I read two different sequel-related reports today (one which I had heard weeks if not months ago, but apparently it’s news again). In the best-case scenarios, they could both be phenomenal films. Thinking more realistically, they’ll suck and simply lessen how people think of the originals, much as has happened in some sense to The Matrix thanks to the unnecessary Reloaded and just-plain-annoying Revolutions.
First, apparently the zombies aren’t quite dead. “Fox Searchlight is putting together a sequel to 28 Days Later, the stylish Danny Boyle-directed horror film that became a sleeper fall hit in 2002.” If there’s anyone reading this who somehow doesn’t know, Danny Boyle is the director who before 28 Days Later… was best known for Trainspotting. He can also boast about the creepy cool thriller Shallow Grave, as well as the meh-misfires A Life Less Ordinary and The Beach. Why am I listing his resume? Because it’s easy to see that Boyle is very much a creative visionary unafraid to tackle all different types of subject-matter, and even when the end result doesn’t work, he tries to make films that take risks and have some degree of originality. That certainly was true with 28 Days Later …. But according to this story, although he and writer Alex Garland, along with Boyle’s regular producer, Andrew MacDonald, will supposedly produce the film (i.e., collect a paycheck for allowing the sequel to be made), 28 Weeks Later … (oooh … clever) will neither be directed by Boyle nor written by Garland. Scripting chores are going to Rowan Joffe, Roland‘s son with two writing credits to his name.
Of course, as exciting as 28 Weeks Later … could be, does it hold a candle to the prospect of Kill Bill, Vol. 3? Yeah, yeah … this is old news, but with QT doing promotion in Spain for the opening of Vol. 2, AP seems to want to run again with the story that “Tarantino Wants Third ‘Bill’ in 15 Years.”
His idea actually isn’t that bad: little “Nikki” watched Uma kill her mother Vivica A. Fox and 15 years later goes seeking revenge. That whole circle of revenge thing just keeps turning, you know. I had previously read that he wanted to shoot some of it now with Ambrosia Kelley while she’s still a little girl and then come back to her somewhere around 2020 to finish the movie when both she and Uma have aged. (Uma age? NOOOOOOOOO!)
But the most interesting part of this article is how QT explicitly reveals what I consider the main problem with these movies and potentially his biggest flaw as a filmmaker: “I was doing the movie to do some of the greatest action scenes ever made.” A-ha! Well, in some cases you succeeded. The action scenes were pretty great; very well choreographed. Too bad you weren’t trying to make some of the “greatest action scenes ever made” in support of a more compelling story and overall well-rounded film(s). There isn’t really a good reason that Vol. 1 & Vol. 2 needed to be separated other than to make some of the action scenes even longer in order to incorporate more how-cool-does-that-look shots. In fact, all of Vol. 1 could probably have been cut down to less than 45 minutes, and the much stronger Vol. 2 down to maybe an hour-forty-five. Smush (or fuse … whatever) them together and you’ve got a fast-paced, action-packed 2-1/2 hours of potentially brilliant revenge-drama and kick-ass fighting.
At least Kill Bill, Vol. 3, if it is ever made, would actually be a sequel. Go to it, QT … but feel free to take your time.
Out of Focus 