10 Surprisingly Good Movie Sequels NOBODY Saw Coming

Even though its title clearly demonstrated a sense of humour about itself, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again was about as transparent as cash-grab sequels go. 

The first film told a complete story, and so this part-prequel, part-sequel follow-up whose marketing was suspiciously vague about Meryl Streep's involvement didn't muster much pre-release excitement.

But even with ol' Meryl being relegated to a mere five-minute cameo, this second go-around inexplicably outdid its predecessor in almost every single way. 

Amping up the camp, riotous song-and-dance numbers, and absurd cameos, while benefitting from a tremendously charming performance from Lily James, calling this a pleasant surprise doesn't really do it justice.

While it's often said that the more the cast enjoys making a movie the worse it ends up being, that's clearly not the case here. Everyone involved radiates pure joy throughout, and that transpires effortlessly through to the audience.