Everyone argues about what is the greatest movie trilogy of all time, whether it's the Dark Knight trilogy or the Godfather movies. However, there are other movies that are completely unrelated, yet some fans find strange ways to connect them.
Whether it's thematically or some kind of narrative throughline to clutch on to, Redditors have taken it upon themselves to put together their own unofficial trilogies. Between Leonardo DiCaprio slowly losing his mind over a three-movie arc and the Nicolas Cage "Uncaged" trilogy, the ideas are equally mindblowing and hilarious.
Stand By Me / The Shawshank Redemption / Apt Pupil
All three of these movies are adaptations of Stephen King's stories, but the reason why Redditor PhilaTesla thinks they should make up a trilogy is more specific than just that. Not only were they written by Stephen King, but they are all from the same book of short stories, Different Seasons.
The Reddit user thinks it's "leftfield," but the trilogy makes up a nice collection of movies that aren't typical Stephen King-like horrors. Stand By Me is a coming-of-age movie about four friends on an adventure, The Shawshank Redemption is a prison drama, and Apt Pupil is about a Nazi war criminal.
Face/Off / The Rock / Con Air
According to Redditor PM180, the three Nicolas Cage movies, Face/Off, The Rock, and Con Air, would make a great trilogy. They are all action movies, and Con Air has a lot in common with Die Hard, but that isn't exactly what makes them a trilogy. In fact, there's no narrative throughline either.
The Redditor takes a cavalier approach to the hypothetical question by saying that the "order doesn't really matter," but it's no less interesting. This unofficial trilogy is one of the most fascinating, as the Redditor gives it the title of the Cage Uncaged trilogy. The reason why is because the movies see Cage giving somewhat of an unhinged performance, to say the least.
The Big Short / Inside Job / The Wolf Of Wall Street
QtheFeralcat believes that these three Wall Street-related movies would make a great trilogy. The three films explore how bankers and stockbrokers indulge in greed and excess in irreverently entertaining ways, each one more than the last.
There's more to the trilogy too, as there's a kind of thematic chronology to watching them in the order that the Redditor lays out. The Big Short explains when it happened, the documentary Inside Job explains how it happened, and The Wolf of Wall Street details the kinds of people that let it happen.
Saving Private Ryan / The Martian / Interstellar
It's almost as if Matt Damon intentionally picks characters who are lost, as that's the exact premise of the above three movies. Redditor SecretSauceryWitness notes that Saving Private Ryan, The Martian, and Interstellar would make a great trilogy.
Not only are they three of Matt Damon's greatest movies, but they're all about "the US government spending trillions of dollars" to retrieve Damon. The user makes a great observation where, if the movies are watched in that order, Damon is lost further and further away from the United States. In fact, in Interstellar, Damon is literally lost on a planet that requires going through a wormhole to get to.
Black Swan / Whiplash / Amadeus
All of these three movies are about creative and talented people who are obsessed with striving to be the best. Because of that, joelekane thinks Whiplash, Amadeus, and the Darren Aronofsky-directed Black Swan would make a great "obsessed artist trilogy."
The three movies are brilliant choices, but as there are so many movies about obsessed artists, film buffs could make up their own trilogy of obsessed artists. They could replace any one of the movies with Birdman, Perfect Blue, or even another Aronofksy movie, The Wrestler.
Baby Driver / Drive / The Driver
HavoK_BR thinks that Baby Driver, Drive, and The Driver should all be watched together. Although the Reddit user doesn't give much of a reason why, all three movies are all about a getaway driver, despite being extremely different depictions. There is also a lot of talk around whether Baby Driver is actually a remake of Drive, while other Redditors argue that it's actually a prequel.
The movies simply could be viewed as an anthology of films about drivers who struggle with their profession and their disinclined involvement in the criminal underworld. But if it's simply because they all have "drive" in the title, the anthology could be added to with movies like Driving Miss Daisy and Taxi Driver.
Collateral / Nightcrawler / Drive
Drive could be better suited to a different trilogy that includes Collateral and Nightcrawler, as recommended by Redditor cwill815. Again, this would be a trilogy more in tone and aesthetic than some kind of overarching narrative.
All of the movies take place in the dead of night and see the protagonists mostly driving through neon-drenched Los Angeles. But there are a lot of thematic narratives too, as they are all criminals who commit atrocious acts. One is a hitman, one is a getaway driver, and the other is a psychopathic killer.
Baby's Day Out / Home Alone / Saw
There's a Home Alone/Saw fan theory that explains that the adorable Kevin McCallister grows up to be the Jigsaw killer. It makes sense considering that Kevin gets a kick out of violence and concocts clever, maniacal traps, but JurassicPark100 takes it one step further.
As a precursor to Home Alone, the Redditor advises to start with Baby's Day Out, as Bink could very well be "baby Kevin." It again makes sense, as the baby escapes the wrath of three criminals. Not only that, but it takes place in Chicago too.
Titanic / Inception / Shutter Island
Hugsy13 thinks that Titanic, Inception, and Shutter Island should be viewed as a trilogy that all follow that same story. Even though everyone saw the twist coming, the trilogy ends with audiences learning the main character is insane.
As the movies all star Leonardo DiCaprio in the lead role, the Redditor connected the dots and thinks they should be watched together as a man who goes on wild adventures only for audiences to find out he has lost his mind. It isn't a stretch of the imagination to believe that Cobb is in fact imagining things in Inception, as the premise is so fantastical, but it'll make people view Titanic in a completely different light.
The Assassination Of Jesse James / There Will Be Blood / No Country For Old Men
Though the Western genre isn't very popular at the moment, it clearly was in 2007, as not one but all three of these movies were all released in the same year. The has led to Former_Wasabi_1664 creating "The 2007 Western Trilogy," which brings together The Assassination of Jesse James, There Will Be Blood, and No Country For Old Men.
It isn't just the fact that they're the same genre that makes them a great trilogy, but as the Redditor notes, the movies are completely nihilistic and almost pitch black when it comes to tone. The movies also depict the story of "America's slow decline" across different time periods.