All of these are virtually unwatchable sequels to movies that captured our imaginations and made us want more. And all of these probably ended up in DVD collections of movie fans who otherwise loathe these films. Why? Blame the box set.The trend in DVD collections - which is a good idea - is to be as inclusive as possible when making a document of a television or movie series. That's why you see extras like bloopers, making-of documentaries, screen tests, film trailers, TV ads, and so forth. But it also means you include the bad installments with the good. Where a TV show is concerned, that's sort of what you bargain for: you wouldn't expect something labeled "the complete first season" to exclude episodes that failed to meet expectations. But in the case of movie series, it means you will end up with some films in your collection that you never thought would be there.
Take for example, the recent box set Superman: The Ultimate Collection (click here for review), or last year's Batman: The Motion Picture Collection box set. Both contain worthy films, but each contain films that are so poorly thought-out and executed that the series themselves went on long exiles from movie screens while they were creatively re-thought. Batman Forever and Batman & Robin, director Joel Schumacher's attempt to revive the campy spirit of the '60s Batman, were so awful that they're better off forgotten. (The 1966
-1969 Adam West series, on the other hand, retains its charm and its cool.) Similarly, Superman III (which teamed the Man of Steel up with comedian Richard Pryor) and Superman IV lacked the epic scope that the series needed to hold its head high. The results were films that belong on the Saturday-morning kiddie circuit.The real problem is sequelitis. Far too often, sequels become parodies, instead of
respecting the source material and the original film. The James Bond films descended into parody on several occassions. The latest Bond film, Casino Royale, is an outstanding installment in the series that resurrects the gripping spy drama of From Russia With Love and On Her Majesty's Secret Service, and rejects the silliness of A View To A Kill, Moonraker and Die Another Day.The danger in making these sequels comes because the filmmakers want you to have a good time seeing old friends. Who didn't laugh when the characters we'd followed for two great Star Wars films appeared in Return of the Jedi in funny circumstances?
Unfortunately, that film struggles to build any dramatic tension because the characters and situations are too often played for laughs. (Look, See-Threepio is mistaken for a god by the teddy-bear people! Oh, and he's embarrassed!) Contrast that with a sequel like Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 2, which builds on the tension from the first movie and becomes a better film in its own right.Or take the Star Trek films, which go back and forth between worthy and unworthy so much it's like a tennis match. In Generations, we see the beloved character of Data finally get the emotional awareness he'd sought for seven years on The Next Generation.
But the payoff isn't at all satisfying - instead, we see Data played for laughs throughout the film, as if the character and the actor had little of substance to offer (which we know isn't the case). Similar problems arose with Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, with Kirk, Spock and the others constantly finding themselves in embarassing situations.The decision to make the audience laugh, to try to make the film like a reunion party with your old friends is how sequels descend into parody. They don't feel like creative decisions; they feel like marketing choices, and those are the kinds of decisions that result in bad films. (They don't have to, though. For example, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home is a very funny movie, but it respects the characters and the material that came before it, and as a result, is a successful film. That's the power of good writing. What's the old saying? Dying is easy; comedy is hard.)
Another common problem among sequels is to simply use the title of the movie as a brand name slapped on a generic product. Tom Cruise's Mission: Impossible films are one such exercise, as they have almost nothing in common with the 1960s television show and are simply action films with a familiar title affixed. (Mission: Impossible 2, directed by John Woo, is so full of movie cliches and empty plot devices that it might just be the worst film ever made.)
If there is a silver lining to having bad sequels in your collection it is the documentaries and commentaries that sometimes accompany them. Since no one in their right mind would claim Batman & Robin is a good film, the commentary on the disc has the director admitting as much, taking responsibility and examing what went wrong. Not only does it make for interesting listening, but audiences can hope studios are listening too, and taking notes, so the next film doesn't make those mistakes and put the film franchise into exile for another extended period.Watch out, though. Because if Joel Schumacher ever gets near the set of The Hobbit, we'll know studios weren't paying attention.
