10 Movie Sequels That Didn't Go The Way They Should Have
6. More American Graffiti
Every time George Lucas comes up with a winning idea, he goes and spoils it with an inferior prequel, sequel or special edition, and American Graffiti is no exception.
Nostalgia is the lifeblood of his 1973 coming-of-age classic, but its sequel replaced that with only darkness and melancholy, ending up a critical and commercial failure.
The first movie left its cast in a warm and fuzzy place, bathing in post-World War II optimism, while More American Graffiti brought tragedy and hardship to their lives, products of the Vietnam War era and social unrest which followed.
In fairness to Lucas, it wasn't all his own handiwork. He worked closely with writer-director Bill L. Norton in an executive producer capacity, editing the movie's script, offering creative guidance, and even manning the camera for some scenes.
But the end result couldn't have been further away from the original American Graffiti, not just in tone, but in format too. This was an anthology offering that failed miserably in its attempts to meaningfully build on each characters' story arc.