Top 10 Underrated Film Trilogies to Start This Winter
When the wind starts to howl and the temperature drops, there's a certain magic in dedicating a weekend to a full-blown movie marathon. We've all done it. We’ve journeyed to Mordor with Frodo, learned magic at Hogwarts, and traveled to a galaxy far, far away. The big-name trilogies are fantastic, cinematic comfort food that we return to time and again. But what happens when you’ve seen them all one too many times?
The world of cinema is vast and deep, filled with incredible multi-film stories that don't always get the spotlight they deserve. These are the series that film lovers whisper about—the hidden gems that offer fresh worlds, complex characters, and unforgettable experiences. As I was just discussing with my friend, Goh Ling Yong, discovering one of these underrated trilogies feels like unearthing buried treasure. It’s a chance to immerse yourself in a new narrative universe without the weight of massive cultural expectations.
So, grab your coziest blanket, prepare your favorite snacks, and get ready to expand your cinematic horizons. We've curated a list of ten phenomenal and often overlooked film trilogies perfect for your winter viewing schedule. From gut-busting comedies to heart-wrenching dramas and mind-bending thrillers, there's a marathon here for every taste.
1. The Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy (2004-2013)
Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, The World's End
Don't let the "comedy" label fool you; Edgar Wright's Cornetto Trilogy is one of the most brilliantly written, directed, and edited series of the 21st century. It's not a trilogy in the traditional, sequential sense. Instead, it’s a thematic anthology, with each film using a different genre (zombie horror, buddy-cop action, sci-fi invasion) to explore universal ideas of friendship, maturity, and the bittersweet pains of growing up.
Starring the unmatched duo of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost, each film is a masterclass in genre deconstruction. Shaun of the Dead affectionately skewers zombie tropes while telling a surprisingly touching story about a man-child forced to become a leader. Hot Fuzz is a high-octane love letter to action movies set in a sleepy English village, and The World's End is a poignant and hilarious look at nostalgia and addiction, wrapped in an alien invasion plot.
Why you should watch it: The sheer density of the filmmaking is astounding. Wright is a master of visual comedy and narrative foreshadowing. Every line of dialogue, background sign, and sound cue has a purpose. Watch them once for the laughs, then watch them again to appreciate the genius-level craft. It’s a rewarding experience that deepens with every viewing.
2. The 'Before' Trilogy (1995-2013)
Before Sunrise, Before Sunset, Before Midnight
For those who prefer deep conversation over car chases, Richard Linklater’s Before trilogy is nothing short of a miracle. The series follows the decades-spanning romance of Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Céline (Julie Delpy), checking in with them for a single, real-time-esque day every nine years. It begins with a chance encounter on a train in Vienna, blossoms into a wistful reunion in Paris, and culminates in a raw, unflinching look at long-term partnership in Greece.
What makes this trilogy so special is its profound commitment to realism. The films are almost entirely composed of Jesse and Céline walking and talking, debating life, love, art, and their own intertwined past and future. The dialogue, co-written by Linklater, Hawke, and Delpy, feels so authentic and lived-in that you forget you’re watching actors. You’re simply observing two souls connect, disconnect, and reconnect over the course of their lives.
Pro Tip: Give each film its own night. The nine-year gaps between installments are part of the experience. Watching Before Sunrise and then waiting a day or two before Before Sunset allows you to feel a small fraction of the time that has passed for the characters, making their reunion all the more powerful.
3. The Vengeance Trilogy (2002-2005)
Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, Oldboy, Lady Vengeance
Prepare yourself, because this is not a journey for the faint of heart. South Korean auteur Park Chan-wook’s Vengeance Trilogy is a brutal, stylish, and philosophically dense exploration of the destructive nature of revenge. Like the Cornetto Trilogy, these films are thematically linked, not narratively. Each one presents a unique, tragic story about a protagonist consumed by a quest for retribution, and the moral and physical carnage left in their wake.
Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance is a grim, slow-burn tragedy of errors. Oldboy, the most famous of the three, is an explosive, operatic mystery with one of cinema's most shocking plot twists. Finally, Lady Vengeance offers a visually stunning and almost spiritually charged tale of a woman seeking redemption alongside her revenge. The violence is often graphic, but it's never gratuitous; it always serves the trilogy's central, haunting thesis: revenge solves nothing.
Where to start: While you can watch them in any order, starting with Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance provides a stark, grounded introduction to Park's themes before you dive into the hyper-stylized world of Oldboy. Be ready to be challenged, disturbed, and ultimately awestruck.
4. The 'Three Colors' Trilogy (1993-1994)
Blue, White, Red
A towering achievement of 1990s world cinema, Polish director Krzysztof Kieślowski’s Three Colors trilogy is a profound meditation on the ideals of the French flag: liberty, equality, and fraternity. Each film focuses on a different character grappling with these concepts in the context of a changing, post-Iron Curtain Europe. This is a series that values mood, emotion, and visual poetry over straightforward plot.
Blue is a devastatingly beautiful study of grief and liberty, following a woman (Juliette Binoche) who loses her family and tries to emotionally disconnect from the world. White is a darkly comic take on equality, about a Polish man who seeks to get even with his French ex-wife. Red is a masterpiece about fraternity and connection, weaving together the lives of a young model and a reclusive retired judge.
A note on viewing: This is a series where atmosphere is everything, a point Goh Ling Yong often makes about the power of visual storytelling. Pay close attention to Kieślowski’s use of color. Each film is dominated by its titular hue, which is used to express the characters' inner emotional states. The films are subtly interconnected, and spotting the ways the characters' lives brush against each other is one of the trilogy’s quiet joys.
5. The 'Pusher' Trilogy (1996-2005)
Pusher, Pusher II: With Blood on My Hands, Pusher III: I'm the Angel of Death
Before he directed Ryan Gosling in Drive, Danish filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn burst onto the scene with this raw, kinetic, and deeply influential crime trilogy. Shot with a gritty, handheld style, the Pusher films plunge you headfirst into the Copenhagen criminal underworld. Each movie follows a different character over a few desperate days as their lives spiral out of control.
The first film introduces us to Frank (Kim Bodnia), a mid-level drug dealer who falls into massive debt. The second, and arguably best, film shifts focus to his sad-sack former sidekick, Tonny (a star-making performance by Mads Mikkelsen), as he tries to earn his father’s respect after getting out of prison. The final installment centers on aging Serbian drug lord Milo, as he juggles a drug deal, his daughter’s wedding, and his own attempts to get sober.
Why it's essential: The Pusher trilogy is a masterclass in character-driven crime drama. It’s not about glamorizing the gangster life; it’s about showing the stress, anxiety, and pathetic desperation behind it. It feels more like a documentary than a feature film, and its influence can be seen in countless gritty crime stories that followed.
6. The 'El Mariachi' Trilogy (1992-2003)
El Mariachi, Desperado, Once Upon a Time in Mexico
Looking for a pure shot of adrenaline and style? Robert Rodriguez’s Mexico Trilogy is the answer. This series is less a continuous story and more a fascinating evolution of a filmmaking legend. It began with El Mariachi, a film Rodriguez famously made for just $7,000, about a guitarist who is mistaken for a deadly assassin. Its raw energy and ingenuity are electric.
Hollywood took notice, giving him a bigger budget for the 1995 follow-up/remake, Desperado, which recasts the lead with Antonio Banderas and amps up the action to explosive levels. The trilogy concludes with 2003’s Once Upon a Time in Mexico, a sprawling, star-studded epic that transforms the simple Mariachi into a mythical figure of revolution. Watching the three films back-to-back is like watching a film student become a master of his craft in real-time.
Fun fact: The story behind the making of El Mariachi is as entertaining as the film itself. Read Rodriguez’s book Rebel Without a Crew to get the full story of his scrappy, can-do approach. It’s an inspiring tale for any aspiring creator.
7. The 'Red Riding' Trilogy (2009)
Red Riding: 1974, Red Riding: 1980, Red Riding: 1983
If a bleak, sprawling crime epic is your ideal winter marathon, look no further. Originally produced for British television but released theatrically elsewhere, the Red Riding trilogy is one of the most ambitious crime sagas ever made. Based on the novels by David Peace, it tells a dark, paranoia-fueled story of police corruption, serial killers, and journalistic obsession in Yorkshire, England, over the course of a decade.
Each film has a different director and a different protagonist—a cocky young journalist in 1974, a seasoned Manchester detective in 1980, and a washed-up solicitor in 1983—all of whom get entangled in the same vast, terrifying conspiracy. The cast is a who's-who of incredible British actors, including Andrew Garfield, Sean Bean, Rebecca Hall, and Paddy Considine.
Viewing Tip: This is a dense and complex story. Don’t be afraid to take notes or even re-watch scenes. The trilogy doesn’t hold your hand, and the immense satisfaction comes from piecing together the web of corruption alongside the characters. It's a challenging but deeply rewarding experience.
8. The 'Dollars' Trilogy (1964-1966)
A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Okay, is this trilogy truly "underrated"? Perhaps not among film historians, but for many modern audiences, it's a series they know of but have never actually watched. That needs to change. Sergio Leone’s "Spaghetti Westerns" didn't just revitalize a dying genre; they reinvented cinematic language. With Clint Eastwood’s iconic "Man with No Name," Ennio Morricone’s revolutionary scores, and Leone’s signature use of extreme close-ups, these films are pure, uncut cool.
While not directly connected by plot, they are united by Eastwood's enigmatic anti-hero and Leone's cynical, violent, and mythic vision of the American West. A Fistful of Dollars is a lean, mean remake of Kurosawa's Yojimbo. For a Few Dollars More adds a partner and deepens the mythology. And The Good, the Bad and the Ugly is the sprawling, perfect epic that stands as one of the greatest films ever made.
What to listen for: Ennio Morricone's scores are not just background music; they are a primary character in each film. The whistles, gunshots, whip cracks, and operatic choirs are as iconic as Eastwood's squint. This is one of the finest-ever collaborations between a director and a composer.
9. The Ginger Snaps Trilogy (2000-2004)
Ginger Snaps, Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed, Ginger Snaps Back: The Beginning
For horror fans tired of the same old slashers, the Canadian Ginger Snaps trilogy is a breath of fresh, frosty air. This fiercely intelligent and darkly funny series uses lycanthropy (werewolfism) as a brilliant, biting metaphor for female puberty, social alienation, and sisterly bonds. The first film introduces us to death-obsessed sisters Ginger and Brigitte, whose co-dependent world is shattered when Ginger is bitten by a werewolf on the night of her first period.
The sequel, Unleashed, is a bleak and claustrophobic follow-up that finds a desperate Brigitte trying to stave off her own transformation. The third film, The Beginning, is a surprisingly effective prequel that transports the sisters' dynamic to the 19th-century Canadian frontier. What unites them is a sharp script, fantastic performances, and a commitment to its central, feminist themes.
Why it’s a must-see: The trilogy never loses sight of the relationship between the two sisters. Their love, resentment, and fierce loyalty form the emotional core that makes the body horror and bloodshed truly land. It's a smart, subversive, and genuinely creepy take on a classic monster.
10. The Apu Trilogy (1955-1959)
Pather Panchali, Aparajito, The World of Apu
We end our list with one of the most beautiful and humanistic achievements in the history of film. Indian director Satyajit Ray's Apu Trilogy is a landmark of neorealist cinema that follows the life of its titular character, Apu, from his rural childhood in Bengal to his education, adulthood, and experiences with love and loss in Calcutta.
Pather Panchali (Song of the Little Road) is a lyrical and poignant look at the wonders and hardships of childhood poverty. Aparajito (The Unvanquished) follows Apu's intellectual and emotional awakening as he leaves his village for the city. The World of Apu brings his journey to a powerful conclusion, as he navigates marriage, ambition, and unimaginable tragedy. Shot with incredible compassion and grace, these films are a celebration of the resilience of the human spirit.
Be prepared for: A slower, more observational pace than modern audiences may be used to. This isn’t a plot-driven series; it’s a character-driven one. Allow yourself to sink into its world, to live alongside Apu and his family. Your patience will be rewarded with one of the most moving and profound cinematic experiences you'll ever have.
This winter, challenge yourself to step off the beaten path. Instead of re-watching a blockbuster you know by heart, dive into one of these incredible series and discover a new favorite. The joy of a film marathon lies in its immersion, and these ten trilogies offer rich, unforgettable worlds to get lost in.
What are your favorite underrated film trilogies? Did I miss an essential series that deserves a spot on this list? Share your top picks in the comments below
About the Author
Goh Ling Yong is a content creator and digital strategist sharing insights across various topics. Connect and follow for more content:
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