Waiting to see The Matrix Revolutions tonight, I wondered what other Trilogies out there have endured for me over the years.
So far I can only think of 4 - Indiana Jones, Star Wars, Back ot the Future and Scream.
However, there seems to be no pattern! Here's how it breaks down:
I loved Raiders of the Lost Ark, but hated Temple of Doom.
I loved Empire Strikes Back, but I liked the original (part IV) the least.
I loved the original Back to the Future but don't really care for either sequel.
I loved the original Scream but I loathe the second one.
I always used to think the originals were the best, now I'm not so sure. Any thoughts? Which are your faves and why?
p.s. I know I left out the Godfather.....
DUSK TILL DAWN is a good one also.
Even though part III isn't out yet, Lord of the Rings is up there with the orignial Star Wars (not the prequel) and Indiana Jones.
Parts 2 & 3 always have a problem; if the first part is bad, the next two don't get made, but if part 1 is really good, then the bar is set so high that the follow ups can't match the "wow" feeling of the first.
I don't consider THE GODFATHER to be a real trilogy....it's obvious the third movie was tacked on and wasn't necessary.
The only one I guess I've ever really liked has been STAR WARS, but that was more when I was a kid. I saw the first one when it was re-released in 1997 and it didn't work for me anymore.
I liked the first two Indiana Jones movies, but the third was too preachy for me.
How about Sergio Leone's "man with no name" trilogy?
The Indiana Jones trilogy is a good one.
I'm not a big fan of any of the SCREAM movies.
The original BACK TO THE FUTURE is good . . . the others don't quite measure up.
The DIE HARD trilogy is pretty good escapist entertainment.
The first two AMERICAN PIE movies are good . . . but the third one is disappointing.
George Romero's LIVING DEAD trilogy is a "must have" for any movie collection.
I have only seen 2 of the 3 movies in the "Virgil Tibbs" trilogy. IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT is a classic. THEY CALL ME MISTER TIBBS! pales in comparison. I have never seen THE ORGANIZATION, which is probably the least famous of the 3 movies in this series.
SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT is one of the best "good ole boy" car chase movies. I have never seen the two sequels, but I have heard that they aren't very good.
THE GODFATHER trilogy is my favorite of all time, even though Part III doesn't measure up to the first two.
Has anyone thought of the ILSA trilogy? It is now available in a DVD boxed set, which I hope to buy eventually.
Then you have the infamous H. G. Lewis trilogy consisting of BLOOD FEAST, 2000 MANIACS, and COLOR ME BLOOD RED (also available as a boxed set).
The COFFIN JOE trilogy (I have the first two . . . never seen the third one)
And, of course, EL MARIACHI, DESPERADO, and ONCE UPON A TIME IN MEXICO
Geez . . . I didn't realize there were so many trilogies . . . and I haven't even scratched the surface yet . . .
There's also Leone's loose "Once Upon A Time...." trilogy. "Once Upon A Time In The West", "A Fistful Of Dynamite" (sometimes titled "Once Upon A Time, The Revolution), and "Once Upon A Time In America".
It's unifying themes are supposed to be money, power, and crime in the New World.
The third SMOKEY movie didn't even have Burt Reynolds in it until the very end--it's Jerry Reed driving the Trans-Am for most of the movie.
Rambo Trilogy.....First Blood the obvious king of these
Evil Dead Trilogy....nuff said
Prophecy....very schlocky
I loved the Godfather Trilogy....even part III
I loved the Indiana Jones Trilogy
The best every IMHO is the first Star Wars Trilogy
I'll go with "Prophecy" as well.
Also, while not really a trilogy, I'd go with the "Subspecies" series from "Full Moon"
"Star Wars" of course
How about Star Trek II, III, IV (really one story in 3 parts)?
Lord of the Rings above all, and we haven't even seen part 3 yet!
Ed Wood's "Kelton" trilogy - Bride of the Monster, Plan 9, Night of the Ghouls.
Stars Wars --- yeaaaahh, but..... a case of diminishing returns for me (1 - a classic, 2 - good, 3 - getting tired already). (Talking about the originals, of course; the less said about the current crop of Star Wars movies, the better.
I don't remember Burt in it at all, but then I have seemed to have erased that whole fiasco from my memory, much like some folks don't remember horrifying events. It was a horrible waste of celluloid. Don't watch it.
Burt turns up in a quick cameo in "Smokey and the Bandit 3", where Jerry Reed's character tries to bluff his way past Jackie Gleason by "channeling" the essence of the real Bandit. It works as Buford T. Justice sees Burt Reynolds instead of Jerry Reed sitting in the Firebird. So Burt turns up in a halucination. Terrible movie.
shaft
shaft's big score
shaft in africa
Yeah, I guess LOTR and Evil Dead are...okay. If you're into that sort of thing.
But for my money the trilogy to end all trilogies has got to be the classic "Look who's talking" trilogy. American cinema that truly withstands the test of time.
>So Burt turns up in a halucination. Terrible movie.
I've seen this one, but I don't remember it. Was Burt even there or did they use stock footage?
No, it was new.
I remember them playing a long outtake from it on one of thse "blooper" shows when the movie came out...Gleason and Reynolds ad-libbing for five minutes was more entertaining than the actual movie.
A lot of these I don't consider trilogies because they don't have a continuing story, just new adventures with the same characters. Even Godfather is barely a trilogy because the story was basically complete with the second film, although even in that case the second film wasn't on the drawing board when the first one was made.
So yeah, the LOTR, Star Wars and Matrix movies are trilogies, the Evil Dead movies are, sort of [the second movie is really more a remake of the first] and the Godfather is, more or less, But SMOKEY, RAMBO,et al aren't anymore than the Jason or James Bond films are.
I'm undecided about INDIANA JONES--what's weird is that its story goes backward with the second installment--I don't remember the timeline of the third film except that he was up against the Nazis again like in the first one. But the movies aren't connected.
DUSK TILL DAWN isn't really a trilogy, but I still like them. Each film could exist without the others.
I think Star Wars and LOTR are the only ones in this thread that can be considered real trilogies because the makers set out to make trilogies that told one story in three parts. The far inferior Raiders sequels picked up entirely different plot lines (wasn't one a prequel?) and were only made because the first was such a hit. Same goes for the others - cashing in on the success of the first.
I don't consider Evil Dead a trilogy because the first two were basically the same movie, only done better the second time.
Yeah, TEMPLE OF DOOM was a prequel. I loved it when I was 12, don't know what I would think about it now. I almost don't want to see these new discs, because I want to keep my fond memories of the first two films--I didn't like the third movie even when it came out.
"Yeah, TEMPLE OF DOOM was a prequel. I loved it when I was 12, don't know what I would think about it now."
Saw it again a couple of years ago (I'm guessing we're the same age by your post) - you'd think: how on earth did this god-awful horse-woman land the female lead in a major motion picture?
Answer: She was sleeping with Spielberg.
The scene were they pull the heart out of that person in the temple was effective.
Scott wrote:
> The scene were they pull the heart out of that person in the
> temple was effective.
yep - and it's also the reason the PG-13 rating came out
DEFINITELY the Evil Dead Trilogy.
1. Matrix (I will see Revolutions)
2. LOTR (I will see Return of the King)
3. BTTF (Even though I didn't see the second one)
4. Indiana Jones (y'all were right about that heart thing, and why you should not looked directly at the Ark)
5. The first three Rocky films (I know there were five, but the last two were embarrassments) When it comes to story, I break down this "trilogy" like this:
Rocky: The Match
Rocky2: The Rematch
Rocky3:The Title.
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Bulls**t, I still can't hear you, sound off like you got a pair.
arnt you forgeting the fist full of dollars trilogies its some of clint eastwood classic
work.
I agree with the star wasrs the second and third were great but the first was a sham.
aliens trilogies i dont reckonise the fourth as a aliens film as it is shody ( saying that the third is to)
"I agree with the star wasrs the second and third were great but the first was a sham."
Are you talking about the original Star Wars (1977)? I'm interested to hear your take on how that was a sham.
Evil dead, Evil Dead 2, Army of Darkness
or the Man with no Name trilogy
how could you not mention these
I don't consider the Eastwood stuff to be a trilogy, because the movies weren't really connected. They just had the same lead actor playing the same basic type of character...I don't think we really even know if he's supposed to be the same person in each film.
As others have said, the trouble with Evil Dead was that the second film was basically a remake of the first.