Happy March, everyone! While the warmer weather approaches us, a sense of nostalgia for springs and summers past washes over me. In continuation of our ‘5 Best’ series, I thought it suitable to reminisce on some classic sequels that bring about the same sense of nostalgia. In this list, I’ve included some of the movies that I find to be just as worthy as, if not slightly better than, their predecessors. Feel free to comment below to let us know what some of your favourite sequels are!
1. Toy Story 2 (1999)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lu0sotERXhI
Disney-Pixar and their incredible computer-animated films have become modern classics, with Toy Story being the first of the crossover companies. Following the world of the toys owned by a human boy named Andy, audiences were introduced to the astonishing world of Woody, Buzz Lightyear, and all the other toys. In a world where the toys lives and motivations are heavily influenced by their human owners, the movie outlines the importance of friendship and courage in the face of rivalry and bullying. The Toy Story sequels continue the narrative of the toys’ fear of their disposability to Andy, but Toy Story 2 is delightfully strong because of its addition of betrayal and villain-hood within the toy world itself. Thus, not only does the sequel maintain the continuity of the main conflict – that is, the fear that Andy will outgrow his toys – but creates additional obstacles for our protagonists to overcome, all while maintaining its joyful hilarity.
2. Home Alone 2 (1992)
Repeating storylines in sequels can be extremely hard to pull off. It can easily become derivative, but Home Alone 2 switches up its original Home Alone format just enough to create a hilarious follow-up to Kevin McCallister’s bad luck. In the sequel, Kevin isn’t actually left at home, but mistakenly boards the wrong flight and ends up in New York while his family goes to Miami. As the family once more scrambles to find Kevin, villains Harry and Marv revisit only to have Kevin outsmart them again, which is equally as satisfying as it was in the first film. It’s a ridiculous, completely unrealistic déjà-vu, but it works due to the pure cheesiness of it. Chock-full of early nineties references (such as the Talkboy, and the nostalgic cinematic style of John Hughes), Home Alone 2 is definitely just as good as the original, as it subverts just enough aspects of the original plot while maintaining the essence of the title. With that, I’ll leave off with the most memorable line of the film: “Merry Christmas, ya filthy animal.
3. Captain America: Winter Soldier (2014)
Winter Soldier finally gave audiences an introspective into what Steve Rogers’ world is like seventy years into the future from Captain America: The First Avenger. More importantly, we learn the fate of former best friend Bucky Barnes, and just how twisted the world’s obsession with creating super soldiers can be. What can arguably be called an espionage film, the movie is packed with emotion, action, and politics, with a gravitas that one wouldn’t necessarily expect from a superhero movie. While The First Avenger could be criticized for being slow-moving or lacking action, it ultimately sets up the perfect foundation for Winter Soldier to pick up from. As well, part of the success between the two films is the tonal shifts between eras.The First Avenger embodies a romanticized version of the 1940s, whereas Winter Soldier upholds the grittier tenor of 21st century action films. Winter Soldier adapts to the modern era of cinema the same way that Steve has to adapt to the present world, creating an incredibly dynamic continuation. This sequel frames the heart-wrenching story of Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes by approaching the ‘superhero’ narrative in a critical, challenging way.
4. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (2006)
I’ll never forget the excitement that Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl generated. A mainstream swashbuckler film actually centered on pirates, who wouldn’t love that? Plus, the character of Jack Sparrow, played by Johnny Depp, has become iconic. What I loved about the first Pirates film was the adventurousness, the humour, the griminess, and lest we forget, the incredible soundtrack. It seemed a lighthearted standalone fantasy action film, so when Dead Man’s Chest came out, I was ecstatic to see the adventures of Jack Sparrow continue. What I was surprised by was to see that the plot from the previous film was effortlessly expanded upon in the sequel, and yet it was an entirely different film. The pieces began to slowly come together to create a larger narrative, all while delving more deeply into Sparrow’s enigmatic character. Perhaps the best thing about Dead Man’s Chest was the cliffhanger ending. At the time of its release, there was no confirmation or even talks of a third movie coming out, so the suspense of being left on such a major cliffhanger was incredibly thrilling. Even though the later installments of the Pirates franchise have been unable to recreate the same level of originality as the first three, I believe Dead Man’s Chest to be an excellent follow-up to the original, as it took the audience on twists and turns that were completely refreshing and exciting while still maintaining continuity.
5. The Dark Knight (2008)
It’s no secret that Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy is not only a fan favourite, but also critically acclaimed. Known for being an auteur, Nolan was able to make The Dark Knight even more memorable than its predecessor, Batman Begins. Whether it was the incredibly masterful, chilling presence of Heath Ledger’s Joker, Christian Bale’s increasing grittiness of the troubled Bruce Wayne, the introduction of Harvey Dent (later known as villain Two-Face), or the disquieting tone of the entire film that recalls Frank Miller’s graphic novel “The Dark Knight Returns” (1986), audiences were left with an artfully tense film that left us at the edge of our seats even after the movie had ended. While Batman Begins was a totally successful introduction of the newer, darker Bruce Wayne, it almost seems that The Dark Knight could be a standalone film in its brilliance and originality.
~ Z ~
