Greatest Film Sequels of All Time

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In reference to movie sequels, people always say that the original is always better, or that a sequel can never be as good as the original. I am inclined to disagree (I'm always up for a good sequel), and apparently so are many others.

I was listening to Paul & Young Ron on the radio the other day and they read off their list of the ten greatest film sequels of all time. Among them were The Godfather II, Aliens, The Empire Strikes Back, Terminator 2, Gremlins 2: The New Batch, The Road Warrior, and Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

Their list is a good start, but mine would look a little different. Here goes:

10. Superman II
9. The Dark Knight
8. Aliens
7. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
6. Back to the Future Part II
5. Ghostbusters 2
4. Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade
3. Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
2. Terminator 2: Judgment Day
1. Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back

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Predators

I just saw Predators and was pleasantly surprised by the quality of this entry in the Alien/Predator series of films. Then again, AVP: Requiem was not exactly hard to surpass. Both franchises had numerous failures, starting with Alien: Resurrection. Predators was reminiscent of a couple of movies: The Condemned (the stranded criminals/mercenaries angle, Predator (of course), Aliens (the second movie in the Alien franchise), and Alien vs. Predator.

I didn't expect Adrien Brody to be able to pull off the tough guy mercenary role as Arnold Schwarzenegger did in the original, but he managed, even managing to throw in the gruff Christian Bale Batman voice. Topher Grace was his usual annoying self with a touch of evil thrown in for good measure, taking his role as bad guy Eddie Brock/Venom from Spider-Man 3 a step further into villainy.

Predators was definitely a Robert Rodriguez kind of film, using his filming style, some of the same actors that he always uses (mainly Danny Trejo), and the same type of humor. He executive produced the film.

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