Movie Meme: Day 17

"31 Day Movie Meme"


Day 17 | Favorite series of related movies

Until Joss Whedon decides to do a sequel to Serenity, I'm going to go with Peter Jackson's epic Lord of the Rings trilogy. Those three films were among my favorite films of the past decade not only because they were so well made and so engrossing, but also because I have attached personal memories to them. For example, I saw all three in theaters with my high school friends and since this played around the holidays we usually saw it during vacation or right after a grueling final. In college, I actually bonded with some of my good friends right now while seeing the final film on DVD.

Okay, so it wasn't a perfect trilogy. Fellowship of the Rings took awhile to get going and Return of the King took awhile to end, but for three years in a row (2001, 2002, and 2003), the Lord of the Rings movie coming out later that year was THE movie to see and they all delivered one after another. For all of its efforts, all three films were rewarded by becoming critical favorites, box office blockbusters, and modern classics. The third film even dominated the Academy Awards for its year winning all of its nominations including Best Picture and Best Director.

And yet like any big epic, it would be nothing but a hollow blown-out CGI-fest without its characters. There's the ring-bearer Frodo Baggins with his trusty and loyal friend Samwise Gangee. There's the stoic Legolas and his great relationship with Gimli as well as the great comic relief provided by Merry and Pippin. There are the tour de force performances from Viggo Mortensen, Ian McKellen, and Andy Serkis as Aragorn, Gandalf, and Gollum respectively. And while screentime could've been better, let's hear it for the superbly talented ladies in the cast like Cate Blanchett, Miranda Otto, and Liv Tyler. As I said, these films are enormous and grand, but in the end it really is all about these people too and their bravery, their loyalty, their will, their passion, and their determination.

Honorable Mentions: Bourne Trilogy, Back to the Future Trilogy, Sister Act 1-2, Red Curtain Trilogy...