Jan 06 2009
Ten Movie Sequels As Good As Or Better Than The Original
Let’s face it - most sequels suck. Sequels often fail to recapture the elements that made the first movie so great and are churned out by movie studios to rake in the cash. Some sequels, though, expand and improve the source material from the first movie and make for an even better experience. It’s not easy coming up with sequels that are as good or better than the original movie, but here’s a list of ten that happen to fit that bill. For the purposes of this article, I’m only considering movies that are the second in a series - therefore, movies like Return of the Jedi or The Last Crusade - while perhaps “sequels” - would be ineligible. I’m sure that won’t stop many of you from commenting “Where’s Army of Darkness!?!?!” though.
Terminator 2: Judgment Day
The original Terminator is a sci-fi classic (and I’ve lauded it on this site more than once), but Terminator 2 takes everything up a notch. The story isn’t bastardized but instead is expanded logically, as we are introduced to the infamous John Connor and updated as to Sarah’s situation. A new model of Terminator is featured and the special effects were groundbreaking at the time this movie was released. Terminator 2 serves as a perfect expansion to the mythology James Cameron created in his first movie and gives us an intriguing story to boot. Even though this movie made a ton of cash, you can tell that Cameron’s heart went into it.
The Godfather Part II
This Best Picture winner serves as both a prequel and a sequel to the original film, and Franci Ford Coppola brilliantly presents Mario Puzo’s depiction of the Corleone family. We’re treated to a mature Michael Corleone and also get to see Vito Corleone’s rise to power, and The Godfather Part II actually enhances the viewing of the first film, one of the defining marks of a great sequel.
Spider-Man 2
The original Spider-Man movie was pretty good, but origin stories are obviously predictable and the Green Goblin isn’t the most ideal villain for a big screen adaptation. Spider-Man 2, though, gave us a more dynamic and interesting villain in Dr. Octopus (played by the very underrated Alfred Molina) and explored the human side of Peter Parker. Peter’s having to deal with girl and work issues is what made the comics so interesting, so it follows that the presentation of these issues on the big screen would add an extra layer of depth to what would have been an otherwise generic superhero flick.
X-Men 2
X-Men 2 gives us Wolverine in berzerker mode and the ultracool Magneto escape scene, both of which are reasons to put this movie over (or equal to, at worst) the original X-Men movie. There’s the emotional death of a major character, Nightcrawler teleporting like whoa, and even some focus on the Weapon X Program. It’s a shame that X-Men 3 was such an abortion, because really, how exciting was it when we saw the outline of the Dark Phoenix just before X-Men 2 ended?
The Empire Strikes Back
A New Hope had a typical Hollywood, happily-ever-after type ending, but Empire Strikes Back flipped the script and left us hanging in eager anticipation of Return of the Jedi. Empire is perhaps the darkest of the Star Wars movies (with only Revenge of the Sith in the conversation). By the film’s end, Han Solo is frozen in carbonite and - in one of the greatest twists in movie history - Vader revals to Luke that he is his father. Look, I love the bar scene on Tatooine as much as the next guy, but Empire is where it’s at. And save your breath; Empire was the second Star Wars movie released and is therefore eligible as a “sequel” under this article’s standards.
The Dark Knight
Look, I know it’s the hip thing now to hate on The Dark Knight and The Joker, but this movie was about as good as a crime movie can be. Batman Begins was a character piece, and The Dark Knight, using the foundation created by its predecessor, gave audiences a city terrorized by a madman and defended by three men (Batman, Dent, and Gordon) with differing philosophies as to how to keep the city safe. I actually don’t think The Dark Knight is THAT much better than Batman Begins, by the way. In Batman Begins, Nolan shows us a man who dresses up as a bat to fight crime, yet somehow makes it not only believable but logical by thoroughly exploring the man’s past.
Evil Dead 2
Evil Dead 2 is the type of movie that defies description. It’s entertaining and funny as hell, and just when you think it can’t get any more ridiculous, a flying eyeball lands in a screaming girl’s mouth. Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell must have had a lot of fun making this movie.
2 Fast 2 Furious
By no means am I suggesting that 2 Fast 2 Furious is a good movie, but it’s a lot of fun and definitely superior to the original:
1. Tyrese > Vin Diesel
2. It takes place in Miami
3. Cole Hauser is an awesome bad guy
4. “Ejecto seato, cuz!!!!”
5. Paul Walker says “bro” a lot more than he did in the first one
Aliens
Like Sam Raimi, James Cameron has two of his movies on this list, the second being Aliens. And just like with Terminator 2, Cameron expanded the first film’s mythology while remaining true to the source material. Even better, instead of a commercial space towing crew interacting with one alien, we see a group of bad ass Space Marines fighting literally hundereds of aliens - alongside Ripley, of course. Ridley Scott’s Alien was terrifying and featured some of the coolest set designs to ever grace the big screen, but Cameron’s Aliens ups the action and tension to such a degree that it’s hard to say that it’s not at least as good as the original.
Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior
The Road Warrior belongs in this article if only because of its tremendous influence on how post-apocalyptic stories are presented. From Tupac videos to Neil Marshall’s Doomsday, the impact of The Road Warrior is constantly seen in various media, a trend that does not seem to be ending anytime soon. Also, bonus points for Lord Humungus.
Any sequels that I missed? Comment and let me know. Be sure to insult my parents and pepper your comment with obscenities!
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Dude! Wrath of Khan!!
Sorry, was a bit shouty there. But yeah, Star Trek 2 was significantly better than 1. I guess you could also count Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban as a sequel that’s vastly superior to both previous films.
[…] It’s true, we’re rather skeptical about knee-jerk revisions, sequels, prequels, reunion tours, side-projects, spin-offs, franchises and disastrous re-vamps, but the film world is where we’ve found the greatest number of exceptions to this informal rule. Arguing that newer and bigger can be better, Unreality’s David Madison offers proof with a listicle of equal or superior movie sequels. Here, then, are some of our favorites from Unreality’s 10 Movie Sequels As Good As Or Better Than the Original. […]
Anyone who hates on The Dark Knight is a tool. And the Joker was awesome.
I’ve had this list going on in my head for way too long.
Beverly Hills Cop 2
Batman Returns (it was just as good, anyway)
Addams Family Values (if you liked the 1st, you liked the 2nd)
Ghostbusters 2
Toy Story 2
The Bourne Supremacy
Diehard 2
my ears bleed when paul walker says bro
Since 2 Fast 2 Furious made the list, I figure I can mention Rush Hour 2. That, too, was a lot of mindless fun.
Toy Story 2
Rush Hour 2
LOTR: Two Towers
Naked Gun 2 1/2
Most of these I would agree with. There are a couple exceptions. First off, every ‘Fast and/or Furious’ film is absolutely terrible so you can’t really have a winner there. Secondly, ‘Aliens’ was good, but it was really not even comparable to its unarguably superior predecessor.
2 fast 2 furious does not deserve any mention here and neither does the two towers the fellowship was clearly better
2 Fast 2 Furious sucked. Tyrese is no way better than Vin. If anything he was one of the main reasons the movie sucked so much. The first Godfather movie was such a bore I haven’t even bothered with part 2.
Superman II (the theatrical release, not the Donner remix) should be included IMO.
wayne’s world 2, maybe not quite as good as the first but its pretty damn close.
Your list was doing good until you put 2 Fast 2 Furious on it.
boobface:
Wayne’s World II is a good call, it being very close but not quite.
David:
I think one of the main reasons the movie sucked so much is that is was the sequel to a sucky movie. Gone in 61 Seconds would blow ass, too. I’ll ignore the Godfather comment, as you are obviously only allowed to use blunt scissors at school before you go home early on the short yellow “rocket ship”.
Kered:
You sure have, because Die Hard 2 is in no way better than 1, and seriously, Ghosbusters fucking 2? Did you see that movie? Did you see Ghostbusters?
[…] although I do find the series pretty entertaining. I know I’m alone here, but I think that the second movie is better than the first, mostly because I have a strange man crush on Paul Walker and didn’t miss Vin Diesel at […]
Good list. I would have added LOTR, and maybe even Ghostbusters.
@ president
Ghostbusters? You can’t be serious. The first movie is a comedy classic, the second one it average at best.