Top 10 sequels list

Honorable mention:
Army of Darkness 2, Bourne Supremacy, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: Secret of the Ooze, and Indian Jones and the Temple of Doom

10) Godfather Part 2
I am not a Godfather fan, there, I said it. However, this movie, again showed the acting and writing were far superior to the original, and arguably (by me, especially) one of the greatest movies of all time, so I guess it deserves to be on the list.
9) Star Trek 2, the Wrath of Kahn
This movie was the Star Trek movie every Trekkie deserved. The first movie was weird, and really was just an extended episode of the classic series. The second movie was truly epic, and a story worthy of the big screen. This movie was good as a stand alone, but also rewarded trekkie fans with some references to their beloved series with the inclusion of a great villain in Kahn, and some emotion in Kirk.
8) Aliens
This movie was completely different from the eerie, horror-esque first movie. This movie was an in-your-face action suspense movie that was great, and while different, I think, better than the first. It showed Ripley as truly a strong, tough leader and somebody you shouldn’t mess with. The movie also had Bill Paxton, ‘nough said!
7) Back to the Future 2
This was a classic. This movie had it all, an interesting idea of what the future holds, a dark past, Marty’s mom with breast implants, this movie was great. This movie patented the idea of making a darker movie to wow the public, and it succeeded.
6) Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back
What is there to say about this movie that hasn’t been said a million times? This is arguably the best out of the series, and again, a darker movie that doesn’t end how other movies ended. This movie really established some great characters in Han Solo and Princess Leia, and finally, in my opinion showed a hero in Luke Skywalker, and you can’t tell me the surprise that Darth Vader gave to Luke wasn’t epic, I mean people quote that line daily and when I was young and saw that for the first time, it was shocking, to say the least.
5) Spiderman 2
This movie was one of the best comic book movies of all time, and one of the greatest sequels of all time. This movie found very minor flaws in the first and fixed all of them for the second. It found a really interesting bad guy in Alfred Molina’s Dr. Octopus, it has a good damsel in distress with Kirsten Dunst’s MaryJane, and it has a lot of heart in Aunt May, and it focused on the main conflict in Peter Parkers life; and that’s how to juggle Spiderman with the needs of a struggling young man.
4) Clerks 2
This movie is one of my favorites. The first movie was incredible; it was a small budget goldmine, filmed in black and white and showed that you don’t need a lot of money and big-time actors to make a funny, witty comedy. The second upped the ante 10-fold. Clerks 2 has the same clever writing of the first, but a true heart to the movie that anyone can identify with, while at the same time, injecting a bit of Jay and Silent Bob. This is a great stand alone movie, and an even better sequel.
3) The Dark Knight
I don’t like including movies that have just come out, because it’s fresh in your mind, and you are still freaking out over the experience of the movie. This movie, however, truly deserves to be on the list. The performances of everyone involved, most notably, the late, great Heath Ledger as the Joker was incredible. The special effects of Harvey Two-Face, and the explosions and the pacing of the film were all expertly directed by Christopher Nolan. Batman Begins was exceptional, and a great re-imagination of the franchise, this certainly stepped it up.
2) Terminator 2
The first Terminator movie was good, but it had a B-movie feel to it (it had Casper Van Dien). This movie had blockbuster written all over it. At the time, it blew away any budget for any film in history. The special effects were worth it, and they still hold up as outstanding, even against today’s standards. The acting was better-ish, and the bad guy was far more menacing than the previous governator.
1) Shrek 2
The gold medal winner! I love this movie. The first was absolutely outstanding, but this one, I thought, actually raised the bar a bit further. The chemistry between Shrek and Donkey was very good, and with the inclusion of Puss in Boots, this movie had a trilogy of characters that will always be remembered. Another improvement was the soundtrack of this movie, I mean, don’t tell me you didn’t get riled up and want to sing “I need a hero” towards the end of this movie….no, I said don’t tell me that!