Remakes and Sequels

Monsters Inc., Toy Story,  and The Lion King are just some of the films that I absolutely adored as a kid. However, I believe that both Monsters Inc. and Toy Story were both ruined by their sequels. Well I guess ruined is a strong word, but they definitely did not do the original justice. I typically believe that a lot of films, especially these iconic animated films that I grew up knowing and loving, should be left at one film.
The new Lion King film is definitely something I am skeptical of. The trailer seemed really good and the cast is definitely interesting and could potentially be fantastic. However, after seeing the path that many animation sequels and remakes go, I am unfortunately worried that it will fall very short.
There is also the new Toy Story film. To be honest, both the second and third were far from memorable for me. When I think of Toy Story, I think of the first film and nothing else. When I found out that there is going to be a Toy Story 4 I couldn't believe it.
I think they should just leave these films! Create something new that can be seen the same way that the original Toy Story, Monsters Inc., and Lion King are seen, as fantastic works of animation that bring joy to people everywhere.

Comments

  1. Madison ZaccagninoNovember 26, 2018 at 1:21 PM

    I wrote a blog post about something very similar to this. I think that Disney in particular is far more focused on bringing in money rather than creating fun, ORIGINAL content. I did however like both Toy Story 2 and 3, but I think that another sequel is extreme overkill. There are too many sequels. I just want to see a movie that's an original idea because while sequels are good, they always seem to kind of miss the mark for me. After all, everything that's in a sequel is something that we've all seen before.

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  2. pajama partyNovember 29, 2018 at 8:04 AM

    While I agree that an infinite number of sequels, prequels, spinoffs etc. can become overkill, I am going to play devils advocate on this one. With a fast growing marketplace full of dozens of platforms where content can be viewed, the major studios need to stay competitive. The box office has pointed to time and time again that people are only willing to get off of their couch and go to the theater is for a product they recognize. Without a popular brand anchoring the film it will not make a splash like films used to. That's why Hollywood has just become a franchise machine, putting original content onto TV and streaming platforms. So the need for sequels, remakes, prequels, spinoffs etc. makes sense considering the companies making the content are a business and need to do what is best for their bottom line. Am I happy with this system? Not necessarily but franchises continue to be the life blood of the industry and public attention.

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