A Summer of Sequels

Two summers ago, I wrote about a Pixar film standing tall as the only major summer studio feature that was wholly original. In Wonder Takes Time, we marveled at Pixar's genuine intent on giving the marketplace of ideas fresh stories. Among sequels ("Pirates 3," "Spider-Man 3," "Shrek 3") and based-on-toy-films, television shows, and reboots ("Transformers," "The Simpsons Movie," "Halloween"), Brad Bird's "Ratatouille" stood alone as the unique entry of the summer.

Well, here we are again, in the summer of 2009, where Pixar has the lone wholly original film of the summer. Pete Docter's "Up," which opens May 29, and is a (gasp!) original screenplay, goes up against these summer films:

• Fast and Furious (sequel)
  
• X-Men Origins: Wolverine (sequel)
  
• Star Trek (reboot/sequel)
  
• Angels and Demons (sequel/based on novel)
  
• Land of the Lost (based on television show)
  
• Night at the Museum: Battle at the Smithsonian (sequel)
  
• Terminator: Salvation (sequel)
  
• The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 (remake)
  
• Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (sequel/based on toy)
  
• Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (sequel)
  
• Bruno (based on television character)
  
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (sequel/based on novel)
  
• Julie and Julia (based on article)
  
• G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (based on television show)
  
• The Final Destination (sequel)
  
• H2 - Halloween 2 (sequel of a remake)

Wonder Takes Time

A nice little New York Times article about marketing an original summer movie amidst a sea of sequels.

“Wonder takes time,” said Brad Bird, the movie's director. “You don’t rush wonder. You have to coax the audience toward you a little bit.”

For a summer whose blockbuster films include:

• Spider-Man 3 (sequel)
  
• Pirates 3 (sequel)
• Shrek 3 (sequel)
• Die Hard 4 (sequel)
• Harry Potter 5 (sequel)
• 28 Weeks Later (sequel)
• Fantastic Four 2 (sequel)
• Rush Hour 3 (sequel)
• Ocean's Thirteen (sequel)
• Evan Almighty (sequel)
• Hostel 2 (sequel)
• Transformers (based on toy/tv show)
• The Simpsons Movie (based on tv show)
• Halloween (remake)

... releasing an original movie like "Ratatouille" seems positively quaint. Article includes a blurb from Bob Gale, co-writer of one of the most original blockbusters of the last 30 years, "Back To The Future."

“It’s tragic,” the screenwriter Bob Gale said of what he sees as Hollywood’s lost inventiveness.

article:
It’s Not a Sequel, but It Might Seem Like One After the Ads
By Michael Cieply, The New York Times