Slog - Comments on Two Sequels to Surprisingly Good Movies http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies The, um, geniuses who brought us Crank are currently making Crank 2. I have to say, I really appreciated Crank, in which Jason Statham had to do all kinds of stupid things to keep his adrenaline running, or he would die. It was stupid and funny and, you know, an action movie. But the ending was, how do you say, not entirely conducive to a sequel. Still: if they title this movie Crank 2: Stupider! and make it about 48 minutes long, I will totally buy a ticket on opening weekend. And in more depressing news, someone—not the original director—is... Copyright 2008 Tue, 02 Sep 2008 13:00:00 -0800 Tue, 02 Sep 2008 22:38:26 -0800 http://www.movabletype.org/?v=3.34 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Comment by Dave M Paul you may know books, but you don't know movies. Crank was all loud noises and shakycam, it was the cinematic equivalent of baking an eating a pinata.

]]> Dave M http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119306 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119306 Film Tue, 02 Sep 2008 13:05:46 -0800 Comment by douglas doesn't everyone die in the descent? there's no character overlap that would make any sense. so, basically what we're talking about here is a remake not a sequel.

]]> douglas http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119318 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119318 Film Tue, 02 Sep 2008 13:16:19 -0800 Comment by PdxRitchie Dave M, I don't know if you know anything about anything, but you don't good movies.

Crank was awesome and funny as hell.

]]> PdxRitchie http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119328 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119328 Film Tue, 02 Sep 2008 13:23:49 -0800 Comment by flamingbanjo Crank was gratuitous and vile, but I found myself unable to avert my eyes as the improbabilities and offenses against reason and decency kept piling up like cars in a freeway accident. Especially that scene where he rapes his girlfriend in front of a crowd of cheering onlookers and a bus of Japanese tourists, but it turns out to be okay because partway through she decides she's into it.

It's the kind of movie that makes you want to take a shower afterwards.

]]> flamingbanjo http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119344 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119344 Film Tue, 02 Sep 2008 13:32:41 -0800 Comment by T I had to turn off Crank when he started raping his girlfriend in front of a cheering crowd. Yes, I realize she "ended up liking it" (aren't most rape victims "asking for it" anyway?). But don't try to tell me that scene didn't start out as rape. She said no.

As far as mindless action movies go, there's far better fare out there.

]]> T http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119353 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119353 Film Tue, 02 Sep 2008 13:36:08 -0800 Comment by flamingbanjo @5: Oh, I'm right there with you on what that scene was about. I kept watching as a sort of perverse "what kind of universe does this movie exist in where this sort of thing is okay? What the hell?" interest, I guess.

If it makes you feel better, Statham's character falls from a great height and is crushed into pulp in the last shot of the movie. Which makes the idea of a sequel problematic, but since the logic of Crank is pure bizarro-world lunacy, I'm sure they'll figure out a suitably incongruous explanation to have Statham up and commiting atrocities against narrative cohesion and common decency again.

]]> flamingbanjo http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119395 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119395 Film Tue, 02 Sep 2008 14:02:41 -0800 Comment by michael strangeways I guess you haven't heard; Todd Solondz is working on a sequel/companion piece to Happiness...

]]> michael strangeways http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119413 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119413 Film Tue, 02 Sep 2008 14:12:59 -0800 Comment by Levislade I only saw The Descent on DVD, and it was totally scary and awesome.

]]> Levislade http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119528 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119528 Film Tue, 02 Sep 2008 15:27:44 -0800 Comment by amazonmidwife Couldn't get my suspension of disbelief going on enough to go to Crank. Kept thinking why on earth would he have to do anything to *keep* his adrenalin up? Just knowing that if it went below whatever should freak him out enough that it would go right back up again.

]]> amazonmidwife http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119532 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119532 Film Tue, 02 Sep 2008 15:29:54 -0800 Comment by Will in Seattle Personally, I found both Crank and Descent underwhelming.

Give me Leave Her To Heaven or The Girl Who Leapt Through Time any day.

]]> Will in Seattle http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119638 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119638 Film Tue, 02 Sep 2008 16:47:06 -0800 Comment by RL @10 You should have mentioned that The Girl Who Leapt Through Time is itself a sequel!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Girl_Who_Leapt_Through_Time

]]> RL http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119958 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/09/two_sequels_to_surprisingly_good_movies#c1119958 Film Tue, 02 Sep 2008 22:38:26 -0800