Top 10 Favorite Movie Sequels
Sometimes it is difficult to have a sequel that lives up the original movie. There are countless sequels that were disappointing and in no way lived up to the original movie. Not these movies, today I’m sharing my top 10 favorite movie sequels of all time.
10. Furious 7: This is my personal favorite of the Fast and Furious movie. And 5-8 I think are great and I’ve heard different people say that any one of them is their favorite of the franchise. But Furious 7, is the one that balances everything the best. You have the big dumb action that you want in a movie like this. The scene where they jump out of the planes with their cars is insane and awesome. The “cars don’t fly” scene is a lot of fun. And the third act has a lot of big action that you want. I also think that it has the best emotional weight and dramatic moments to it. This was Paul Walker’s final movie so they had to change the ending to this movie to give him a proper send off. And I think those final moments really work, and could have been a nice book end to the franchise as a whole. Jason Statham is a great villain, he’s fun and evil and anything you want from a villain in this franchise. Put the pieces together and you get one of my favorite sequels, movies of all time, and my favorite Fast and Furious movie.
9. Toy Story 3: Once again, any of the Toy Story sequels could arguably be considered for a list like this. And I debated on going with Toy Story 4, but Toy Story 3 I’ve had more time to think and love this movie. I think this is the darkest of the Toy Story movies, where the plot is based on and is a prison escape movie. Our toys are put in danger at a daycare and they are trying to escape. Lotso and his friends, and Lotso is a great villain and might be the best Pixar villain. Another reason why I think this is one of the darker Pixar movies is because the ending actually made some fans believe that the toys are going to die, by being burned alive. Obviously, we knew they weren’t going to do that, but that moment is one of the best, most edge-of -your -seat moments. The movie closes out the Andy story really well, and Andy gives his toys to Bonnie and goes off to college. It does a great job of bookending this storyline. Like I said, I debated putting Toy Story 4 here but I think Toy Story 3 does a few more things better.
8. Captain America: The Winter Soldier: One of the best constructed and made MCU movies, that is a fan favorite on the internet. So many people think it is the best MCU movie and they are not wrong, this is a fantastic movie that works on every level. The Russo Brothers are great with the action in all four of their MCU movies, and this might be the best action they have done. The elevator fight scene is the stand-out, and it’s just so much fun to see Captain America beat up a bunch of HYDRA agents in a small piece. The Captain America vs Winter Soldier action scene on the highway is another fantastic sequence. But I like this movie is the political spy thriller of the MCU, and it has all of the twists and turns that you want in this type of movie. And it changed the trajectory of the future of the MCU, and it has a nice emotional weight as you move into the third act of the movie. Smaller thing, but I think The Winter Soldier’s costume with the costume and mask (he is showing a great example these days), is one of the best MCU costumes. It looks so cool, and it helps make the scenes better. Put the pieces together when you have the great political thriller, action, emotion, and cool costumes that you want in a great spy thriller.
7. Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens: This might be a bit of an unpopular opinion, but I think this is the 2nd best Star Wars movie (number 1 is on this list). But I have always loved this movie, and thought it does so many things really well. That could be because this was the first Star Wars movie I ever saw on the big screen. I think J.J. Abrams created this fun batch of new and and exciting characters, they all act different from another and have a different vibe. This was the movie that made Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, and Adam Driver these A list actors, and have been getting a bunch of different and exciting roles. I think Harrison Ford gives his best performance as Han Solo in this movie, it’s nice to see an older version of Solo and a mentor figure to our new heroes. I like J.J. Abrams as a director and I think he makes these fun popcorn blockbusters that have great fun and exciting action. This is a movie that I think is just pretty great.
6. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2: I’m a big massive fan of the Wizarding World franchise and the 8th movie of the franchise, I think is the best one. This movie has these big ambitions and with so many things to pay off, it could have failed and been a total dud. But this movie didn’t, it delivered and paid off everything so well. The Battle of Hogwarts in the third act of the movie is one of the best final battles in movie history. Getting to see Harry and Voldemort square off in a duel one final time, and that pays off so well. The epilogue where we see Harry, Ron, and Hermione in 25 years is a great little way to close off this franchise. But the movie is filled with emotions and death, and some of the deaths in this movie really hit me in the heart, and are quite emotional. Even the sequence in Gringotts is a fun sequence, and it’s nice to see them going against the law so to speak. A movie that does so many things really well, and it delivers on all of the pay-off.
5. Captain America: Civil War: This is the second of the four MCU movies on this list, and for 2 years was my favorite MCU movie. Like the Deathly Hallows Part 2, this is such an ambitious movie that has these big goals that it is trying to do. And I think it delivers on all of it’s ambitions that it is going for. This movie easily could have felt like fan service, but it doesn’t the conflict comes from the different world views of Steve and Tony. Their different world views is what makes them fight one another, and you understand their world views based on what was set up in the previous MCU movies. The fun new characters with Black Panther and Spider-Man are these nice additions that add something to the movie. When you talk about the Civil War, you have to talk about the incredible airport fight scene. Which is like every comic book nerd's dream is seeing heroes battle each other. I think the third act is great also, it’s not the biggest fight but it is the most personal. Some people have criticized Zemo’s plan for having too many laps in the logic, it never really bothers me. So this is a fantastic movie, MCU movie, and a fantastic movie in general.
4. Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back: The greatest Star Wars movie there ever was, and I don’t think a Star Wars movie will ever top this movie. This movie basically invented what we know as the sequel, the stakes, emotions, and actions are bigger and better. Look at movie franchises, ever franchise as “The Empire Strikes Back” movie. But to the movie itself, it’s a near perfect movie that does everything greatly. The Imperial March is one of my favorite movie themes of all time, it was my ringtone on my phone for a little bit. The “I Am Your Father” plot twist is one of the greatest movie plot twists of all time that changed the trajectory of the franchise. The final battle with Luke and Darth Vider finally fighting for the first time is great and just one of the great final battles in movie history. This is a movie that some people consider to be the greatest movie of all time and/or the greatest sequel of all time. And if people say that...they are not wrong, this movie is fantastic.
3. Avengers: Infinity War: Another super ambitious superhero movie that really really works and delivers on every level. It’s just a lot of fun to see the different character interactions in this movie. The moments with Thor and the Guardians are some of the funniest MCU moments. Where obviously, Quill is jealous of Thor for being taller and stronger than he is. Tony and Doctor Strange’s moments are great and provide some really funny moments. When Steve meets Groot, it’s so funny and maybe Cap’s funniest line. It's not just the funny moments that are great, but all of the other epic moments are great. When Thor lands in Wakanda, you just get so excited and you get chills when he arrives. Cap’s entrance is great, and another moment that is so exciting and gives you chills. Everything in this movie is leading up to a big epic showdown. Where our heroes lose, and ends with a big shooking finale that is emotional and satisfying. But, Thanos is the magic of this movie, since all of our heroes are developed. This 2 ½ hour long movie can focus on Thanos and what his goal is. They give him a lot of time, and he’s a fantastic villain and movie character.
2. The Dark Knight: In a lot of ways, The Dark Knight is on the opposite of Infinity War. The stakes and scope aren’t nearly as big, and I don't think that is a bad thing. It’s good to have comic book movies where it’s much smaller scale. This movie is a masterpiece, it’s so hard to find anything negative about this movie every detail, storyline, plot point is perfect. Christopher Nolan did an excellent job of crafting this movie, the story has multiple layers and a lot going on. But the movie never feels overstuffed. Of course, Heath Ledger gives one of the great movie performances of all time. It’s a shame that he never got to see what legacy he left from portraying this character. I think what really works best for this movie is that this movie didn’t need to be about Batman. They could have taken all of the Batman and DC comics material, and you would still have a great movie. It’s a crime thriller with inspirations from other crime thrillers and not other comic book movies. This is a movie sequel that is better than the original, it’s one of the great movies and sequels of all time.
1. Avengers Endgame: This isn’t only a sequel to Infinity War or Civil War. But it’s basically a sequel to the previous 22 films in the MCU. It pays off multiple storyline for our Avengers in a satisfying and emotional way. I went into this movie so excited and pumped (like most people), and this movie could have failed. Kevin Feige and The Russo Brothers had so many things they needed to get right, and they did. It has fantastic and legendary movie moments that will be talked about for years and years to come. The last hour of this movie is just a non-stop streak of fan service after fan service after fan service. The portals sequence and when Cap picks up a particular weapon, are maybe my two favorite movie moments of all time. But the emotions are just as big as the scope of the story. The final moments with Steve and Tony are some of the most emotional moments of the MCU, and it’s a perfect way to close out each of their story lines. This truly is the most epic and ambitious movie of all time, and it pays off so well. Without question Avengers Endgame is my favorite sequel and my favorite movie of all time.
What are some of your favorite movie sequels of all time? Also, which sequels do you think are BETTER than the original movie? Thanks for reading!
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