Flip the channel on your Vizio to the World Wide Leader in Sports. Neal Everett, or some random sportscaster is uttering the line, “if some is good, then more is better…” to some highlight clip of ‘random favorite athlete’ scoring ‘generic points’ in Team A’s dramatic win over Team B. We’ll call that exhibit X.
In this case, more is better. Exhibit X, is pulled out of a world of results directly correlated to crude numbers and production; more is better.
In other cases, more is just more confusing. It’s make-up futilely dabbed over acne. It’s extra garnish on crappy pasta. It’s spritzing cologne when you didn’t have time to shower. It’s buying the new Air Jordans, but you can’t hit a J to save your life.
Enter Hollywood executives, movie producers, script writers. We shall call these fine people: exhibit Y, the lovers of money. What exhibit Y doesn’t know is that theirs is a world in which crude numbers do not necessarily directly correlate to greater results. So exit quality, sanity, and the virtue of an original work of art that inspired said greedy executive, produce and writer to hastily begin filming of a sequel that everyone dreams is every bit the movie the original was and more.
What no one seems to notice until it’s too late is that the original movie was so good because it was devised by calculated minds that were being quite certain they got it right. It was the young and hungry rookie that was looking to make a name and made damned sure they got it right, because erring on an original meant never having arrived at all. And boy did they ever get it right! Box office records were broke. It was the surprise hit of the summer. It was a sleeper candidate to win awards. But audiences are greedy too, and no sooner do we finish watching the original work than we start fantasizing about the sequel. Trust, exhibit Y is right there with us. As soon as the first weekend grossed 40 million greenbacks, they were thinking of ways to make the sequel gross 50 million bills.
There is, of course, one glaring problem at this stage that some production teams face… the calculated minds devising ideas aren’t as hungry anymore; they aren’t quite as meticulous. See, having already “arrived”, there is less at stake if there are a few errors. So what sort of ideas do satiated minds come up with? Bigger plot twists and more dynamic dialogue? Nope. Bigger explosions and sexier celebrities? Close, but “nay” still, more celebrities, and more explosions!
And the end result? Be Cool, Batman and Robin, the 2nd and 3rd Matrix, the 2nd and 3rd Pirates of the Caribbean, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, X-Men 3, Indiana Jones: Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Elektra, Spider-Man 3, Ocean’s 12 and 13, Transporter 2 and 3, Superman Returns, the 2nd Mortal Kombat, and the painful of wasted tickets bought goes on and on…
With each announced sequel, the hopeful viewer instantly forgets past scorn. The Viewer believes the whole world is as exhibit X would dictate. And so we say, “the Matrix was so intellectual, the Wachowski brothers are such amazing film makers, and did you see the CGI in the previews? The sequel can only be better.” We are deceived by the amazetude of the original work of art so much, in fact, that we completely neglect that this is the oldest play in the book. If we were paying any sort of attention we’d realize that we do this all the time. Forget an anniversary? Didn’t do a reading that you’re writing a paper on? Miss a deadline? Neglect a memo? Skip out on chores? We try to razzle dazzle next, right? Our explanations always contain more than the normal amount of big words, with lots of fillers, flare, and puffery.
A lot of film franchises survive sequels, but rest assured than when your favorite franchise starts playing previews with lots and LOTS of A – B listers, it’s because the writers got lazy and decided that instead of a cleaver plot, substance, and even quality dialogue it would be easier to pay a little extra to be able to name drop whoever it is that’s taking their turn as flavor of the year: Thomas Haden Church, Ellen Paige, Ellen Barkin, Al Paccino, Topher Grace, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Kate Bosworth, Ryan Reynolds, some guy who choreographs fights or does neat CGI….
So pardon me if I’m less than excited for the impending implosion of Ironman 2, the revival of the surprising 2008 Robert Downey Jr blockbuster, featuring the suddenly, once again relevant Mickey Rourke, the sexy Scarlet Johanson, the ever amazing Don Cheadle, and who else am I missing???? Oh yeah, and Don Cheadle in his reprisal of Terrence Howard’s character Rhodey gets to wear his own Iron suit, for more explosions. And Mickey Rourke’s character will feature some neat explosive whips attached to his arms. I just imagine this will be a well-written movie… for the exhibit X world.
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I will go on record as saying that Iron Man 2 will not go the way of the aforementioned movies. While I do feel they’ve upped the ante by adding three A-listers (Don Cheadle, Scarlett Johansson & Mickey Rourke), that’s only the more reason for them to get this much hyped sequel right. These additions are no slouch in the acting game mind you. They’ll play their parts well.
Sure, there’s going to be more explosions. Why not? He’s going to be Iron Man for the full 1.5+ of the movie this time. I don’t have to be a mathematician to tell you that only increases the opportunity for explosive situations. While Rourke will do fine as the bad guy, I leave my opinions hinging on the performances of Cheadle and Johansson. There seems to be more potential there for things to go awry to me.
I feel this one is more thought out. Marvel has that grand scheme of getting all their characters to The Avengers movie so they’ll want to keep their core audience interested while reaching out to newer viewers. I would say they could’ve done without Sam Jackson (he’s an instance where ‘less is more’) being the leader of S.H.I.E.L.D. and maybe let a relative unknown enter the fray (thus earning a bigger role in The Avengers movie).
My point is, this movie and the rest of the set (Thor, The Hulk, Captain America, Ant Man [really? Ant Man?]) have a set goal that is being shot for. With the other sequels, there clearly wasn’t a goal aside from just making more movies… and more money. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised when all is said and done.
If not, I’ll be more than happy to eat my words in whatever they weigh in Zingers.
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