Smutmutant,the reason for the remake was 1. original producer Richard Rubinstein sorely needed to make some quick money, and 2.the studio and producers strongly yearned to make an American rip-off of "28 Days Later",which is what this remake more heavily resembles.
Too bad that today's current horror scene completely blows,for the good ole original days(50s,60s,70s,and 80s)easily kick the living shit out of today's era(and all of the films and the current generation of brain-damaged fans[the ones that write very stupid messages on boards,which does not include any of us!!!] that are in it).