Movie series where the first one was the worst one.

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Pretty much this.


Woo's trademark is slow motion.
Slow motion walking shots
Slow motion high-kicks
High octane chase scenes that are bookended by slow motion vehicle stunts
Slow motion doves taking flight in any shot that's leading to a slow motion action scene
Protagonist jumping through the air, firing two guns, in slow motion

And sparks. Sparks everywhere when there shouldn't be sparks: Whenever anyone shoots anything at any time with any kind of weapon, the object that is hit, no matter what it's made from, throws off showers of sparks, in slow motion


And pan shots and crane-zooms. During a fight between protagonist and antagonist, the camera always zooms in... from miles away, and 150 feet up...
I can understand Woo being style over substance, but I feel that none of the M:I are deep really, and they are all overall style over substance action movies. And this is not bad, as I find them entertaining on that level. I just don't see how M:I 2 is much more style over substance than the others, cause the others are not deep really.

I actually like Hard Target and Face/Off but I acknowledge that they are style over substance action movies.

Plus these zooms and slow motion were taking from movies that are considered classics. The Wild Bunch used slow motion zooms, and The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly used zooms well. So why is Woo not allowed to use them without being thought of as too much?

I don't have anything against slow motion fighting or crane zooms if done well, in a good action movie.

But I wouldn't say that M:I is the worst, cause I still think it's better than Ghost Protocol, which is the worst for me.



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Then the logic goes that it's worse at being style-over-substance than the other ones. I'd still take it over the third one, though.
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Movie Forums Squirrel Jumper
Yep that logic makes sense. M:I 2 is my second favorite I think, after the 5th, and maybe 3rd.

As for other movie series where the first one is the worst, I cannot think of any, other than the four I already mentioned. I guess it's quite rare.



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A debatable one: The Dark Knight trilogy.

The second one is indisputably better than the first, but the third...

*unpopular opinion ahead*

Rises is often criticized for being sloppy and full of plotholes but I personally liked Bane a lot more than the villains of Begins. Begins is much at better doing what it's supposed to do (tell a good Batman origin story) and technically it's the more solid film but I just like Rises more even while admitting its problems.

The problem with Begins is that after watching a multitude of superhero origin stories- Iron Man, The First Avenger, Wonder Woman, and whatnot, Begins just doesn't seem that unique or standout anymore. I still think it's better than the other films mentioned (Iron Man is close) but it doesn't do anything really special.

While Rises, even with all the stupid twists and plot problems, just has something about the scale of it that grabs me. And of course, the action is so much better- Nolan clearly didn't know what he was doing in the first Batman film, action wise.



Movie Forums Squirrel Jumper
Oh yeah, I love all three Dark Knight films, including the third. Batman Begins, is my favorite one though. I also agree that the third has the best action though.



Movie Forums Squirrel Jumper
Oh okay, I thought the first one was the best one.