Movie franchises always try to go bigger with each sequel. This can sometimes get out of hand, and a once grounded series turns into something ridiculous. Keep in mind: this isn’t always a bad thing. The ludicrous can often be wildly entertaining. The following list will present ten franchises that started out with sound logic before really going off the deep end. This doesn’t mean they turned sour or bad, just that whatever sense of realism and weight their respective universe once had was thrown out the window. A select few eventually went back to basics, however, usually for the betterment of its continuity.
Alien
Ridley Scott’s second directorial effort, Alien, went down as not only one of the best horror movies ever made, but also one of the best works of science-fiction in the medium. The second film upped the ante with more Xenomorphs and guns, and is held in equal regard. Alien 3 languished in development limbo before stumbling into theaters.
The fourth film is where the whole thing got weird. Ripley lost her life by the end of Alien 3, so her character in the Alien: Resurrection is a clone with some Xenomorph DNA. It is also set two hundred years in the future. When that’s how it starts, one knows they’re in for something strange.
Fast And Furious
The Fast and the Furious is a grounded crime drama about truck hijackers and street racers. The second film adds a little more action to the mix, while the third film does away with any sort of death defying stunts and focuses purely on racing.
The fourth installment, titled Fast and Furious turns the series into a full blown action movie. From there, each sequel one ups its predecessor with more unbelievable set pieces and higher stakes. All attempts at realism have been pushed aside, but no one’s complaining.
James Bond
The first two Bond films, Dr. No and From Russia With Love, are more grounded tales. They still have gadgets, a villain’s lair, and involve Spectre, the shadowy terrorist organization led by Ernst Stavro Blofeld, but the secret agent isn’t kicking death in the shins at every opportunity.
Goldfinger was when the series’ formula solidified itself, but it wasn’t until Diamondsare Forever in 1970 when the series started to feel like a self-parody. Afterwards, Roger Moore’s contributions to the franchise indulged in the silliness. Daniel Craig’s run brought back the character’s grit, though some would say these movies are too dark.
Jaws
The original Jaws was a landmark cinematic achievement. Steven Spielberg’s film perfectly mixed horror and adventure. Its techniques were so effective towards making people scared of sharks, it forever changed the public’s perception of the creature.
Fast forward three sequels and audiences are treated to Jaws: The Revenge, which sees a shark taking vengeance out on Brody’s family. Roy Scheider tactfully sat this adventure out, but Michael Caine has a part in it he admittedly did just for the paycheck.
Friday The 13th
What started out as a scorned mother’s revenge turned into a parody of the slasher film genre. The ending of series’ debut implied that her son was somehow still alive, and he became the main villain of the sequels. This unlikely turn of events isn’t what made the series jump the shark, however. It was the films like Jason X, where he goes into space, and Jason Takes Manhattan. Friday the 13th slowly became a parody of the genre and while they are still fun, they won’t instill the same sense of fear like the classics did.
Resident Evil
The first Resident Evil film starts off with one set of wheels already off the track. Some people like it, others hate it, but it has to be commended for being one the finest video game movies out there. As the series went on, however, the story got more convoluted and strayed further from any semblance of the games on which they were based.
Characters known to fans showed up, but they hardly resembled their video game counterparts. The series has since ended, and the franchise’s cinematic future is currently unknown.
The Matrix
The Matrix closed out the millennium with a bang. Its unique premise was only matched by its innovative use of computer effects to pull off impressive action sequences. With such a promising start, the series could only get better, right?
Unfortunately, The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions took the story into weird places, replacing the visual story telling with characters rambling philosophy lectures for minutes at a time. The intention was pure, but the execution left a lot to be desired. The action also leaned too heavily on CGI at a time when the technology wasn’t believable enough
Die Hard
John McClane is an every man thrown into extraordinary situation. The antithesis of other ’80s action heroes, he bleeds, feels pain, and usually complains about his predicament to no end. 2006’s Live Free or Die Hard, the fourth installment, is still a fun thrill ride, but took the action to whole new levels.
Instead of being a believable human being, he manages such incredible feats like taking down a fighter jet without any heavy weaponry. Unfortunately, the most recent entry, A Good Day to Die Hard, was not as well received. Will John ever come back in a future Die Hard? Only time will tell.
Predator
John McTiernan’s other landmark ’80s film is Predator. It’s part science fiction, part horror, and part action, but all magnificently crafted film making. The titular creature is a mysterious hunter methodically taking down an elite team of soldiers until only one is standing.
Predator 2 took the action out of the jungle and into a futuristic setting. Robert Rodriguez’s Predators went back to the wild, but on a different planet. Shane Black’s The Predator was a full blown action comedy, a move that turned off many fans. It’s definitely ridiculous and unexpected, but the movie is still entertaining.
Rambo
First Blood is a hard hitting drama about a Vietnam veteran facing adversity from a small town’s police force. After they rough him up, he snaps and returns the favor ten fold, hiding out in the forest while they try to hunt him down. Its most memorable moment is the dramatic finale where his former commanding officer, Troutman, tries to talk him down from his rampage. The next two films were more standard action fare, with the third one almost being a self-parody. Thankfully, 2008’s Rambo brought back the first film’s more serious tone, while still retaining the excessive carnage and high body count. Fingers crossed that Rambo: Last Blood continues this trend.
