As I’m sure you’re all aware of, I’ve gone on many a tangent about the merits and detriments of movie sequels. Long story short, I like GOOD sequels. Sequels that not only give you more of what you already know but add new things to complement the old. There are quite a few awesome sequels out there. I’ve done lists about some of my favorite sequels of all time. I’ve also done lists about some of the worst sequels of all time. But for this list, I’m going to do something a little different. I’m going to talk about great movies that got sequels/prequels that they didn’t need or deserve. This will be a two-part project. This first part is about movies that didn’t need a sequel, while part 2 will be about movies that definitely NEED one. Some of these will seem rather….obvious, while others may seem somewhat questionable. With all that said, let’s get into it.
Highlander
Highlander is one of those movies that’s hard to explain why it’s so damn good. When it was released in the states, it flopped hard. Internationally, people ate it up. I guess people in the states weren’t quite ready for sword-fights in New York City. The concept actually works on a narrative level. It’s got awesome characters, a story that you can sink your teeth into, and a villain that is simply iconic. Highlander got not one, not two, not three, but FOUR sequels. Highlander II tried to explain the origins of the immortals by saying that they came from a different planet. Also, there was an environmental message in there. It definitely didn’t work. It was a complete disaster. It went over-budget and was poorly received at the box-office. While subsequent home video releases would eliminate the whole Planet Zeist angle, it didn’t help the fact that the movie was poorly made and poorly directed. Michael Ironside was cool though. Highlander: The Final Dimension and Endgame both sidestepped Highlander II, but failed to connect. The less said about Highlander: The Source, the better. Highlander: Endgame was by far the most interesting of the sequels, I thought. It tried to combine elements from Christopher Lambert’s movies with Adrian Paul’s TV show. It kinda worked. The highlight of the film was definitely the fight scenes, many of which were choreographed by the legendary Donnie Yen, who also starred as Jin Ke. Of the sequels, Endgame is the best, but it would’ve been better if the sequels didn’t exist at all.
Jaws
Jaws is what many consider to be the first major blockbuster film. It shattered all kinds of records and kick-started Steven Spielberg’s career as a director. Why is it so good? It’s more about the characters having to deal with a shark rather than the shark itself. The characters are all very interesting and come across as genuine human beings. Obviously, Robert Shaw’s Quint steals the show, but Richard Dreyfuss comes pretty damn close. The movie worked because you didn’t see the shark until about three quarters of the way through the film. Instead, John Williams’ score took the place of the shark and really amped up the tension. It’s about as perfect a thriller as you could get. The sequels never came close. The second film was a re-hash of the film and pulled its punches. Jaws 3 embraced its b-movie silliness and ran with it, but it was still not a good movie. Jaws: The Revenge is easily the worst film in the series and pretty much grounded the entire franchise. You can read my review on it by clicking on the Dunce Corner tab. The problem with the sequels and most shark movies is that they focus more on the shark rather than the characters. It’s the characters that drive the story, not the beast. The original film remains untouchable and is still the king of shark movies.
Taken
Taken is probably one of the most iconic movies of Liam Neeson’s career. His threat to his daughter’s kidnappers is legitimately scary and he goes about tearing through Paris to find her. This works, because the premise is simple, yet very effective. It’s a father looking for his daughter using “a particular set of skills.” It’s not the most original premise, but it’s executed fairly well featuring a very strong performance from Liam Neeson. The sequels were nothing more than obvious cash-grabs. The second film isn’t awful, but it retreads a lot of the same territory that the first movie already covered. The third movie? It’s a complete waste. It’s extremely derivative of better films like The Fugitive. It also doesn’t help that the editing is crap. It’s like the director/editor went to the Michael Bay School of Editing. Honestly, stick with the first movie, it’s infinitely better.
The Matrix
A lot has been said about The Matrix Trilogy. Most people tend to agree that the sequels are significantly inferior to the original film. The Matrix, which was released back in 1999 was revolutionary. Not only did the film offer a unique cyberpunk story, but it also pioneered a new level of visual effects. On top of that, you had a really strong cast featuring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, and Hugo Weaving. The Matrix had a very mind-warping concept that utilized Rene Descartes as its inspiration. It all came together very well, but it also had some of the best fight choreography seen in Hollywood movies. Why? The kung-fu sequences were choreographed by Yuen Woo Ping, one of the best fight choreographers that Hong Kong has to offer. The sequels would try to explore more of the world of The Matrix including Zion, the fabled city which was mentioned in the first movie, but never seen. That was pretty cool. However, the film gets bogged down by mindless philosophical mumbo-jumbo in an attempt to be more clever than it actually was. The final movie was even worse, with a climax that was so out of left-field and so anti-climactic that it’s been constantly mocked. You didn’t need the sequels, the first film was good enough.
The Crow
The Crow is one of the best comic-book movies ever made. Period. Everything about this film from the soundtrack to the visuals was sublime. The acting was amazing and the action was brutally spectacular. Brandon Lee was truly at the top of his game when he tragically died on set. One could make the argument that the film is memorable for that reason, and one would not be wrong. It’s difficult to say whether or not the film would be as good had Mr. Lee not been killed. That being said, The Crow was one of the defining films of the early 90s. It featured a hard-rock soundtrack coupled with a Gothic visual style that has been often imitated but never duplicated. This was one film where any sequel would feel insulting. Yet, we got three of them. City of Angels is the best sequel, but it’s by no means a good movie. It’s just a carbon copy of the original film only not as well-done. The worst offender has to be Wicked Prayer which featured Edward Furlong as the lead character. Big mistake, bad movie. The less said about it, the better. The Crow is one of my favorite movies of all time and few movies have been able to match its power.
Those are some of my picks for movies that really didn’t a sequel, but got anyway. I hope you enjoyed this list as much as I had making it. Stay tuned for the movies that NEED a sequel, coming soon to a website near you.