Top Ten Tuesdays

[Justin101]

• 28 Weeks Later
• Back To The Future Part II
• Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey
• The Bourne Supremacy
• The Dark Knight
• The Empire Strikes Back
• Infernal Affairs II
• A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge
• Scream 2
• Star Trek II: The Wrath Of Khan

Just Missed Out

• Hellboy II: The Golden Army
• Terminator 2: Judgment Day

Cheeky (not really a sequel) one

• Zombie Flesh Eaters

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Nosferatu@Cult Labs

Will that include films within a franchise/series which aren't necessarily the second instalment, or would it just be the worst follow-ups, meaning films like Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan and Batman Forever would be ineligible?

We'll deal with that when the time comes.

As far as i'm concerned a sequel is any installment not just the second.

[Nosferatu@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

As far as i'm concerned a sequel is any installment not just the second.

I was making a list of films either immediately following the first one, or with events following the first film and uninterrupted by another film, which is my justification for The Exorcist III.

A list of non-first sequels might be interesting to do.

[Nosferatu@Cult Labs]

I decided to change mine, removing The Exorcist III, in order to keep this as a list of first sequels, released immediately after the first film. So, in no particular order:

• The Godfather Part II – one of the best movies ever made
• Aliens – very different to Ridley Scott's classic sci-fi horror, but a kick ass action movie
• Batman Returns – darker and busier than Tim Burton's first Batman movie, and better for it
• The Bride of Frankenstein – I prefer it to the first Frankenstein film
• A Shot in the Dark – the best of the Pink Panther films
• The Testament of Dr. Mabuse – an incredibly prescient piece of silent cinema and easily the equal of Dr. Mabuse the Gambler which is a brilliant study in villainy and a key influence on the writers of…
• The Dark Knight – I was unsure about the recasting of Rachel Dawes (Katie Holmes deciding to do Mad Money instead of this is one of the biggest career mistakes of all time) but it works very well because Maggie Gyllenhaal is a more accomplished actor, Heath Ledger is immense, and it feels more 'epic' than its predecessor
• X2 – probably the best of the X-Men movies with great storytelling, direction, and acting by the ensemble cast
• Toy Story 2 – I don't know how I missed this from my top 10 or 'just missing out' section before, but this is one of the few sequels which I would forcefully contend are better than the film they followed.
• Before Sunset – I love Richard Linklater's 'Before' trilogy, and this is better than Before Sunrise, as the characters are established, Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy are more assured as actors and, as they wrote some of the dialogue themselves, screenwriters. They also have an immediate rapport, leading to more emotional engagement from the viewer.

Just missing out:
Scream 2 – I really like the self-referential 'meta-' nature of this, plus the references to other sequels
Gremlins 2 – I love the anarchy, pervasive sense of mischief and black humour
Wayne's World 2 – Waynestock and Kim Basinger. I need to say more?
Evil Dead 2 – I don't know if this is a sequel or remake or a mixture of both, but it's one of the best horror comedies ever made
The Matrix Reloaded – a lot of people hate this; I like the philosophical concepts and expansion of the universe. However, there is some very dated CGI
28 Weeks Later – it may not have the suspense, visceral horror, or groundbreaking camerawork of Danny Boyle's movie, but it does have some terrific acting, thoughtful scripts, and terrifying set pieces
Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior – possibly more exciting and undoubtedly more action packed than the first film in the Mad Max series, I sometimes prefer this to the original, and sometimes prefer the other one, constantly flip-flopping between the two
Spider-Man 2 – Sam Raimi again, this time more at ease with the cast and camerawork needed to put the audience in the place of hero when he is swinging through the streets of New York. It also had more storytelling freedom because the origin part was out of the way and, in Alfred Molina's Doc Ock, a better villain than The Green Goblin.

[Justin101]

Originally Posted by Nosferatu@Cult Labs

• Before Sunset – I love Richard Linklater's 'Before' trilogy, and this is better than Before Sunrise, as the characters are established, Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy are more assured as actors and, as they wrote some of the dialogue themselves, screenwriters. They also have an immediate rapport, leading to more emotional engagement from the viewer.

I loved the trilogy when I saw them, but it's been so long I couldn't possible have this one on my list.

I noticed that Batman Returns is on (almost) everyone's list. I mist be in the minority, while I do enjoy it - I just don't think it's that good. Aliens, again everyone rates it but I feel it moves the tone too far too fast away from the first film and Godfather Part 2, I've still not seen it, it's in my watch pile and I'll get around to it soon, honest!

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Justin101

I loved the trilogy when I saw them, but it's been so long I couldn't possible have this one on my list.

I noticed that Batman Returns is on (almost) everyone's list. I mist be in the minority, while I do enjoy it - I just don't think it's that good. Aliens, again everyone rates it but I feel it moves the tone too far too fast away from the first film and Godfather Part 2, I've still not seen it, it's in my watch pile and I'll get around to it soon, honest!

I hated the Before films. I really thought i'd like them, wanted to like them and expected to like them but i totally despised both Hawke and Delpy.

I adore Batman Returns. I saw it at the cinema and loved it then and it just gets better with each viewing. It's similar to Sleepy Hollow in that respect. Must be a Burton 'thing'. Michelle Pfeiffer is the pvc clad icing on the cake to make it just perfect.

Aliens does nothing for me i'm afraid.

[Nosferatu@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Justin101

I loved the trilogy when I saw them, but it's been so long I couldn't possible have this one on my list.

I noticed that Batman Returns is on (almost) everyone's list. I mist be in the minority, while I do enjoy it - I just don't think it's that good. Aliens, again everyone rates it but I feel it moves the tone too far too fast away from the first film and Godfather Part 2, I've still not seen it, it's in my watch pile and I'll get around to it soon, honest!

I watched the 'Before' films quite recently, which is why I felt comfortable putting it on the list instead of one (I forget which) went down to the 'just missing out' section.

I don't mind films which move away from their predecessor because, sometimes that can be necessary or, in the case comic book movies, when they are not constrained by the origins story, the filmmaker has more creative freedom and it can therefore be more narratively and visually expansive. That is the case with Batman Returns, plus really like Batman/Bruce Wayne going against Penguin and Max Shreck as much as The Joker in the 1989 film.

Of course, with the films in the Alien series, there is no issue with source material or a fairly generic 'origins' movie, but the chronological gap between Alien and Aliens – and what that means for the characters – is such that I don't mind it moving from a claustrophobic horror to an all-out action movie.

[Nosferatu@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

I hated the Before films. I really thought i'd like them, wanted to like them and expected to like them but i totally despised both Hawke and Delpy.

I adore Batman Returns. I saw it at the cinema and loved it then and it just gets better with each viewing. It's similar to Sleepy Hollow in that respect. Must be a Burton 'thing'. Michelle Pfeiffer is the pvc clad icing on the cake to make it just perfect.

Aliens does nothing for me i'm afraid.

I agree with you about Batman Returns and Sleepy Hollow having a distinctive 'Burton-esque' aesthetic – I watched the latter last month and loved it.

Like I said before, I don't mind Aliens being very different from Ridley Scott's film, I think it is – particularly in the extended version – an extremely well-made action movie with a real heart thanks to the relationship between Ripley and Newt.

[Justin101]

I've been meaning to re-watch Sleepy Hollow, it's bee a while since I saw it and I do love it

[bizarre_eye@Cult Labs]

I'm not a big fan of Aliens either.

It suffers from 'The Dawn of the Dead' effect, where a creepy, atmospheric first installment is followed up by what is essentially an action film with the horror and atmosphere sort of taking a back seat to the various shenanigans.