Trilogies

Was recently talking about the movie genre of trilogies and how there really aren't many great trilogies in the real sense of the word. Too often the third is a joke and a sad member of the trilogy family (the edgrimley of the trilogy). I compiled a wikipedia list of movie trilogies in the real sense of the word. (All movies in series had to come out in theater, not straight to video, all movies had to include at least most of the same cast and production crew. So unfortunately movies like Dr. Doolittle, Lion King, and Major League had to be kept out.)

• Austin Powers
• Back to the Future
• Beverly Hills Cop
• Blade
• Fast and the Furious
• Final Destination
• Free Willy
• Friday
• Bourne Identity
• Indiana Jones
• X-Men
• Toy Story
• Terminator
• Star Wars
• Spider-Man
• Species
• Shrek
• Scream
• Rush Hour
• RoboCop
• Porky's
• Pirates of the Caribbean
• Ocean's Eleven
• Naked Gun
• Mission Impossible
• Matrix
• Mad Max
• Jurassic Park
  
• Lord of the Rings
• Saw
  

As you read the list you can see that only a handful are truly great trilogies in which you could spend a Sunday afternoon watching all three. I for one would only watch Lord of the Rings, Naked Gun, Spider Man. Star Wars, Indiana Jones, X-Men, Bourne Identity, Austin Powers. The rest either all three movies suck (Species, Fast and the Furious) or one of the movies in the trilogy (usually the third) is a major disappointment (Matrix, Friday, Mad Max).

Many movies worked their way out of becoming a great trilogy by making too many movies; Superman, Aliens, Batman, and Die Hard. For the record I consider the new Indiana Jones not part of the old trilogy, there is too big of a gap in years and I also hope that they will make a new trilogy ala Star Wars. Unfortunately, soon enough Saw, Spider-Man, and X-Men will have too many movies to be considered a trilogy.

I for one hope movie studies get back to the trilogy. How? Don't make another Spider-man, stop at three. Make the current installment of Christian Bale's Batman only 3 movies long, make 3 new Indiana Jones, and stop just remaking old movies and get some new epic story ideas that can correlate into some awesome trilogies. A trilogy of new Transformer movies? Sin City trilogy?