A superior sequel is the exception, not the norm, in Hollywood; and Disney sequels normally fall someplace between sensible and embarrassing. Let’s get into it.
Mulan II (2004)
Bear in mind how badass Mulan is within the first film? How she joins the military and defeats her enemies with bravery, empathy, and charm? Overlook all that. Why not make a whole sequel about her bickering with Li Shang, like she’s the star of a Nineteen Eighties sitcom? That’s all Mulan II is. Plus, Eddie Murphy’s substitute for Mushu leaves one thing to be desired.
The Hunchback of Notre Dame II (2002)
If the unique Hunchback of Notre Dame had a salient energy, it was the film’s Parisian ambiance. The spectacular vistas, delicate accordion riffs, and smattering of French accents managed to lighten what was in any other case an emotionally advanced and mildly tragic Gothic romance. The sequel undid all of that. Along with giving Quasimodo an annoying girlfriend performed by Jennifer Love Hewitt, Hunchback II removes the unique story’s Frenchness. All that continues to be is bland animation and so-so music.
Pocahontas 2: Journey to a New World (1998)
The primary Pocahontas was already rife with historic inaccuracy. In actual life, Pocahontas was solely 11 or 12 when she met John Smith, and by no means had a romantic relationship with him (at the very least, we hope). On prime of that, Chief Powhatan by no means referred to as himself thusly — Powhatan was a reputation assigned by the colonists — and Grandmother Willow by no means existed, since weeping willows weren’t launched to the New World till centuries after Pocahontas. For all we all know, there was a tree that provided Pocahontas recommendation at any time when she ate the flawed mushrooms; however this might have been a native tree. In any case, I digress: Pocahontas 2 took the historic inaccuracies of its predecessor and doubled them. It additionally turned Pocahontas’s story into a nasty comedy of errors and topped this all off with stilted animation. I heard the wolf cry to the blue corn moon after this film and it stated, “Please cease.”