http://movies.amctv.com/movie-guide/top-ten-sequels.php Extending a beloved storyline isn't always a bad idea -- some sequels even manage to outshine their predecessors. Which of these continuations most impressed? en Copyright 2009 Mon, 04 May 2009 14:56:01 -0500 http://services.rainbow-media.com http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification movie-name 15750 Free of all the kiddie stuff that bogs down the movies that followed it, Empire is an exotic and serious turn, with new characters (Jabba, Boba and Yoda) and the revelation of Luke's sinister ancestry. http://movies.amctv.com/movie/15750/Empire-Strikes-Back/overview http://movies.amctv.com/movie/15750/Empire-Strikes-Back/overview 20090112165025 20078 Francis Ford Coppola heeded the rule of "Bigger is better" in bringing the Corleone family back, adding darker dimensions to all the characters. Too bad for Fredo. http://movies.amctv.com/movie/20078/Godfather-Part-II/overview http://movies.amctv.com/movie/20078/Godfather-Part-II/overview 20090112165121 20213 We wouldn't be talking about Ian Fleming's super spy at all if it weren't for Goldfinger, the pinnacle of Bond cool. http://movies.amctv.com/movie/20213/Goldfinger/overview http://movies.amctv.com/movie/20213/Goldfinger/overview 20090112165145 24754 Teaming up with his long-absent father, Indiana Jones battles Nazis for control of the Holy Grail. The reult, a fan and family-friendly affair with the swagger of the original. http://movies.amctv.com/movie/24754/Indiana-Jones-and-the-Last-Crusade/overview http://movies.amctv.com/movie/24754/Indiana-Jones-and-the-Last-Crusade/overview 20090112165134 49102 James Cameron turned Arnold Schwarzenegger's titular killing machine into the hero this time, and didn't hold back on the special FX. http://movies.amctv.com/movie/49102/Terminator-2-Judgment-Day/overview http://movies.amctv.com/movie/49102/Terminator-2-Judgment-Day/overview 20090112165108 278981 Switching the focus to just Frodo, Sam and Gollum, this one wraps the quest up -- and took home 11 Oscars. http://movies.amctv.com/movie/278981/Lord-of-the-Rings-The-Return-of-the-King/overview http://movies.amctv.com/movie/278981/Lord-of-the-Rings-The-Return-of-the-King/overview 20090112165225 46527 Even hardcore Trekkies agree it's the peak of the space saga, focusing as much on the bond between Kirk and his son, and Spock's ultimate sacrifice, as it does the Enterprise's confrontation with Khan. http://movies.amctv.com/movie/46527/Star-Trek-II-The-Wrath-of-Khan/overview http://movies.amctv.com/movie/46527/Star-Trek-II-The-Wrath-of-Khan/overview 20090112165312 357349 Heath Ledger deservedly won an Oscar for his performance as the ghoulish Joker, who so pushes Batman to the edge, the Dark Knight is forced to bend the rules to save Gotham City. http://movies.amctv.com/movie/357349/Dark-Knight/overview http://movies.amctv.com/movie/357349/Dark-Knight/overview 20090112165053 12579 By setting Dawn in a shopping mall, Romero found a clever obstacle course environment for his brain-eating set-pieces, one that also did double duty as a metaphor for zombified American consumerism. http://movies.amctv.com/movie/12579/Dawn-of-the-Dead/overview http://movies.amctv.com/movie/12579/Dawn-of-the-Dead/overview 20090112165202 7091 Funnier, stranger, and more morbid than the first, in this, Dr. Frankenstein and his mentor create a wild, Marge Simpson-haired mate for Boris Karloff's Monster. http://movies.amctv.com/movie/7091/Bride-of-Frankenstein/overview http://movies.amctv.com/movie/7091/Bride-of-Frankenstein/overview 20090112165251