10 Movies That Are Basically One Big Apology
For better or worse, these films tried to right past "wrongs."
Even with the best script, director, and cast in the world, no movie gets everything right. Most movies are works of compromise, and more often than not a film doesn't take shape until some tough calls have been made in the editing room.
Sometimes even the most talented people can't deliver the goods, and other times it's clear that a movie is nothing more than a soulless, franchise-continuing concoction created solely to print money.
Whatever the reason, films are often made which leave fans upset and disappointed, and so the only logical response from the producers is to forge ahead with the next movie.
The result was these 10 films, all of which were effectively apologies for what came before, for one bad movie that tanked the entire franchise or perhaps even years and years of underwhelming releases.
In some cases these follow-ups course-corrected their franchises and perhaps even renewed mainstream audience interest, while in others fans still argue there wasn't that much worth apologising for anyway.
No matter the outcome, these films were all thinly-veiled attempts to make up for what came before...
10. Halloween (2018)
The horror genre is no stranger to contrite sequels, but perhaps none have been quite as effusively apologetic for a series' prior sins as 2018's Halloween.
Rather than attempt to course-correct the existing franchise continuity or flat-out reboot it, David Gordon Green's film decided to disregard every single sequel since John Carpenter's 1978 original.
And considering the innumerable indignities Michael Myers has suffered through across 40 years, it's easy to understand why.
Though the first two Halloween sequels weren't bad, thereafter the series became increasingly desperate to bolster its box office returns with increasingly outlandish storylines which misguidedly demystified Myers' very nature.
The final film in the original continuity, Halloween: Resurrection, saw franchise heroine Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) killed off much to fans' disdain, before the IP was given a grotty 2007 reboot at the hands of Rob Zombie.
After the Zombie reboot failed to gain much traction, Halloween laid dormant for almost an entire decade until Green and co-writer Danny McBride pitched a new movie which threw out everything from the nine previous movies.
The result was a film which, though flawed, hewed far closer to the suspenseful spirit of the '78 original while bringing Laurie back into the fold - but, crucially, ditched the familial link with Michael that was first introduced in the 1981 sequel.
Halloween 2018 ended up scoring solid reviews from critics and fans alike while grossing more than $250 million worldwide against a $15 million budget, effectively jolting the franchise back to life.
Two sequels, Halloween Kills and Halloween Ends, are due to release this Halloween and next Halloween respectively.