10 Movies That Could Have Been Truly Awesome (With A Single Change)

5. Star Trek Into Darkness

In recent years, the reboot formula has become clear. The new origin story, while gratuitous, serves as a fun reintroduction to characters we've grown to adore. The real fun is supposed to begin in the second film. With a built-in audience ready to salivate, the studios at least have our attention €“ and cash €“ for two films. Comparisons to Godfather II, The Empire Strikes Back, and especially Wrath of Khan are gleefully tossed about like so much ticker tape. When they finally get around to rebooting Dollman, some dope on the internet, eagerly clutching his Full Moon toys (still in the box, of course), will inevitably write, "This was a solid first film, but the next one's going to be the Wrath of Khan of Dollman movies."

Somehow, J. J. Abrams made the Wrath of Khan of Star Trek movies, a feat only Stephen Hawking could explain. If alternate universes are indeed real, then Abrams has not only rebooted the Star Trek franchise, but reality itself. Or, he just threw a bunch of Star Trek stuff together and called it Star Trek. While good sequels surpass their predecessors in popularity and acclaim, J. J. Abrams's Star Trek sequel took viewers back to the old days, when sequels were rarely better than "the original."

It's a shame, too, considering how much good will the first film had fostered. Star Trek Into Darkness should have been a blast. It has Peter Weller, after all. It also has Klingons, Khan, a Tribble, some dude who might be Data, and other things that were done better the first time around. But still, Peter Weller. Hell yeah.

Star Trek Into Darkness is a busy movie, but too much plot will cripple a good story (ask Zack Snyder). The best thing the next Trek filmmakers can do is take a closer look at the series' past, and not just for the sake of polishing the same old gems. Take a cue from Gene Roddenberry, D. C, Fontana, and Harve Bennett, and try to tell one story instead of twenty.