By Alex Zavala
Lately, it seems like almost every successful movie that comes out is either a sequel, a prequel, or a reboot. Sequels have actually been around for a very long time, and it’s a commonplace to say that the second part is never as good as the first. However, this is only true sometimes. Every now and then, a movie sequel overshadows its predecessor and is even bigger and better, and in some cases, an all-time classic.
So, I put together a small list of sequels that are much better than the originals.
5. The Godfather Part II
@thegodfathermovie
I put this one in fifth place because I have only seen it once, but one viewing was enough for me to agree with all the great things everybody says about it. Although the original was great, Francis Ford Coppola really outdid himself with this one. Too bad “Part III” is so goddamned terrible.
4. Terminator 2: Judgement Day
@liquidt1000
Yes, believe it or not, there was a time when Terminator movies were good. The first film was awesome, but perhaps too ambitious for the technology available at the time. Now, Judgement Day is something else. This time around, James Cameron revolutionized VFX, gave us a timeless catchphrase (shown in the GIF above), and inspired one hell of a Simpsons parody. And it is easily 50 times better than the other three sequels combined.
3. Aliens
@alien.movie
Ridley Scott’s Alien was so cool, that even its slogan was terrifying: “In space no one can hear you scream.” But almost 40 years after its release, it feels a little too slow at times. Aliens, on the other hand, is still as awesome as ever. Another incredible James Cameron sequel, and, in my opinion, his masterpiece -not Titanic, and certainly not Avatar, as much as he would like to think so. Aliens is more action film than horror. In fact, it’s one hell of an action film. True, they screwed up in the third one, making the alien a dog and killing Ripley. Then, they massively screwed up in the fourth one, cloning Ripley. And finally, they just flushed it down the crapper, making not one but two Alien vs Predator films. But the new Alien is going to be a sequel to Aliens, and it let us ignore all those terrible decisions. And Prometheus was also pretty cool.
2. The Empire Strikes Back
@classic_star_wars
George Lucas came up with a pretty amazing set of stories for Star Wars, but let’s be honest, he’s a terrible director. I’m even confident that the prequel trilogy would’ve been really good had he let someone else take the helm. And that’s why it was such a good decision on his part not to direct the best of all the Star Wars movies. The Empire Strikes Back shows a more sinister Darth Vader, a frozen Han Solo, the first non-ridiculous lightsaber fight, and the biggest revelation in cinema history, so epic that I don’t even have to say what it is for everyone to know exactly what I’m talking about. It’s a pity that Return of the Jedi is so boring in contrast and filled with care bears (ewoks)… The last 20 minutes are the only part that’s worth watching.
1. The Dark Knight
Batman Begins was so good, it’s unbelievable how overlooked it was. I wouldn’t have imagined the sequel would be not just better, but SO MUCH better. Heath Ledger’s death alone wasn’t responsible for keeping The Dark Knight at the box office’s number one for 7 consecutive weeks. Against all odds, Jack Nicholson’s Joker was greatly outdone, and the comic book movie genre was changed forever. This is not only the best sequel of all time, but it is also (along with The Lego Movie) the worst Oscar snub in history. Thankfully The Dark Knight Rises didn’t suck. It was actually very good, but still not as good as its predecessor.
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