Total Recall: Respectable Horror Sequels
With Halloween II hitting theaters, we run down some of the better fright-flick follow-ups.
Ah, sequels. These days, they pop up everywhere -- theaters, television, video store shelves -- but once upon a time, they were viewed as an undignified exercise, suitable mainly for pulpy matinee flicks. Like horror movies, for instance -- which is why, as Rob Zombie's sequel to his Halloween reboot, the fittingly titled Halloween II, arrives in theaters this weekend, we decided now would be a great time to give the Total Recall treatment to some of the more noteworthy second installments in the history of good old-fashioned eye-coverin', goose-pimplin', edge-of-your-seat cinema. Pull the shades, dim the lights, and join us as we count down 10 of the most critically respected horror deuces a film fan could ask for!
10. Psycho 2
It takes a lot of chutzpah to add a chapter to one of the most iconic films in history -- either that or you've got to be, ahem, crazy -- but all things considered, 1983's Psycho 2 didn't turn out too badly; it boasted the return of the original's star, after all, and although critics were generally less than thrilled to be revisiting a story that seemed to be wrapped up pretty neatly in Alfred Hitchcock's 1960 original, a surprising number of them were willing to concede that the sequel exceeded expectations (Vincent Canby of the New York Times, for one, praised its "exuberantly macabre craftsmanship"). Taking advantage of the long gap between installments, Psycho 2 returns a supposedly rehabilitated Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) to the inn where he committed his crimes in the first film -- with predictably bloody results. Fittingly, given the Psycho-inspired wave of slashers raking in box office coin during the early '80s, Psycho II was one of 1983's biggest hits, soundly defeating The Sting 2 in the year's battle of the long-delayed sequels -- and earning Perkins the chance to make his directorial debut with 1986's slightly better-received Psycho III.
9. The Devil's Rejects
Now here's how you put together a sequel that surpasses its predecessor: You make the original (in this case, 2003's House of 1000 Corpses) an object of such seething critical scorn that there's literally nowhere to go but up. After Corpses earned back its budget despite taking a savage beating from critics (it currently stands at 16 percent on the Tomatometer), a sequel seemed pretty much unavoidable -- but what nobody outside director Rob Zombie's immediate family suspected was that the second installment, 2005's The Devil's Rejects, would be such a substantial improvement. And okay, so maybe 55 percent on the Tomatometer isn't really anything to write home about, but bear in mind that we're talking about the sequel to a gore-splattered movie about a murderous family of psychopaths whose gleeful tagline was "this summer, go to Hell"; in that context, anything above, say, 25 percent would have been a shattering success. As Bob Grimm of the Sacramento News & Review wrote, "It's an exceptionally well-done sophomore effort from a man who made one of the worst movies I've ever seen. That's a pretty decent accomplishment."
8. Blade 2
Under normal circumstances, you wouldn't think a studio would want to greenlight a sequel to a movie about a shades-wearing vampire buster unless it was looking for a hefty tax writeoff. However, 1998's Blade racked up over $100 million in worldwide grosses, and with years of Marvel comics to draw on for stories (not to mention Guillermo del Toro behind the cameras), it's unsurprising that the 2002 sequel was not only made, but that it raised the critical and commercial bar set by its predecessor. Actually, given that Blade II's storyline revolves around a vampire war fought with UV grenades, maybe it is a little surprising, but in the end, what mattered to critics -- and the audiences who helped it rack up $155 million -- was that the movie was fun. Michael Szymanski of Zap2It.com reflected the views of many of his peers when he wrote, "The story is thin, the plot is predictable, but Wesley Snipes carries this comic book character off with enough clever humor and self-indulgent pathos to carry it off."
7. Gremlins 2: The New Batch
Six years after the original Gremlins delighted children of all ages (and helped inspire the creation of the PG-13 rating in the process), the Joe Dante-directed scamps returned to theaters -- original stars Zach Galligan and Phoebe Cates in tow -- for Gremlins 2: The New Batch, a surprisingly subversive sequel that took fuzzy little Gizmo and his leathery offspring, set them loose in a Manhattan high-rise, and tossed in a dizzying barrage of pop-culture satire targeting everything from Rambo to Donald Trump. Given complete creative control by the studio, Dante decided to turn Gremlins 2 into a satire of sequels themselves, in the process earning the appreciation of critics like About.com's Fred Topel, who called it a "brilliant postmodern horror-comedy." Audiences, unfortunately, were either ill prepared for the sequel's tonal shift or had simply moved on after the long delay between films; The New Batch earned a mere $41 million in the States, failing to recoup its budget and preventing the existence of a third Gremlins. Still, it's difficult to find too much fault with the movie that inspired Gregory Weinkauf of the New Times to write, "Simply: This is Christopher Lee's 200th film. He plays a character called Dr. Catheter. I love movies."
6. 28 Weeks Later
The vast majority of horror movies come with endings that either suggest or beg for a sequel -- but Danny Boyle's 28 Days Later told a story that actually deserved one. Though Boyle's work on Sunshine prevented him from helming 28 Weeks Later, he remained behind the scenes for this second installment, which follows the struggle to keep the virulent Rage virus from spreading beyond Great Britain onto mainland Europe. Complicating matters is the discovery of people who carry, but exhibit few symptoms of, the virus -- and who can then unknowingly pass it on to others. Though not all critics deemed Weeks a success (Big Picture Big Sound's Joe Lozito wrote it off as "more of the same, with decidedly mixed results"), the majority applauded its visceral thrills and timely subtext, such as Lou Lumenick of the New York Post, who called it "an exciting, well-directed thriller that, while providing more than enough action and gore to satisfy genre fans, also offers the political commentary that has characterized zombie movies."
inactive user on 08-26-2009 08:46 AM
You know a list is odd when "Psycho II" makes it. Still, good to know I'm not the only one who enjoys "Gremlins 2". Sure it's not good, but I don't care, Gizmo is cute.