Sequels

This month sees the 25th anniversary of the release of Men In Black. It also sees the 20th anniversary of Men In Black 2. Which represented one of the biggest drop-offs in quality I’ve ever seen. “Oh yeah,…

The most critical scene of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan comes very early in the film. It is Admiral James Kirk’s birthday, and he is spending his time in his room surrounded by a collection…

In 1999, the film industry underwent a seismic shift that would change cinema forever when Lana and Lilly Wachowski released The Matrix. The film was an immediate cultural phenomenon and proved to be a massive…

We’ve mentioned the Mission: Impossible franchise before in the context of anniversaries. Back in the days when the franchise was hopping from director to director with big stylistic changes from entry to entry. While they…

If you want to see how far a movie franchise can change in tone, watch the original Rocky and then its third sequel, Rocky IV. You can see the evolution (or devolution, if you prefer)…

To state the obvious, we never needed a sequel to the 1978 original Halloween. The essence of Michael Myers’ frightening presence, the murderous void that guides him and makes him known as The Shape, had…

Along with the highly-anticipated release of Halloween Kills, comes the desire to revisit past films in the franchise. Coincidentally, Halloween II, one of the best chapters in the Michael Myers lore, turns 40 this month. Kind…

The 2016 horror/thriller Don’t Breathe was a surprise success that not only did well at the box office, but also proved to be a critical hit. The film followed a group of petty thieves who attempt…

Coming off Fear Street Part One: 1994 — a nostalgic 90s-style teen slasher and a fabulously fun entry into the genre in its own right — I was concerned that the follow-up sequels in the trilogy…

I feel like every movie made today has to be a part of a larger cinematic universe. Marvel, DC, Star Wars, etc. Of course, there are dozens of standalone films for every movie that’s part…

Cars 2 is a cute little family-friendly movie that you can watch with your kids, right? WRONG. Cars 2 is the most violent, intense, and bizarre movie I have ever seen that is still entirely made for…

A Quiet Place: Part II has played a big part in taking movie theaters off life support, nearly matching the opening weekend box office of the original with many theaters still operating at limited capacity.…

Ed and Lorraine Warren are back on our screens yet again, this time to tackle a supernatural court case based on the true story of the Trial of Arne Cheyenne Johnson. In The Conjuring: The Devil Made…

Warning: major spoilers for the first A Quiet Place ahead. The original A Quiet Place film was hugely successful, and first-time director John Krasinski did something that felt unique at the time. Not only was…

1988’s Coming to America is possibly the last ‘classic’ Eddie Murphy film. After that, most of his films either missed the mark critically or commercially, oftentimes both. Personally, I do think some of his later…

Occupation: Rainfall comes to us from the mind of writer/director Luke Sparke and is the sequel to Sparke’s previous film, Occupation. Picking up two years after aliens have landed on Earth, a group of Aussie…

Watching a Christmas film around Halloween felt a little odd; however, scary stuff mixed with Christmas is an excellent combination. It’s still a common phenomenon to share ghost stories at Christmas time, after all. Let’s…

The original The Babysitter was a surprisingly odd showdown between Cole (Judah Lewis) and his babysitter Bee (Samara Weaving)’s gang of satan worshipping teens. In The Babysitter: Killer Queen, two years later, Cole is a…

2018 was a big year for Netflix as they finally began to figure out their original content production formula. Specifically, producing as many romantic comedies as humanly possible. From To All the Boys I’ve Loved…

This article was heavily inspired by our own Kali Tuttle, and her masterpiece on the 20th anniversary of Thomas and the Magic Railroad. Kali live tweeted the movie as part of her process, and I thought that…

Although it was received with mixed reviews, 2016’s The Boy attracted a reasonable amount of attention thanks to its unusual conclusion. It managed to steer clear of the familiar ‘creepy doll’ horror tropes and was…

“What’s your favorite scary movie?” For many, it is Wes Craven’s Scream (1996). The slasher film ranks among the greatest fright fests of all time, according to Empire. Lightning struck twice for Craven’s own Scream 2…

We love the Harry Potter movies. But, if we’re being honest, Harry had plenty of chances to bite the dust as he encountered evil wizards, strange creatures, and perilous journeys throughout the series. Instead of…

We love the Harry Potter movies. But, if we’re being honest, Harry had plenty of chances to bite the dust as he encountered evil wizards, strange creatures, and perilous journeys throughout the series. Instead of…

We love the Harry Potter movies. But, if we’re being honest, Harry had plenty of chances to bite the dust as he encountered evil wizards, strange creatures, and perilous journeys throughout the series. Instead of…

I am back at it again with the “Harry Potter Should Have Died in…” series! Today, we will be looking at how Harry Potter should have died in The Prisoner of Azkaban.  Harry Potter and the…

Dear Hollywood, Please stop with the reimaginings, reboots, retellings, sequels, prequels, or any other “quel” involving beloved franchises. If you feel the need to go back to any well that was thought to be empty,…

Very little sequels do much to change the formula left behind by the original, but that’s precisely what Frozen II did. With more back story and new terrains, Frozen II is certainly different, but was…

Walt Disney detested the idea of sequels. This is why, despite their profitability, there were no official Disney animated sequels produced until after his death. But even after his death, sequels weren’t something that Disney…

Truth time: It Chapter Two failed me. It (2017) remains one of the biggest surprises and smash-hits of its respective year. I loved it so much that I saw it multiple times in theaters. The…