The undeniable success of ‘Avatar: The Sense of Water’ at the box office has been accompanied by an unfair Oscar nomination for best film. It’s not that I think it’s bad, but it doesn’t even stand out as a continuation of what we already saw in the first installment. That has led me to dedicate this weekly round of recommendations to 4 great science fiction sequels that in my opinion far exceed ‘Avatar 2’ and that you can see right now in streaming.
Also, I’ve opted for an include only second deliveries so that the parallelism with ‘The sense of water’ is clearer, and since I already positively highlighted both ‘Aliens, the return’ and ‘Terminator 2: The final judgment’ before the premiere of ‘Avatar 2’, I have preferred to leave them out to bring more variety to the matter, but of course both seem far superior to me.
In case you don’t find anything that motivates you too much in the next few paragraphs, I remind you that we also have a list of science fiction movies that were a disaster at the box office and are worth recovering, some of the best movies of the genre in recent years available on streaming and another of great space science fiction movies on platforms. Without more to add, let’s go with today’s chosen ones:
‘Dawn of the Planet of the Apes’ (‘Dawn of the Planet of the Apes’, 2014)
Address: Matt Reeves. Distribution: Andy Serkis, Jason Clarke, Gary Oldman, Keri Russell, Toby Kebbell, Kodi Smit-McPhee
The relaunch of the saga by Rupert Wyatt with ‘Rise of the Planet of the Apes’ was a complete surprise and I was the first to have doubts about its continuation when it was learned that it was going to be replaced by Matt Reeves. Then the reality was different, because a sensational blockbuster was pulled out of its sleeve that managed to combine its most spectacular side with a more than remarkable emotional component. A small miracle that he would later extend with the amazing ‘War for the Planet of the Apes’.
Review of ‘Dawn of the Planet of the Apes’
‘The empire strikes back’ (‘The Empire Strikes Back’, 1980)
Address: Irvin Kershner. Distribution: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, David Prowse, Kenny Baker, Peter Mayhew, Frank Oz
George Lucas created something unforgettable with Star Wars, but the truth is that the best movie in the entire franchise is not directed by him. Darker and more ambitious than its predecessor, it also served to take this galaxy far, far away a step further, establishing Darth Vader as one of the great villains in movie history and leaving us with a simply unbeatable final twist.
‘The Hunger Games: Catching Fire’ (‘The Hunger Games: Catching Fire’, 2013)
Direction:Francis Lawrence. Distribution: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Banks, Lenny Kravitz, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Jeffrey Wright, Stanley Tucci, Donald Sutherland
The franchise based on the novels by Suzanne Collins hit its peak with a movie that thoroughly squeezes the original novel and greatly improves some questionable aspects of it. It is true that on paper it uses the same scheme as its predecessor -so, obviously, there are many changes-, but it does so with greater consistency, having the clearest ideas about what it wants to achieve and also knowing how to execute it in the best way. possible way – or close to it – for the material it handles.
Review of ‘The Hunger Games: Catching Fire’
‘Back to the Future 2’ (‘Back to the Future Part II’, 1989)
Address: Robert Zemeckis. Distribution: Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Thomas F. Wilson, Elisabeth Shue, James Tolkan
A true classic on any list of unforgettable sequels, to the point that some even prefer it to the mythical first installment. Devilishly entertaining and with the plot of the sports calendar as a great hook, it thoroughly squeezes the theme of the paradoxical seasons and continues to be a delight more than 30 years after its premiere. An ingenious and sparkling hobby that may not have the same charm as its predecessor, but you have to see how much fun we have with it every time we see it.
Review of ‘Back to the Future 2’
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