Is Imitation the sincerest form of Flattery?

I've just seen the trailer for the recent Hollywood remake of the Italian Job. It left me wondering why they bothered. The original film is a classic - I've seen it umpteen times, still enjoy it and fail to see why it needed to be "updated". I realise that some of the humour is a bit "British", but I can manage to enjoy many American comedies - surely our transatlantic cousins don't find our sense of humour THAT impenetrable?