Here are five films that really made audiences wait to find out what happened next.
2010: THE YEAR WE MADE CONTACT (1984)
How Long Did We Wait: 16 years
Worth The Wait: Okay, hands up. Who didn't know there even was a sequel to 2001: A Space Odyssey? That's because Peter Hyams' 2010 is such an aggressively average film it has largely been forgotten about since its release.
THE GODFATHER PART III (1990)
How Long Did we Wait: 16 years
Worth The Wait: Not really. Francis Ford Coppola never intended to make another Godfather film. He was content that he'd told the complete story of the Corleone Family with the first two films. But after a decade of expensive flops like One from the Heart and The Cotton Club that left him in serious debt, he finally accept Paramount's offer to conclude the tragic tale of Michael Corleone. In other words, just when he thought he was out, they pulled him back in. Unfortunately, The Godfather Part III is a decidedly dull and unnecessary affair that, despite the best efforts of the cast (save for the woefully miscast Sofia Coppola), brings one of cinema's greatest crime sagas to a rather limp conclusion.
TRON: LEGACY (2010)
How Long Did We Wait: 28 years
Worth The Wait: That great Daft Punk soundtrack aside, Tron: Legacy is a depressingly okay film that is content to do little more than just rehash the bits people really loved from Tron only with updated (but hardly groundbreaking) FXs. Disney was obviously hoping it would be the start of a new franchise from them, but despite grossing $400m at the global box office, it wasn't the massive hit they were expecting and plans for a follow up were ultimately scrapped.
MAD MAX: FURY ROAD (2015)
How Long Did We Wait: 30 years
Worth The Wait: Fuck yeah! George Miller's fourth Mad Max film (which mercifully replaces Mel Gibson with Tom Hardy) is a masterpiece of high speed death and destruction with a very human heart at its core.
BLADE RUNNER 2049 (2017)
How Long Did We Wait: 35 years
Worth The Wait: Since he's spent the last decade or so reprising all his most iconic roles, I really could've flooded this list with Harrison Ford films. Denis Villeneuve's stunning Blade Runner 2049 is certainly the best of the bunch despite the fact Ford himself is hardly in it.
Mark Greig has been writing for Doux Reviews since 2011 More Mark Greig
In other words, just when he thought he was out, they pulled him back in.
ReplyDeleteHilarious! LOL.
While the wait wasn't quite so long as these, my favorite delayed sequel was Before Sunset. It was partly because Before Sunrise was not the sort of film that I ever expected a sequel to be made to; it was no big budget blockbuster. But when I heard that Richard Linklater, Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy were teaming up to make a sequel, I was very curious to know what happened to those two young people in the seven years between the two films.
ReplyDeleteI was lucky enought to have seen Before Sunrise just one year before Before Sunset. And I loved it even more. But I did have to wait 9 years for Before Midnight. And now waiting for Before Noon(?) in 2022 perhaps? Finger crossed :)
ReplyDeleteGreat list Mark.
I was a huge fan of the original Blade Runner but couldn't seem to make myself watch the sequel. Finally did a couple of weeks ago. It was really brilliant, but it was so slow that I kept waiting for it to be over. And I didn't like Ryan Gosling's character at all. Maybe not worth the wait.
ReplyDeleteWhat about Star Wars?
ReplyDeleteThe original Blade Runner was an iconic original film, that was as much high art as filmography. As much as Blade Runner 2049 had this rich tapestry to draw on, perhaps it would be too unfair to expect the sequel to outdo its original - the best it could hope for is mimicry.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous, that's an excellent point. It's like doing a sequel to Casablanca.
ReplyDeleteStill waiting on those Avatar sequels, though now I'm kind of dreading them.
ReplyDelete