It’s raining sequels in Hollywood! They say it is not good to gild a lily but in some cases, it is a great thing. Here is a look at my pick of the Top 10 Best Hollywood Sequels Ever Made.
1. The Dark Knight
Drum Roll! How can it not be The Dark Knight? Christopher Nolan the genius gave us a brilliant start with Batman Begins but this movie takes the legend of Batman to a whole new, unimaginable level. Heath Ledger as the Joker, Christian Bale as a tormented Batman and amazing direction and stunts makes this my pick for the best sequel of all times.
2. The Godfather Part II
This 1974 gangster movie needs absolutely no introduction. The winner of six Oscars including Best Picture, The Godfather raised the levels of movie making forever. The rise of the powerful Corleone made for riveting movie watching and we’ve been hooked ever since.
3. Rocky II
Firmly establishing Sylvester Stallone as an action here, Rocky II reintroduced us to our love affair with the beloved Rocky Balboa. His journey to success and the impact it had on his life and relationships made for compelling viewing as we walked along this path with him.
4. Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
George Lucas had already created a cult series in the Star Wars saga and he added to that status with this movie that became one of the most highly rated films of all time. It earned over $500 million worldwide and the world has not stopped talking about this space opera classic ever since.
5. Terminator 2: Judgment Day
You might remember this film more for T-100, the cool CGI villain, played by Robert Patrick than for Arnold Schwarzenegger’s heroics. But the movie also speaks of the sheer courage in the line of fire of Sarah Connor whose fear audiences everywhere connected to and whose bravery they applauded.
6. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
J.R.R. Tolkien’s opus, The Lord of the Rings was made into a massively successful movie and The Two Towers followed suit. Gollum’s character is compelling and you forget that he is not a real person as you are drawn into his deeply conflicted, complicated life. Reviews are mixed on the adaptation of book to screen but the fact remains that it extended the cult status of this beloved trilogy and at $900 million worldwide, surpassed its predecessor as well.
7. Toy Story 2
This beloved animation film captured the hearts and minds of movie goers everywhere. The CGI features were a class apart from anything else and the story further strengthened our bonds with the motley bunch of toys. Touching on themes of friendship and loss, this movie is a chapter, more than a sequel and went a far way in establishing Pixar’s formidable reputation.
8. The Bourne Supremacy
Continuing with the success of The Bourne Identity, this movie was critically acclaimed and proved its mettle in the box office as well. We were intrigued by the adventures of Robert Ludlum’s Jason Bourne and thrilled as he triumphs over one roadblock after another.
9. Aliens
No list of sequels can afford to ignore Aliens. This 1986 sci-fi film directed by James Cameron of Titanic and Avatar fame came a whopping 57 years post the first movie, Aliens of 1979. Apart from establishing Cameron’s reputation as a formidable talent, the movie is also held up as a standard to which other movies of this genre are compared. Over $130 million worldwide and seven Oscar nominations made this movie even more of a smash hit.
10. Superman II
This was a movie that humanized the man of steel as he explored his feelings for Lois Lane and came to terms with who he truly was. You will also appreciate the evil genius of General Zod played by a brilliant Terence Stamp who makes for a worthy opponent. Superman II is a beloved comic book that became an inspired movie with two directors, four villains and a very conflicted superhero, played by a superlative Christopher Reeves.
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