new ones... in addition to already-formed characters, plots and dialogue, if need be. So, it's never a surprise when a remake gets the green light - this year alone, we've had many. Now and then, one of these remakes is pretty good. Other times, a remake is bad or just utterly pointless. Sometimes, they're even masquerading as original films. Join us as we count off the top five best (and bottom five worst) remakes and rip-offs from the past year.

3. R.I.P.D. (RIP-OFF)

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While it’s nowhere near as prolific as The Mortal InstrumentsR.I.P.D. does ape the Men in Black franchise quite spectacularly. Ryan Reynolds plays Will Smith’s young, brash agent role as a carbon copy, breaking all the rules until one mistake lands him in a strange, bureaucratic office overseen by a sarcastic, female Rip Torn wannabee.

The pitch for R.I.P.D. must have literally been, “It’s Men in Black, but they’re dead.” Reynolds’s Will Smith knock-off is partnered with a curmudgeonly older agent (Jeff Bridges, playing Tommy Lee Jones’s part with even more crustiness) and tasked with taking down supernatural beings. Predictably loopy chase scenes ensue, but the Men in Black references don’t stop there. Old cars, ridiculous weaponry, pointless bantering and a “Come on, guys, let’s go save the world” hook all factor in to R.I.P.D.‘s plot.

It was dead on arrival at the box-office, and for good reason – moviegoers were smart enough to see this rip-off for what it was and turn it down. In an ironic twist, R.I.P.D. will get its just desserts in 2015, when DreamWorks Animation releases B.O.O.: Bureau of Otherworldly Operations, which is literally just an animated version of R.I.P.D. for kids. And who ever said there were no happy endings in Hollywood?