what is the greatest sequel of all time?

[Doctor Jones]

The Empire Strikes Back

It set the standard of sequels. Yet, everything that you want to happen doesn't. Everything goes to hell. No one gets what they want except Boba Fett, a character who only appears for three minutes. It ends on an emotional climax. There's more to be said, but there's just enough to make it feel conclusive, at least to me anyway. It's why I don't feel the need to watch ROTJ as much. I'm comortable with only watching ANH and this because it ends in such a powerful way.

 

[bullets]

I couldn't narrow it down to one choice but the first one that came to mind was
Terminator 2.

It would have to be between T2 , TDK , Empire Strikes Back , and Godfather part 2.

 

[david icke]

Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom is not even a good movie, let alone great.

ToD is a blast, the 3 lead characters are much more fun to watch than the ones in T2 or Aliens.
You can craft a movie very well, but if the story or characters are not that great, forget it.
and the thing about T2 is, taken on it's own it's a great action movie, but as a sequel, no, at a certain point it's the same movie as T1 essentially.
That point being when Sarah is released from the loony bin. I realised this when I sat myself down to watch a Termintor marathon of all 3 movies, I ended up putting T2 off at that point in the film because I felt I was watching the same movie as T1.
I never get that feeling watching Empire after Star Wars, or ToD(which is the only Indy film distinctly different from Raiders), SM2, X2, after their respective first movies.

 

[superhero]

BACK TO THE futuer part 2 i watch it all thetime.

 

[Blitzkrieg Bop]

ToD is a blast, the 3 lead characters are much more fun to watch than the ones in T2 or Aliens.

Whaaaaat? Short Round and Willie Scott are two of the worst film characters ever created.

Terminator 2's biggest problem is that it is just full of nonsense. If John Connor prevents Judgment Day, then the machines never take over, which means John Connor never leads the human resistance, which means the machines never send back a 101 to kill Sarah, which means John never sends Kyle Reese to 1984, which means Kyle never impregnates Sarah. John is unknowingly trying to prevent his own existence in Terminator 2. And that's just one of the huge flaws in Cameron's movie.

 

[nite-owl]

The Empire Strikes Back

It set the standard of sequels. Yet, everything that you want to happen doesn't. Everything goes to hell. No one gets what they want except Boba Fett, a character who only appears for three minutes. It ends on an emotional climax. There's more to be said, but there's just enough to make it feel conclusive, at least to me anyway. It's why I don't feel the need to watch ROTJ as much. I'm comortable with only watching ANH and this because it ends in such a powerful way.

 

[Prison Mike]

Spy Kids 2

 

[Bruce Banner]

godfather 2
empire strikes back
^
These two should almost be mandatory


I am quite glad French Connection II made it to this list, its always worth a watch. Putting Popeye Doyle outside of his own element and into Chaniers world.

As someone else mentioned Evil Dead II felt like a expanded and bigger budget remake.

Halloween 2 (original) works to bring the horrific night to a close.

 

[S.A.A.D.]

Batman Returns
Ironman 2
Terminator 2:Judgement Day
Hellboy:The Golden Army
Phantasm II
Hellraiser II:Hellbound
Aliens
Evil Dead 2ead by Dawn
Back to the Future Part II
Rambo II

 

[Nightmare]

Terminator 2: Judgement Day

 

[Brother Jack]

The Empire Strikes Back. Probably my favorite film.

Godfather II, Aliens, The Dark Knight, and T2 are all up there as well.

 

[Vengeance]

Whaaaaat? Short Round and Willie Scott are two of the worst film characters ever created.

Terminator 2's biggest problem is that it is just full of nonsense. If John Connor prevents Judgment Day, then the machines never take over, which means John Connor never leads the human resistance, which means the machines never send back a 101 to kill Sarah, which means John never sends Kyle Reese to 1984, which means Kyle never impregnates Sarah. John is unknowingly trying to prevent his own existence in Terminator 2. And that's just one of the huge flaws in Cameron's movie.

agreed on Temple of Doom, its a step up from Crystal Skull but not by much, whinny love interest, half boring story, a great movie for when you might flick back & forth on the TV.

Mission Impossible II is probably the worst on this list, that was embarrassingly bad.

 

[Scarlet Spider]

Here's Empire's 50 greatest sequels list from last year:

http://www.empireonline.com/50greatestsequels/

 

[Solidus]

Whaaaaat? Short Round and Willie Scott are two of the worst film characters ever created.

Terminator 2's biggest problem is that it is just full of nonsense. If John Connor prevents Judgment Day, then the machines never take over, which means John Connor never leads the human resistance, which means the machines never send back a 101 to kill Sarah, which means John never sends Kyle Reese to 1984, which means Kyle never impregnates Sarah. John is unknowingly trying to prevent his own existence in Terminator 2. And that's just one of the huge flaws in Cameron's movie.

That's not a flaw, its called self sacrifice. He may be unknowingly doing so, but what is wrong with that? That has always been the logic, with out Skynet John does not exist. And this is why the sequels fail to grasp that logic, the time events in T1 and T2 are cyclical, and many including myself believe that no matter what you do, you can't change your fate, T2 left it ambiguous yes but that why he took out the Coda ending because he caught that.

It's not a flaw, it's just something that a hero may unknowingly do, which many do, self sacrifice. I'm sure if they would have explained this to John, he would agree, the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. You are right, John would die, but this is not some flaw in logic or story, that's just the way that I've always known it since T2 came out. It's how the story goes. And it asks the question can you change your fate? Or is it locked in stone. Skynet and John have a symbiotic relationship. Some have compared it to the old tales of good and evil, you can't have one without the other.

Any who Aliens, T2, TDK, and ESB are my picks.

 

[DACrowe]

1. The Godfather, Part II

Not even up for discussion

2. The Empire Strikes Back
3. The Dark Knight
4. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
5. Bride of Frankenstein (for shame for this not yet being mentioned! )
6. The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
7. Aliens
8. Terminator 2: Judgement Day
9. Spider-Man 2
10. Batman Returns
11. The Four Musketeers
12. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom

I didn't bother counting LOTR films as they are like one giant movie, or serials like Bond or The Thin Man in this.

 

[El Payaso]

I can say a lot of things about those movies, but Godfather 2 wins by far.

 

[david icke]

5. Bride of Frankenstein (for shame for this not yet being mentioned! )

Kurosawa mentioned it early on in the thread, and I think someone else agreed with him.


Blitzkreig Bop: I think the dynamic between Indy, Willy and shortround works very well. Indy has a great father/son relationship with SR, better than he does with Mutt in KS. Look at the scene with them playing cards, and again when Indy is taken over by the Kali power, and how upset SR is when Indy slaps him, and then how Indy reacts when he snaps back into his real self, very touching moments, really moving.
and I love the arguments between Indy and Willy, one of those great relationship tension things.
People complain about her character complaining/screaming too much, but that trait plays very well into some great scenes, truly *great* scenes, like in the spikey dungeon when she is too squeamish to put her hand in the switch, and when she refuses the meal in the village, that was funny.

 

[Golgo-13]

The Empire Strikes Back, hands down. This movie is the pinacle sequel and probably the template for all trilogies.

TDK - great sequel. Although i have a feeling B3 is going to 'F' it up.

Blade 2, Rambo II also.

 

[spider-neil]

I think one essential ingredient for 'greatest sequel of all time' is does the sequel exceed/better the original movie?

 

[VenomVsSpidey]

1. SM2
2. TDK
3. Iron Man 2
4. Empire
5. Revenge Of The Sith
6. Ghostbusters 2
7. Harry Potter 4
8. X2
9. SM3
10. Harry Potter 3
11. Batman Returns

*soon #1 will be Potter #8*

 

[The Joker]

The Dark Knight for me.

Here's Empire's 50 greatest sequels list from last year:

http://www.empireonline.com/50greatestsequels/

Solid list

 

[MessiahDecoy123]

T2

That movie blew minds when it first came out. Possibly the best action/sci-fi movies ever made.

 

[redfirebird2008]

Godfather II and it's not close.

 

[Sentinel X]

1. The Dark Knight*
2. Terminator 2*
3. The Two Towers
4. Aliens
5. Empire Strikes Back*

* = better than the first!

 

[hopefuldreamer]

TDK.

Without a doubt.

I mean, it's so good, it actually makes Batman Begins feel more like a prequel to the ACTUAL story.