Thrills and Trills.

After recently reviewing The Dark Knight Rises, I began to think about trilogies in a lot more depth. I suddenly realised how few I had ever finished watching. This entry is almost a confession. My version of “I Have Never Seen Star Wars” if you will. However, I have seen Star Wars but I have never see The Matrix…or Rocky.

So before I discuss my favourite trilogies and why, I must first study the trilogies that I have failed to finish exploring. Firstly, Back to the Future. I have seen the first, of course; a classic without a doubt that I always find alarmingly creepy and yet extremely sweet. It oozes cool and has everything you could ever want from a cheesy 1980s family adventure film. I suppose I have avoided the second two films because I don’t want the first to become tainted. This is also the case with Alien. I was delighted by the first of the three. The simplicity and realism of character moved me from the start. I love it as a horror film as well as a work of science fiction. The claustrophobia of the mechanical life surrounding our protagonist as well as the drooling beasts is executed perfectly. I finally admit, it is a masterpiece. I only truly appreciated the beauty of Alien after watching Aliens, James Cameron’s attempt at a sequel. Aliens, for me, was nothing more than an action film. The realism of the original had been lost and so had the heart. Surely it’s understandable why I am not eager to watch Alien 3.

Disappointing second instalments are also the reason why I didn’t complete Romero’s most famous zombie trilogy. I fell in love with Night of the Living Dead instantly, and although I enjoyed Dawn of the Dead, the second in the trilogy, I never believed any zombie film could captivate fear, reality and atmosphere in the way of the first. I have never felt the need to watch the final film, Day of the Dead. I am not intending to be a snob. I am not claiming that I know what to expect from a film if I have seen those before it. I am simply pointing out that if a film is a let down in regards to its predecessor then that leaves me with very little motivation to go and watch the next one.

There are, of course, some trilogies that I have simply never absorbed at all. I have never seen any of the Rocky trilogy, The Matrix trilogy, the Mad Max trilogy or any of Kieslowski’s Three Colours. For this, of course, there is no explanation or excuse. I have simply neglected these films and can only attempt to rectify this in the future. I will return to my favourite trilogies in my next entry as I currently want to focus on my neglect. Whether or not I am interested in Alien 3, there is nothing more frustrating than trying to debate and discuss several films when someone states “Oh, I’ve never seen that one.” I do not wish to be that person and that is why I will do my best to revisit unfinished viewing and complete trilogies. Films are made to be discussed and compared; even if some are utterly terrible, the more you watch the more you know and the more you can contribute. I don’t know about anyone else but I have as much fun discussing awful films as I do works of cinematic genius. I’ll sit and discuss Schindler’s List with you for hours but get me started on Nicolas Cage’s Knowing and I could talk for days.

Thanks for reading and let’s all keep supporting our beloved film industry.