The film industry has become a cesspool of money hungry studios that produce absolute slop and call it a sequel.
Do not get me wrong, some movie sequels are absolute masterpieces, but others are like watching a dumpster fire for two hours.
As a kid, movie sequels were the best thing because I loved the first movie so much the second had to be better than the first.
Going back to watch sequels as an adult made me question if I understood what makes a sequel good, rather than hiding behind my love for the series itself.
Not all film series should drag on as it can become stale real fast. Look at the recent trailer for Disney Pixar’s “Toy Story 5,” a series that should have ended once Andy left for college.
Other Disney sequels like “Cars 2” are utterly terrible, walking barefoot on a dog bone is more appealing.
Although “Cars 2” was not received well by audiences, Pixar was able to revive the series six years later with the installment of “Cars 3.”
A film genre that has improved greatly over the years are movies based on video games, as the use of computer generated imagery made it watchable.
Three video game franchises are making movie sequels primarily for the fans because its audience are the ones who played the games on SEGA Genesis, Nintendo GameCube and Xbox.
The first film studio that listened to the fans were the producers who made “Sonic the Hedgehog” as fans of the blue blur hated the original look of Sonic, according to a Feb. 19, 2020 article from the Guardian.
“There was definitely a bit of a pep talk, but it was all genuine because I really believed it was a problem that could be solved,” director Jeff Fowler in a 2020 Los Angeles Times article said.
Look up “Ugly Sonic” and you will understand why fans hated it.
If there was not a redesign we would have missed out on, in my opinion, one of the greatest film series based on a video game ever.
Another film that paid attention to detail was the “Super Mario Movie Bros. Movie,” which gave lifelong fans a reminiscence of their childhood on the big screen.
Although the sequel is set to come out this April, fans are excited to see the new additions such as Brie Larson playing Rosalina and Benny Safdie as Bowser Jr.
With new installments set to come out this year, “Mortal Kombat” is redeeming the franchise from previous years of unwatchable garbage with its new movie “Mortal Kombat II.”
All of these films are loved by fans because of how it is not treated like an original movie, as there is a large amount of lore that directors and producers used to make fans happy, according to the Rotten Tomatoes reviews.
Lets not forget there are plenty of movies that never received a second or third movie and absolutely deserve one.
Movies like “Treasure Planet” and “Gran Torino” had me wanting more and never got a sequel.
Films with more than three installments may lack storytelling or continue a story that should have ended with the previous film.
Other times films will have conclusive endings to its series, but will be ruined by a brand new installment creating more plot holes or cliffhangers.
One particular series that ruined its series and became a cash grab is the “Fast & Furious” franchise.
I think “Fast & Furious” (2009) should have ended the series because who in their right mind would think 10 movies with the similar plot for each installment is a good idea?
After the fourth movie, each new sequel was a copy and paste of the last with no real effort to call it a movie.
Another large series that tarnished its movies was “Star Wars,” specifically films seven to nine although Star Wars is my favorite series, but oh my god the ending is bad.
Sometimes fans have favorite films like “Gladiator” or “The Devil Wears Prada” and have to wait two decades for the next installment.
Everytime I see a trailer for a new sequel these days I have zero hopes that the movie will make audiences happy as watching a new release is like opening a blind box. It’s a gamble.
