15 Films You Would Want A Sequel To.....

the movies these days appears to be populated in the majority by a lot of remakes and sequels to films that were never that good in the first place. in the case of the latter, well, makers of Hostel, this is a reference to you, amongst others.

having said that, sequels are not always a bad idea. many films have benefited from a sequel and found a good audience - everything from The Godfather to Shrek springs to mind. there have also been incidents where you would love another dose of a film and it has never happened. The Sword And The Sorcerer would be on the top of this list in general for my brother and i for a start! my brother would also probably love another Convoy movie, but if we exclude those two for no particular reason, here are 15 films that they could have (or maybe could still) make another of and i dare say they would find a pretty good target audience. see if you agree!


TRADING PLACES remains one of the funniest films of all time. its role reversal, "rags to riches and back" storyline was perhaps not all that new or original, but the dynamic spin on it here made for great, fun viewing. the film featured an outstanding script and cast; combined you were dearly interested in the characters and would not mind watching the continuance of their story after the credits start. indeed i did - i recall when i first saw this on tape, the first thing i did when it finished was rewind it and watch it again.
the chance to see them all in another story would have been excellent, although off the top of my head i have no idea what they would do. if you assume just repeating the formula of the original would just be too predictable, there's not a lot to suggest doing!

chances of a sequel : slim. it's been too long, and Eddie seems to be concentrating on a mix of serious roles and family films. good luck to him with it, but you can't see him revisiting his role of Valentine. Dan and Jamie Lee Curtis could be persuaded with a decent idea, but if they have not had one in the last 25 years, i can't see one turning up.


THE BREAKFAST CLUB
before The Shawshank Redemption came along, this was pretty much everyone's top feel-good film. quite why it should have been is open to debate, really. it's the simple tale of five different stereotypes from any High School or equivalent around the world, thrown together for a Saturday detention session. over the course of the day, mutual dislike and distrust melts into understanding and, to a degree, liking of each other as they pass the time doing anything but what they are supposed to.
of all the great films made by John Hughes, there's a strong case to say this is his masterpiece - well written, wonderfully lensed considering the constraints of the limited locations and five dazzling acting performances in the lead roles.

chances of a sequel none. the same five are hardly going to be in detention again 20-odd years later, and it is unlikely that they would find themselves in a unisex prison cell for a day. at best you could have the five meet up in some sort of Big Chill or Peter's Friends type film, but i doubt the same magic would be there.

HISTORY OF THE WORLD PART I
well, for a start the title suggests that there should be more, and there was a quite class mock trailer at the end of it! this series of skits put together by Mel Brooks, presumably inspired by the odd event in history here and there that amused him is perhaps not his best or funniest, but with our present politically correct world, and indeed Peter Boyle sadly dead, we can forget about sequels to either Blazing Saddles or Young Frankenstein.
there was so much of the world's history covered and mocked by this film that it tends to remind you that there are many, many other moments in history that could do with receiving similar treatment, both distant and recent. then again, we have had a wave of parodies of late, and something like Wag The Dog set a new benchmark for political parody anyway.

chances of a sequel : distinctly 50-50. if Mel Brooks was going to get back into cinema (properly, that is - flogging The Producers again doesn't quite count), you could see him going more for Oscar or other award glory rather than to revisit an old classic and sort of rehash it. someone may do a loving homage, mind, if they could do it on a low budget.

THE GOONIES
kind of cheating to include this, as it's common knowledge that a sequel was always planned but never quite got off the ground, as it were. which is a great shame indeed, as this could have been the start of a good series of family adventure films which were fun entertainment for all.
there was nothing too intellectual about the plot, and nothing particularly outstanding about the way that The Goonies was made, but it seemed to fill a void at the time, as i am hard pressed to suggest any film filled with this kind of innocent adventure made before it or, quite frankly, after it.

chances of a sequel : pretty much none. what would they do, have one of the kids from the original be all grown up and then have their kids go on an adventure? the simple yet effective nature of this film does make it ripe for a remake, or some sort of "homage", however.


AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON
OK, do not start with that "..In Paris" sequel, it was rubbish and had nothing to do with the magnificent original.
Hairy Yank Down Whitechappel Way as someone called it was ferociously funny and also filled you with fear. i recall laughing myself silly and not being able to sleep for a good few weeks after first seeing it. the film was an excellent 90 minutes of self-contained, self-serving brilliance in entertainment, and it could well be the case that it was so perfect that a sequel would not be worth trying. the Paris debacle suggests that.

chances of a sequel : a slight glimmer of light. Alex could well have been pregnant with David's child, and thus we could have the whole story all over again with Alex trying to warn of the "bad moon rising". whether John Landis or any of the suvivors of the cast that remains alive could be persuaded to be involved is debatable - Jenny and the late Brian Glover were involved in a BBC Radio production of it, so you never know. a remake, however, is sadly more likely, and you just can't see that working at all.


FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF
had this been made in the 90's or 2000's, we would almost certainly by now have had Another Day Off or something similar. it wasn't, and as John Hughes doesn't seem to do sequels at all, we only ever got this one insight into the rather cool world of Ferris.
a kid taking a day off school and having all sorts of mishaps and adventures worked rather well in the hedonistic 80's, but one would suppose there's far too much reality expected in this kind of film to have the thing made in the present day and age. a shame, as Ferris Bueller was a wonderful slice of escapism, of someone taking small risks for great personal reward, something that anyone who watches this just wishes they could do and get away with.
the one day you got to see of Ferris in action left you wanting more, and more is something that you did not get.

chances of a sequel : nothing doing with the original cast, not sure if Ferris as a "father figure" is either a practical or entertaining idea. thankfully there is no danger of a dire remake; in terms of teen comedy now, if it is not American Pie then it simply is not made.


CONAN
Barbarianwas a great film, and Destroyer was rather good fun. both of them suggested that a third Conan film would be well worth making and seeing, but it didn't happen back in the 80's. not sure why, probably a mix of Arnie becoming a huge star not long after the 2nd and not enough box office interest. a shame on the latter, i bet both have made piles of cash on tape and dvd! they are, after all, probably the best two fantasy, sword and sorcery films out there in the world!
the possibilities for a third Conan film are limited only to the mind, but you would have thought that he would have become King or at least Conquerer in it. by the time Arnie makes films again, if he ever does, perhaps he could pass off as ruler of the fantasy would created around the character?

chances of a sequel : not much. Arnie seems happy in politics, and you can't see the part being recast for a follow up. this has remake written all over it, however. The Rock could possibly pull it off, but live in fear of someone like Vin Deisel being considered good enough for the job.

JASON BOURNE
typical Americans - they finally, in the form of Jason Bourne, create a similar character to the very British James Bond that is worth seeing, only to apparently limit the character to three films!
the Bourne films have been superb, at least equaling the "classic" Bond films and in all honesty being a lot better than any of the Bond films made in the 90's or 2000's. all three were above-average, intelligent, plot driven action spectacles, each one leaving you with a buzz and a great sense of enthusiasm for the next chapter. except the last one, of course, which more or less closed the book.
it's difficult not to give spoilers away, but the end of the trilogy kind of closed the story - but then again left a door of sorts open for more of the same to be delivered.

chances of a sequel : hopefully none. as much as the majority love the Bourne films, they would have to come up with one hell of a plot for a fourth to maintain some credibility and interest. prequels are a non-starter too; unless somewhere someone believes that The Sum Of All Fears was a good blueprint for interesting characters.



I, ROBOT
a breathtaking, stunning sci-fi thriller with yet another excellent performance from Will Smith makes this film a prime candidate for repeated viewing, each screening leaving you with a wish to see more of the same, please.
the novel that inspired the film was part of a series of books that were interlinked to a degree, so there's a very good chance that someone somewhere already has a follow up to this brilliant film in mind. Will Smith's recent appearance in another sci-fi film, I Am Legend, may or may not indicate that he could return in it, but then again, would a sequel need either him or his character?

chances of a sequel : probably the highest chance on this whole list, really. the future world of these AI robots leaves all sorts of plots and possible scenarios for a plausible and good sequel. whether or not Will Smith returned is debatable, this film was a winner on a strong story and good film-making, a sequel built on the same foundations would do just as well and would be well worth seeing.


PLATOON
i know this is a really odd choice, but there's always something that bugged me about the way this film ended with half a story told. the tag line was the first casualty of war is innocence, which was graphically illustrated by Oliver Stone, but there was never much in the way of showing the recovery of the survivors of the platoon from the title, and not much in the way of redemption, except of course for Charlie. perhaps that was the whole point, but it still feels like there was so much more of the story to tell.
i suppose if there was ever a sequel, or the story was extended, you would once again cover the same ground that was covered with great skill in The Deer Hunter or Coming Home.

chances of a sequel : you could argue that the Oliver Stone Vietnam related films which followed, in particular the outstanding Born On The Forth Of July, were sort of "spiritual" sequels to this one. there will not be a direct sequel as such, although you would love to see the development over the years of Charlie Sheen's character, no?


MIDNIGHT RUN
wow, what a movie! De Niro's first crack at a proper, out and out comedy was a foul mouthed sensational hit, made so in large thanks to the chemistry between him and the wonderful Charles Grodin.
again, this was a kind of self-contained affair, but the relationship between Jack Walsh (De Niro) and The Duke (Grodin) in this one was so perfect that you could just keep on watching and watching them.
there were one or two really, really bad made-for-tv films that came about, but if you can stand more than five minutes of them you either never saw the original or just didn't like it.

chances of a sequel : sadly none. De Niro is unlikely to be tempted back to all the running, jumping, shooting and swearing, and Charles Grodin has made it clear he considers himself retied. a shame, as these were great characters, another Midnight Run would have been fantastic.



KISS KISS BANG BANG
Shane Black, Robert Downey jnr and Val Kilmer - three Hollywood characters with an infamous reputation, but boy did they show how talented they all are with this magnificent if somewhat bizarre film.
if you have not seen it, rather go and find the disc, as to describe the plot would take some time. in short, however, it's a weird and whacky murder mystery type thriller, driven along by rather engaging and always entertaining characters and performances.
the "bit at the end" credits suggest that there's a survival of the characters and a continuance of the story to be revealed, but if they could create the same kind of magical vibe in a second dose of Kiss Kiss is debatable.

chances of a sequel : considering the reputation of the three mentioned above, it is amazing that they got this film funded, quite frankly. another adventure from them would be great, but you can't see those in power in Hollywood being keen to throw more money at them in the hope that they all behaved again!


ET THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL
this remains the greatest film made by Steven Spielberg, which is saying something, mindful of his impressive cannon of work to date. you could argue that this is also close to being the perfect heartwarming adventure film - if you heart was not touched by the moving, beautiful story, then you really are a cold miserable so and so, or you are just lying to yourself and everyone around you.
the whole world fell in love with the little ET fella that came to visit Elliott, and i dare suggest that most of the world would love to have seen his return, or even perhaps Elliott go and visit the planet of his friend.

chances of a sequel : none. Spielberg does do sequels, but as he has never touched this one up to now(except to re-edit it), it's highly unlikely that he will all of a sudden get the inspiration for a worthy sequel. ABBA famously turn down billions of dollars to reform so as not to damage their initial reputation and legend, the same would pretty much apply here.



WALL STREET
much like Platoon, perhaps a strange choice for wishing to see more of, but think about it. again, you got a rise, fall and redemption story, but the film kind of just ended, and didn't resolve the fate of all the characters.
Wall Street remains the finest example yet of the hedonistic, excessive 80's (of which i am a fan!), but the characters created, in particular Bud Fox, would appeared to have had the potential for a life and a story to tell into the 90's and the 21st Century.
it would be fascinating to visit the morality of the central characters 20 years later and contrast their fate to the world they represented.

chances of a sequel : pretty low. things like Enron have made the reality of what was depicted in Wall Street all too clear in the media to warrant a cinematic sequel, i suppose. what would not be a bad idea at all is someone making a film of the present day that covers the same ground as Wall Street did with the same high quality production and cast.


THE FALCON AND THE SNOWMAN
one of the greatest non-fiction films of all time, although it does not seem to be as appreciated as it could.
believe it or not, there is a sequel in book form out there - The Flight Of The Falcon is the title of it, and it should give you a clue as to what happened next to the boys.
Timothy Hutton was outstanding in this film, and for my money this remains the best ever performance from Sean Penn that the world has been lucky enough to witness.
The Falcon And The Snowman shows the dark, easily corrupted flipside to the American dream, so one would assume that it was not that big a success at the cinemas in the States at the time, which is probably why there was never a follow up. this is a shame, as people who avoided it for its rather dark subject matter and because it is not exactly light entertainment missed out.

chances of a sequel : presumably none - if they were going to use the original cast for making Flight Of The Falcon into a movie, it is probably a little late and too many years have passed. the film Breach touched on similar, real ground, and i guess that one will have to do for fans of Falcon.


well, there you go. if you agree or disagree, or have other suggestions, by all means post them here or let me know by whatever means you care!!

and, in the words of another film that you probably wouldn't mind seeing a third installment of,

be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!