There seems to be an unwritten rule in films that sequels are usually much worse than their predecessor, in some cases, its true, often sequels are hastily re-hashed versions of the original made in the hope of cashing in on the success of it’s popularity (Jaws 2 I’m talking to you!) but sometimes sequels go above and beyond their destiny and somehow manage to not only continue the previous good work but even go on to outshine it.
It doesn’t matter if it’s cult films, big budget films or films that have stormed the Oscars, a good sequel comes in all shapes and sizes.
Ladies and gentlemen, here are ten of the best movie sequels.
The Godfather part 2 (1974)
Dawn of The Dead (1978)
What Romero did so brilliantly in the original – aside from almost single-handedly inventing a new horror genre and ‘rules’ that still apply to this day; zombie’s shuffle and you need to destroy their brain – is keep the tension up close in that cabin besieged by the undead so the next logical step was to make it bigger but still in an enclosed environment. He cleverly chose the American shopping mall where the shoppers you see everyday shuffle and mindlessly bump around shops like the zombies depicted here, it’s famously a metaphor for consumerism but it’s also a great way to spend a couple of hours and you’ll find yourself rooting for the zombies more than once.
Superman 2 (1980)
Superhero films have always relied heavily on the villain (Thor; The Dark World are you reading this?) and it’s not much fun seeing a ‘man’ with superhuman strength battling it out with ‘normal’ Lex Luthor and dim-witted Otis (brilliantly played by Ned Beatty) so bring in some more Kryptonians – Zod, female Ursa and mute Non – that are slightly erked at Kal-El’s father for imprisoning them, cue fights with local law enforcers, a bit of flying and trickery involving the old losing-your-powers trick. Fun for all the family.
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Star Wars was a revelation on it’s release, it’s hard to imagine the impact that George Lucas’ movie had on it’s release, particularly now where most films have a certain level of special effects and CGI can make anything appear real. I think it’s safe to say that Star Wars changed the movies, so with that extra burden Uncle George had the task to continue his good work and boy did he do it.
Masterstroke one; bring in director Irvin Kershner. Lucas’ skill has always been as a storyteller, leave the camera angle stuff to others.
Masterstroke two; keep the cast. Everything worked in Star Wars, the chemistry borders on perfection.
Masterstroke three; Go darker. The audience has aged and so too must the subject, oh and Lightsabers are cool so make sure they feature lots.
The film is somewhat split into two, Han, Chewie, Leia and C3-PO are trying to get away from the Empire (after they escaped from the snow planet of Hoth – a standout battle from the Star Wars films) while Luke goes off in search of Yoda to continue his Jedi training.
There is action, humour, betrayal, one of the greatest twists in movie history and it sets up Return of the Jedi brilliantly.
Evil Dead 2 (1987)
It’s the old story of a group of friends in a cabin in the woods being taunted and teased by an unseen evil but throw into the mix some physical comedy from star Bruce Campbell, a laughing mounted stags head, a headless girlfriend ballet dancing, an undead relative in the fruit cellar and a severed hand scuttling around flicking the bird to it’s previous ‘owner’ and you’ve got yourself a horror that blends comedy perfectly. There was a third film – and a successful tv series – but this is the peak of creativity on a small budget.
Terminator 2; Judgement Day (1991)
It’s all quite straight forward, once again it’s a cat and mouse game of the hunter and the hunter but what has changed is Arnie’s robot is a goody sent to protect the future saviour of the human race from the new and improved T-1000 robot (played by a chilling Robert Patrick) that has the added ability of shape-shifting and, to put it mildly, being rather tricky to stop.
It’s works well as an action film with a brain, and the CGI was years ahead of the curve, stand out fight scenes, Arnie on a Harley, Linda Hamilton suddenly morphed into a rebel fighter and cinemagoers the world over suddenly knowing what liquid nitrogen does. Brilliant.
Toy Story 2 (1999)
The answer is they get sold (or in this case, stolen by sneaky toy collectors) at yard sales!
As it turns out Woody was part of a long-forgotten television show with other wild frontier characters and once the set is complete, he’s to be packed off to Japan to be exhibited in a museum. But hold on, you forget that Woody’s best friend is none other than Space Ranger Buzz Lightyear and he’s not about to turn down the adventure to get Woody back.
What follows is a classic romp befitting any road journey movie with enough laughs to keep everyone happy.
Shrek 2 (2004)
So to add to these characters the film makers needed to look carefully at who and what they wanted for the sequel. Step forward John Cleese, Julie Andrews, Rupert Everett, Jennifer Saunders and, of course the scene stealing Antonio Banderas.
Shrek 2 takes the route of making things bigger, the music is better, the jokes are quicker and funnier and the relationship between Shrek, Donkey and Puss in Boots is a joy!
Shrek was good but Shrek 2 takes it to a whole new level.
The Dark Knight (2008)
The rule still applies that a superhero needs to battle a super villain and Heath Ledger’s performance as The Joker is outstanding. Vicious, intelligent and psychotic he tears up the screen whenever he’s featured with the side of The Joker that readers of the comics saw but the tv show and films never previously captured.
Paddington 2 (2017)
Mirror this against his nemesis, played wonderfully by Hugh Grant, who has no friends apart from greed and the desire to remain successful and it becomes a classic good vs bad.
But with marmalade.