10/6/2018 10 Great Movie Trilogies No One Talks About « Taste of Cinema - Movie Reviews and Classic Movie Lists

10 Great Movie Trilogies No One Talks About

29 MARCH 2018 FEATURES, FILM LISTS BY VITOR GUIMA

Cinema history has many amazing movie trilogies. From Francis Ford Coppola’s acclaimed Godfather Trilogy to
Jean Cocteau’s Orphic Trilogy, and from Michelangelo Antonioni’s Trilogy on Modernity and its Discontents to
Krzysztof Kieslowski’s Three Colors Trilogy, it is not that difficult to remember how many great trilogies cinema
has.

But, some great trilogies sometimes are not as remembered as they deserve and those are the films we are
approaching in this article. Working as sequels to one another or having themes in common, this list approaches
great trilogies that should definitely be remembered more often.

In this article, I will try not to get too much into the plots of the films in order to not make this list too long. If you
think any other film trilogy should be on this list, please leave it as a recommendation in the comments section
below. It is never too late to remember that these trilogies are not ranked, but feel free to share your own ranking
on the comments.
So, here are 10 great movie trilogies that should definitely be remembered more often:

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10/6/2018 10 Great Movie Trilogies No One Talks About « Taste of Cinema - Movie Reviews and Classic Movie Lists

10. The Pusher Trilogy, dir. Nicolas Winding Refn

Movies:
– Pusher (1996)
– Pusher II: With Blood on my Hands (2004)
– Pusher III: I’m the Angel of Death (2005)
Nicolas Winding Refn is probably best remembered for the amazing film “Drive” starring Ryan Gosling, and a
movie that won the Prix de la Mise en Scène, the best director award at the Cannes International Film Festival.
But before that, in 1996, he released “Pusher,” his directorial debut and the beginning of a very interesting trilogy.

The first movie starts with a drug pusher who loses a lot of money when a deal goes wrong and who has only a
few days to pay the money he owes. Full of great sequences and with two good sequels, the Pusher Trilogy is a
series of films that should definitely be watched by any cinephile.

9. The Hometown Trilogy, dir. Zhangke Jia

Movies:
– Pick Pocket (1997)

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10/6/2018 10 Great Movie Trilogies No One Talks About « Taste of Cinema - Movie Reviews and Classic Movie Lists

– Platform (2000)
– Unknown Pleasures (2002)
Zhangke Jia is one of the best directors from the last decades, from “Pick Pocket,” his first feature film, to his
latest movie “Mountains May Depart” (2015), he proved to be one of the most intriguing filmmakers working
today.
His first three feature films form the Hometown Trilogy, where he explores stories that take place in the Chinese
province of Shanxi. Although not actually being a documentarian, his movies with their long takes somehow have
the aura of a documentary.

The way he is able to conduct the mise en scène of his films is remarkable, but the characters in his films are
probably the highlight of these movies for how complex they are. Zhangke Jia is not only one of the best directors
working today, but one of the best screenwriters as well.

8. The Taiwanese History Trilogy, dir. Hsiao-Hsien Hou

Movies
– A City of Sadness (1989)
– The Puppetmaster (1993)
– Good Men, Good Women (1995)

Taiwanese director Hsian-Hsien Hou is a very important figure in world cinema and in the Taiwan New Wave.
Starting his career as a director in 1980, he has made more than 20 films, the most recent being “The Assassin,”
which won the Prix de la Mise en Scène, the best Director Award at the Cannes Film Festival.
In the films “A City of Sadness” (winner of the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival), “The Puppetmaster” and
“Good Men, Good Women,” he approaches Taiwanese history in a very interesting way.

Approaching the story of four brothers, the story of a puppeteer who is telling his life story and of a woman being
persecuted by a man, he is able to approach the history of Taiwan in three great films.

Hou delivered a remarkable and very intriguing film series with the Taiwanese History Trilogy that every cinephile
should definitely check out.

7. The New York Crime & Family Trilogy, dir. James Gray

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10/6/2018 10 Great Movie Trilogies No One Talks About « Taste of Cinema - Movie Reviews and Classic Movie Lists

Movies:
– Little Odessa (1994)
– The Yards (2000)
– We Own the Night (2007)

James Gray is one of the best and most underrated directors working today. Allying great mise en scène with
amazing screenwriting, he is truly one of the most interesting filmmakers of his generation.
With “Little Odessa,” “The Yards” and “We Own the Night,” his first three feature films, he approaches very
interesting characters in stories taking place in his hometown, New York City.

Gray is truly a great screenwriter. The way he is able to build complex characters while moving intriguing stories
forward is definitely remarkable.

Although “The Yards” is not as great as the other two films in the series, Grays’ New York Crime & Family Trilogy
is definitely one of the best trilogies made in the last few decades and is a series of films that should without a
doubt be checked out.

6. The War Trilogy, dir. Andrzej Wajda

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10/6/2018 10 Great Movie Trilogies No One Talks About « Taste of Cinema - Movie Reviews and Classic Movie Lists

Movies:
– A Generation (1954)
– Kanal (1956)
– Ashes & Diamonds (1958)
Andrzej Wajda is without a doubt among the best filmmakers in history.

Often remembered for “The Man of Marble” (1977), “The Man of Iron” (1981), “Danton” (1983) and, of course,
“Ashes & Diamonds” – the last installment in this War Trilogy – he is definitely a filmmaker whose movies are
worth checking out.
Approaching war with great directing, these films that have great importance in the Polish Film School are
definitely among the best of his career. For its great characters, story and directing, this thematic trilogy directed
by Wajda definitely should be watched by every cinephile.

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10/6/2018 10 Great Movie Trilogies No One Talks About « Taste of Cinema - Movie Reviews and Classic Movie Lists

5. The Yuppie Trilogy, dir. Whit Stillman

Movies:
– Metropolitan (1990)
– Barcelona (1994)
– The Last Days of Disco (1998)
In his first three feature films, Whit Stillman made a very interesting trilogy that definitely does not get the
recognition it deserves.

‘Yuppie’ is a term that refers to a young professional person working in a city. The Yuppie Trilogy follows three
stories where comedy, drama and romance are combined. Approaching stories about youth and its difficulties,
expectations and the transition to adulthood, Stillman delivers strong screenwriting with very interesting
characters.

Although not being as remembered as it should, Whit Stillman’s Yuppie Trilogy is a series of movies that should
without a doubt be checked out by any cinephile.

4. The Proletariat Trilogy, dir. Aki Kaurismaki

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10/6/2018 10 Great Movie Trilogies No One Talks About « Taste of Cinema - Movie Reviews and Classic Movie Lists

Movies:
– Shadows in Paradise (1986)
– Ariel (1988)
– The Match Factory Girl (1990)

Finnish filmmaker Aki Kaurismaki delivered one of the best movies from last year with the Silver Bear Winner
“The Other Side of Hope.” And the rest of his career is truly as interesting as his latest film.
Starting his career as a director with the documentary “The Saimaa Gesture” in 1981, from 1986 to 1990, among
other works, he released his Proletariat Trilogy.
The way he is able to walk between comedy and tragedy is truly astonishing. Always with very strong
screenwriting and great characters, Kaurismaki is a filmmaker whose works should definitely be watched, and
the Proletariat Trilogy is an amazing film series that is far from getting the recognition it deserves.

3. The Cinema Novo Trilogy

Movies:
– Barren Lives (1963; dir. Nelson Pereira dos Santos)

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10/6/2018 10 Great Movie Trilogies No One Talks About « Taste of Cinema - Movie Reviews and Classic Movie Lists

– Black God, White Devil (1964; dir. Glauber Rocha)

– The Guns (1964; dir. Ruy Guerra)
The only trilogy in this article with movies from different directors, the Cinema Novo Trilogy is formed by three of
the most important movies in one of the most important film movements in history.

With a great influence of neorealism and the Nouvelle Vague, some of the best Brazilian movies of all time were
made during this time. The social and political approach of these films is remarkable, and it is very intriguing to
see how much ahead of their time and how complex these movies were.

Not only for “Barren Lives,” “Black God, White Devil” and “The Guns,” Nelson Pereira dos Santos, Glauber
Rocha and Ruy Guerra are amazing filmmakers whose works every cinephile should check out.

2. The Fontainhas Trilogy, dir. Pedro Costa

Movies:
– Ossos (1997)
– In Vanda’s Room (2000)
– Colossal Youth (2006)

Starting his career in the 1980s, director Pedro Costa is one of the most prominent figures of Portuguese cinema
in the last few decades.

Called “the Samuel Beckett of cinema,” his films depicts characters living in desperate situations. Approaching
the aesthetics of a documentary at some points, Costa builds the atmosphere of his movies in a very intriguing
way.
With this “docufiction” form, he is able to approach strong stories and is able to make a very politically and
socially relevant cinema. The Fontainhas Trilogy is a very powerful film series that every cinephile should watch.

1. The Salta Trilogy, dir. Lucrecia Martel

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Movies:
– The Swamp (2001)
– The Holy Girl (2004)
– The Headless Woman (2008)
Lucrecia Martel is one of the best filmmakers working today. With four feature films in her career – the more
recent one being “Zama” (2017), which was screened out of the competition at the Venice Film Festival – she is
definitely a filmmaker whose works every cinephile should check out.
All approaching complex characters and relations, this trilogy, one of the best made in this century, takes place in
the Argentinean province of Salta, where the filmmaker was born.

It is truly notable how Martel is able to conduct the mise en scène of her films with meaningful and punctual
dialogue, allied with a great use of silence. With great performances and strong acting, the Salta Trilogy is an
amazing film series that every cinephile must watch.
Author Bio: Vítor Guima is a filmmaker, writer and musician. Every day he watches a movie, reads a few pages
from a book, listens to an album and freaks out with the feeling of not having enough time to see everything. You
can follow him on Instagram on @ovitorguima.

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