Spiritual trilogies are three films with no shared characters or plot that belong together by director, theme or tone. Some are named by their makers, like Edgar Wright's Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, The World's End) and Park Chan-wook's Vengeance Trilogy; others are fan inventions, like the Cage Uncaged trilogy of The Rock, Con Air and Face/Off. Each trilogy has its own rail here; watch the three films in release order.
- Titles
- 48
- Films
- 48
- Watch time
- 96 hours
- Box office
- $4.75 billion
- Avg IMDb
- 7.7
Spiritual Trilogy movies in release order
Here is every Spiritual Trilogy title in the order it came out, 1960 to 2017: 48 films.
| # | Title | Year | Type | Runtime | IMDb |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | L'Avventura | 1960 | Film | 2h 24m | 7.7 |
| 2 | La Notte | 1961 | Film | 2h 2m | 7.9 |
| 3 | L'Eclisse | 1962 | Film | 2h 6m | 7.6 |
| 4 | A Fistful of Dollars | 1964 | Film | 1h 39m | 7.9 |
| 5 | Repulsion | 1965 | Film | 1h 45m | 7.5 |
| 6 | For a Few Dollars More | 1965 | Film | 2h 12m | 8.2 |
| 7 | The Good, the Bad and the Ugly | 1966 | Film | 2h 41m | 8.8 |
| 8 | Rosemary's Baby | 1968 | Film | 2h 18m | 8 |
| 9 | Klute | 1971 | Film | 1h 54m | 7.1 |
| 10 | The Parallax View | 1974 | Film | 1h 42m | 7.1 |
| 11 | The Tenant | 1976 | Film | 2h 6m | 7.5 |
| 12 | All the President's Men | 1976 | Film | 2h 18m | 7.9 |
| 13 | The Thing | 1982 | Film | 1h 49m | 8.2 |
| 14 | Amadeus | 1984 | Film | 2h 40m | 8.4 |
| 15 | Prince of Darkness | 1987 | Film | 1h 42m | 6.6 |
| 16 | Days of Being Wild | 1990 | Film | 1h 34m | 7.4 |
| 17 | Three Colours: Blue | 1993 | Film | 1h 38m | 7.8 |
| 18 | In the Mouth of Madness | 1994 | Film | 1h 35m | 7.1 |
| 19 | Three Colours: White | 1994 | Film | 1h 32m | 7.6 |
| 20 | Three Colours: Red | 1994 | Film | 1h 40m | 8 |
| 21 | The Rock | 1996 | Film | 2h 17m | 7.4 |
| 22 | Con Air | 1997 | Film | 1h 56m | 6.9 |
| 23 | Face/Off | 1997 | Film | 2h 19m | 7.3 |
| 24 | In the Mood for Love | 2000 | Film | 1h 39m | 8 |
| 25 | O Brother, Where Art Thou? | 2000 | Film | 1h 47m | 7.7 |
| 26 | Cast Away | 2000 | Film | 2h 23m | 7.8 |
| 27 | Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance | 2002 | Film | 2h 9m | 7.5 |
| 28 | Oldboy | 2003 | Film | 2h | 8.3 |
| 29 | Intolerable Cruelty | 2003 | Film | 1h 40m | 6.3 |
| 30 | Shaun of the Dead | 2004 | Film | 1h 39m | 7.8 |
| 31 | 2046 | 2004 | Film | 2h 8m | 7.4 |
| 32 | Lady Vengeance | 2005 | Film | 1h 55m | 7.5 |
| 33 | Hot Fuzz | 2007 | Film | 2h 1m | 7.8 |
| 34 | The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford | 2007 | Film | 2h 40m | 7.5 |
| 35 | There Will Be Blood | 2007 | Film | 2h 38m | 8.2 |
| 36 | No Country for Old Men | 2007 | Film | 2h 2m | 8.2 |
| 37 | I Am Legend | 2007 | Film | 1h 41m | 7.2 |
| 38 | Burn After Reading | 2008 | Film | 1h 36m | 7 |
| 39 | Black Swan | 2010 | Film | 1h 48m | 8 |
| 40 | Inside Job | 2010 | Film | 1h 49m | 8.2 |
| 41 | The World's End | 2013 | Film | 1h 49m | 6.9 |
| 42 | The Wolf of Wall Street | 2013 | Film | 3h | 8.2 |
| 43 | Whiplash | 2014 | Film | 1h 47m | 8.5 |
| 44 | Sicario | 2015 | Film | 2h 2m | 7.7 |
| 45 | The Martian | 2015 | Film | 2h 21m | 8 |
| 46 | The Big Short | 2015 | Film | 2h 11m | 7.8 |
| 47 | Hell or High Water | 2016 | Film | 1h 42m | 7.6 |
| 48 | Wind River | 2017 | Film | 1h 47m | 7.7 |
Spiritual Trilogy timeline: movies in chronological order
The same titles in story order, by when they take place, with the year or era each one is set in.
| # | Title | Set in | Released |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shaun of the Dead | First in the trilogy | 2004 |
| 2 | Hot Fuzz | Second in the trilogy | 2007 |
| 3 | The World's End | Third in the trilogy | 2013 |
| 4 | Repulsion | First in the trilogy | 1965 |
| 5 | Rosemary's Baby | Second in the trilogy | 1968 |
| 6 | The Tenant | Third in the trilogy | 1976 |
| 7 | Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance | First in the trilogy | 2002 |
| 8 | Oldboy | Second in the trilogy | 2003 |
| 9 | Lady Vengeance | Third in the trilogy | 2005 |
| 10 | The Thing | First in the trilogy | 1982 |
| 11 | Prince of Darkness | Second in the trilogy | 1987 |
| 12 | In the Mouth of Madness | Third in the trilogy | 1994 |
| 13 | Sicario | First in the trilogy | 2015 |
| 14 | Hell or High Water | Second in the trilogy | 2016 |
| 15 | Wind River | Third in the trilogy | 2017 |
| 16 | Klute | First in the trilogy | 1971 |
| 17 | The Parallax View | Second in the trilogy | 1974 |
| 18 | All the President's Men | Third in the trilogy | 1976 |
| 19 | Three Colours: Blue | First in the trilogy | 1993 |
| 20 | Three Colours: White | Second in the trilogy | 1994 |
| 21 | Three Colours: Red | Third in the trilogy | 1994 |
| 22 | Days of Being Wild | First in the trilogy | 1990 |
| 23 | In the Mood for Love | Second in the trilogy | 2000 |
| 24 | 2046 | Third in the trilogy | 2004 |
| 25 | L'Avventura | First in the trilogy | 1960 |
| 26 | La Notte | Second in the trilogy | 1961 |
| 27 | L'Eclisse | Third in the trilogy | 1962 |
| 28 | O Brother, Where Art Thou? | First in the trilogy | 2000 |
| 29 | Intolerable Cruelty | Second in the trilogy | 2003 |
| 30 | Burn After Reading | Third in the trilogy | 2008 |
| 31 | A Fistful of Dollars | First in the trilogy | 1964 |
| 32 | For a Few Dollars More | Second in the trilogy | 1965 |
| 33 | The Good, the Bad and the Ugly | Third in the trilogy | 1966 |
| 34 | The Rock | First in the trilogy | 1996 |
| 35 | Con Air | Second in the trilogy | 1997 |
| 36 | Face/Off | Third in the trilogy | 1997 |
| 37 | The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford | First in the trilogy | 2007 |
| 38 | There Will Be Blood | Second in the trilogy | 2007 |
| 39 | No Country for Old Men | Third in the trilogy | 2007 |
| 40 | Amadeus | First in the trilogy | 1984 |
| 41 | Black Swan | Second in the trilogy | 2010 |
| 42 | Whiplash | Third in the trilogy | 2014 |
| 43 | Cast Away | First in the trilogy | 2000 |
| 44 | I Am Legend | Second in the trilogy | 2007 |
| 45 | The Martian | Third in the trilogy | 2015 |
| 46 | Inside Job | First in the trilogy | 2010 |
| 47 | The Wolf of Wall Street | Second in the trilogy | 2013 |
| 48 | The Big Short | Third in the trilogy | 2015 |
Release or chronological: which order is best?
Release order and story order disagree on 46 titles here. In release order you start with L'Avventura (1960); in story order you start with Shaun of the Dead, set in First in the trilogy, which came out 44 years later.
First time through, watch in release order. That is how the twists, returning characters and callbacks were built to land, and later entries assume you have seen the earlier ones. On a rewatch, try story order. It turns Spiritual Trilogies into one continuous story and makes the prequels play as setup instead of backstory.
Spiritual Trilogies also runs 16 separate continuities: The Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy, Polanski's Apartment Trilogy, Park Chan-wook's Vengeance Trilogy, John Carpenter's Apocalypse Trilogy, Taylor Sheridan's Frontier Trilogy, Alan J. Pakula's Paranoia Trilogy, Kieślowski's Three Colours Trilogy, Wong Kar-wai's Love Trilogy, Antonioni's Alienation Trilogy, The Coen Brothers' Idiot Trilogy, Sergio Leone's Dollars Trilogy, The Cage Uncaged Trilogy, The 2007 Western Trilogy, The Obsessed Artist Trilogy, The Alone Trilogy, and The Wall Street Trilogy. Each has its own line on the timeline, so you can watch them on their own without breaking the main story.
Where to start
Start with L'Avventura and go in release order.
The whole thing is 96 hours. At two hours a night that is about 49 evenings.
The three highest rated: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (8.8), Whiplash (8.5), and Amadeus (8.4).
Every Spiritual Trilogy movie, explained
One entry per title in release order: what it is about, why it matters to the bigger story, who is in it and how it did.
No. 01 · 1960 · Film · 2h 24m · 25th in story order
L'Avventura
Claudia and Anna join Anna's lover, Sandro, on a boat trip to a remote volcanic island. When Anna goes missing, a search is launched. In the meantime, Sandro and Claudia become involved in a romance despite Anna's disappearance, though the relationship suffers from guilt and tension.
Why it matters: A woman disappears on an island and her friends stop looking.
- Starring
- Monica Vitti, Gabriele Ferzetti, and Lea Massari
- Director
- Michelangelo Antonioni
- Scores
- IMDb 7.7 · Rotten Tomatoes 94%
No. 02 · 1961 · Film · 2h 2m · 26th in story order
La Notte
A day in the life of an unfaithful married couple and their steadily deteriorating relationship in Milan.
Why it matters: A day and night in a failing marriage in Milan.
- Starring
- Marcello Mastroianni, Jeanne Moreau, and Monica Vitti
- Director
- Michelangelo Antonioni
- Scores
- IMDb 7.9 · Rotten Tomatoes 84%
No. 03 · 1962 · Film · 2h 6m · 27th in story order
L'Eclisse
Vittoria is a beautiful literary translator living in Rome. After splitting from her writer boyfriend, Riccardo, Vittoria meets Piero, a lively stockbroker, on the hectic floor of the Roman stock exchange. Though Vittoria and Piero begin a relationship, it is not one without difficulties, and their commitment to one another is tested during an eclipse.
Why it matters: A translator drifts into an affair with a stockbroker in Rome.
- Starring
- Alain Delon, Monica Vitti, and Francisco Rabal
- Director
- Michelangelo Antonioni
- Scores
- IMDb 7.6 · Rotten Tomatoes 87%
No. 04 · 1964 · Film · 1h 39m · 31st in story order
A Fistful of Dollars
The Man With No Name enters the Mexican village of San Miguel in the midst of a power struggle among the three Rojo brothers and sheriff John Baxter. When a regiment of Mexican soldiers bearing gold intended to pay for new weapons is waylaid by the Rojo brothers, the stranger inserts himself into the middle of the long-simmering battle, selling false information to both sides for his own benefit.
Why it matters: The Man with No Name plays two gangs against each other.
- Starring
- Clint Eastwood, Marianne Koch, and Gian Maria Volonté
- Director
- Sergio Leone
- Box office
- $15 million
- Scores
- IMDb 7.9 · Rotten Tomatoes 98%
No. 05 · 1965 · Film · 1h 45m · 4th in story order
Repulsion
Beautiful young manicurist Carole suffers from androphobia (the pathological fear of interaction with men). When her sister and roommate, Helen, leaves their London flat to go on an Italian holiday with her married boyfriend, Carole withdraws into her apartment. She begins to experience frightful hallucinations, her fear gradually mutating into madness.
Why it matters: A young woman alone in her London flat comes apart.
- Starring
- Catherine Deneuve, Ian Hendry, and John Fraser
- Director
- Roman Polanski
- Box office
- $3 million
- Scores
- IMDb 7.5 · Rotten Tomatoes 96%
No. 06 · 1965 · Film · 2h 12m · 32nd in story order
For a Few Dollars More
Two bounty hunters both pursue the brutal and sadistic bandit, El Indio, who has a large bounty on his head.
Why it matters: Two bounty hunters after the same outlaw.
- Starring
- Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, and Gian Maria Volonté
- Director
- Sergio Leone
- Box office
- $15 million
- Scores
- IMDb 8.2 · Rotten Tomatoes 92%
No. 07 · 1966 · Film · 2h 41m · 33rd in story order
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
While the Civil War rages on between the Union and the Confederacy, three men – a quiet loner, a ruthless hitman, and a Mexican bandit – comb the American Southwest in search of a strongbox containing $200,000 in stolen gold.
Why it matters: Three gunmen hunt buried Confederate gold.
- Starring
- Clint Eastwood, Eli Wallach, and Lee Van Cleef
- Director
- Sergio Leone
- Box office
- $39 million on a $1 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 8.8 · Rotten Tomatoes 97%
No. 08 · 1968 · Film · 2h 18m · 5th in story order
Rosemary's Baby
A young couple, Rosemary and Guy, moves into an infamous New York apartment building, known by frightening legends and mysterious events, with the purpose of starting a family.
Why it matters: A pregnant woman suspects her neighbors of something unholy.
- Starring
- Mia Farrow, John Cassavetes, and Ruth Gordon
- Director
- Roman Polanski
- Box office
- $33 million on a $3 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 8 · Rotten Tomatoes 97%
No. 09 · 1971 · Film · 1h 54m · 16th in story order
Klute
A high-priced call girl is forced to depend on a reluctant private eye when she is stalked by a psychopath.
Why it matters: A detective and a call girl being stalked.
- Starring
- Jane Fonda, Donald Sutherland, and Charles Cioffi
- Director
- Alan J. Pakula
- Box office
- $13 million on a $3 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.1 · Rotten Tomatoes 92%
No. 10 · 1974 · Film · 1h 42m · 17th in story order
The Parallax View
An ambitious reporter gets in trouble while investigating a senator's assassination which leads to a vast conspiracy involving a multinational corporation behind every event in the world's headlines.
Why it matters: A reporter digs into a political assassination and a shadowy corporation.
- Starring
- Warren Beatty, Paula Prentiss, and William Daniels
- Director
- Alan J. Pakula
- Box office
- $3 million on a $3 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.1 · Rotten Tomatoes 87%
No. 11 · 1976 · Film · 2h 6m · 6th in story order
The Tenant
A quiet and inconspicuous man rents an apartment in Paris where he finds himself drawn into a rabbit hole of dangerous paranoia.
Why it matters: Polanski himself, in a Paris apartment whose last tenant jumped.
- Starring
- Roman Polanski, Isabelle Adjani, and Melvyn Douglas
- Director
- Roman Polanski
- Box office
- $5 million
- Scores
- IMDb 7.5 · Rotten Tomatoes 85%
No. 12 · 1976 · Film · 2h 18m · 18th in story order
All the President's Men
During the 1972 elections, two reporters' investigation sheds light on the controversial Watergate scandal that compels President Nixon to resign from his post.
Why it matters: Woodward and Bernstein break the Watergate story.
- Starring
- Dustin Hoffman, Robert Redford, and Jack Warden
- Director
- Alan J. Pakula
- Box office
- $71 million on a $9 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.9 · Rotten Tomatoes 95%
No. 13 · 1982 · Film · 1h 49m · 10th in story order
The Thing
A research team in Antarctica is hunted by a shape-shifting alien that assumes the appearance of its victims.
Why it matters: A shape-shifting alien in an Antarctic research station.
- Starring
- Kurt Russell, Wilford Brimley, and T.K. Carter
- Director
- John Carpenter
- Box office
- $20 million on a $15 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 8.2 · Rotten Tomatoes 85%
No. 14 · 1984 · Film · 2h 40m · 40th in story order
Amadeus
Disciplined Italian composer Antonio Salieri becomes consumed by jealousy and resentment towards the hedonistic and remarkably talented young Salzburger composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
Why it matters: Salieri's jealousy of Mozart.
- Starring
- F. Murray Abraham, Tom Hulce, and Elizabeth Berridge
- Director
- Miloš Forman
- Box office
- $90 million on a $18 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 8.4 · Rotten Tomatoes 90%
No. 15 · 1987 · Film · 1h 42m · 11th in story order
Prince of Darkness
A priest discovers an ancient canister containing a strange liquid in an abandoned church. When a group of graduate students and scientists are tasked with studying it, they unknowingly unleash an evil force waiting to destroy all of humanity.
Why it matters: Physicists study a canister of liquid evil in a church basement.
- Starring
- Donald Pleasence, Lisa Blount, and Victor Wong
- Director
- John Carpenter
- Box office
- $14 million on a $3 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 6.6 · Rotten Tomatoes 60%
No. 16 · 1990 · Film · 1h 34m · 22nd in story order
Days of Being Wild
Yuddy, a Hong Kong playboy known for breaking girls' hearts, tries to find solace and truth after discovering the woman who raised him isn't his mother.
Why it matters: A restless young man in 1960 Hong Kong and the women he hurts.
- Starring
- Leslie Cheung, Maggie Cheung, and Andy Lau
- Director
- Wong Kar-wai
- Box office
- $3 million
- Scores
- IMDb 7.4 · Rotten Tomatoes 91%
No. 17 · 1993 · Film · 1h 38m · 19th in story order
Three Colours: Blue
The wife of a famous composer survives a car accident that kills her husband and daughter. Now alone, she shakes off her old identity and explores her newfound freedom but finds that she is unbreakably bound to other humans, including her husband’s mistress, whose existence she never suspected.
Why it matters: Liberty: a widow tries to cut herself off from everything.
- Starring
- Juliette Binoche, Benoît Régent, and Florence Pernel
- Director
- Krzysztof Kieślowski
- Box office
- $2 million
- Scores
- IMDb 7.8 · Rotten Tomatoes 98%
No. 18 · 1994 · Film · 1h 35m · 12th in story order
In the Mouth of Madness
An insurance investigator visits a small town while looking into the strange disappearance of a popular horror novelist. He soon finds that the impact of the author’s books is far more than inspirational.
Why it matters: An investigator finds a horror novelist's books are rewriting reality.
- Starring
- Sam Neill, Julie Carmen, and Jürgen Prochnow
- Director
- John Carpenter
- Box office
- $9 million on a $8 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.1 · Rotten Tomatoes 61%
No. 19 · 1994 · Film · 1h 32m · 20th in story order
Three Colours: White
Polish immigrant Karol Karol finds himself out of a marriage, a job and a country when his French wife, Dominique, divorces him after six months due to his impotence. Forced to leave France after losing the business they jointly owned, Karol enlists fellow Polish expatriate Mikołaj to smuggle him back to their homeland.
Why it matters: Equality: a divorced Polish hairdresser plots to win back his wife.
- Starring
- Zbigniew Zamachowski, Julie Delpy, and Janusz Gajos
- Director
- Krzysztof Kieślowski
- Box office
- $1 million
- Scores
- IMDb 7.6 · Rotten Tomatoes 91%
No. 20 · 1994 · Film · 1h 40m · 21st in story order
Three Colours: Red
Part-time model Valentine unexpectedly befriends a retired judge after she runs over his dog. At first, the grumpy man shows no concern about the dog, and Valentine decides to keep it. But the two form a bond when she returns to his house and catches him listening to his neighbors’ phone calls.
Why it matters: Fraternity: a model and a retired judge who listens to his neighbors' calls.
- Starring
- Irène Jacob, Jean-Louis Trintignant, and Frédérique Feder
- Director
- Krzysztof Kieślowski
- Box office
- $4 million
- Scores
- IMDb 8 · Rotten Tomatoes 100%
No. 21 · 1996 · Film · 2h 17m · 34th in story order
The Rock
When vengeful General Francis X. Hummel seizes control of Alcatraz Island and threatens to launch missiles loaded with deadly chemical weapons into San Francisco, only a young FBI chemical weapons expert and notorious Federal prisoner have the skills to penetrate the impregnable island fortress and take him down.
Why it matters: Nicolas Cage as a chemical weapons expert breaking into Alcatraz.
- Starring
- Sean Connery, Nicolas Cage, and Ed Harris
- Director
- Michael Bay
- Box office
- $335 million on a $75 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.4 · Rotten Tomatoes 76%
No. 22 · 1997 · Film · 1h 56m · 35th in story order
Con Air
Newly-paroled former US Army ranger Cameron Poe is headed back to his wife, but must fly home aboard a prison transport flight dubbed "Jailbird" taking the “worst of the worst” prisoners, a group described as “pure predators”, to a new super-prison. Poe faces impossible odds when the transport plane is skyjacked mid-flight by the most vicious criminals in the country led by the mastermind — genius serial killer Cyrus "The Virus" Grissom, and backed by black militant Diamond Dog and psychopath Billy Bedlam.
Why it matters: Nicolas Cage as a parolee on a plane full of hijacking convicts.
- Starring
- Nicolas Cage, John Cusack, and John Malkovich
- Director
- Simon West
- Box office
- $224 million on a $75 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 6.9 · Rotten Tomatoes 59%
No. 23 · 1997 · Film · 2h 19m · 36th in story order
Face/Off
In order to foil a terrorist plot, an FBI agent undergoes facial transplant surgery and assumes the identity of a criminal mastermind. The plan turns sour when the criminal wakes up prematurely and seeks revenge.
Why it matters: Nicolas Cage and John Travolta swap faces.
- Starring
- John Travolta, Nicolas Cage, and Joan Allen
- Director
- John Woo
- Box office
- $246 million on a $80 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.3 · Rotten Tomatoes 93%
No. 24 · 2000 · Film · 1h 39m · 23rd in story order
In the Mood for Love
In 1960s Hong Kong, two neighbors form an intimate bond after making a discovery about their spouses in this visually stunning tale of unrequited love.
Why it matters: Two neighbors realize their spouses are having an affair.
- Starring
- Maggie Cheung, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, and Siu Ping-Lam
- Director
- Wong Kar-wai
- Box office
- $16 million on a $3 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 8 · Rotten Tomatoes 92%
No. 25 · 2000 · Film · 1h 47m · 28th in story order
O Brother, Where Art Thou?
In the deep south during the 1930s, three escaped convicts search for hidden treasure while a relentless lawman pursues them.
Why it matters: Three escaped convicts in 1930s Mississippi, retelling The Odyssey.
- Starring
- George Clooney, John Turturro, and Tim Blake Nelson
- Director
- Joel Coen
- Box office
- $72 million on a $26 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.7 · Rotten Tomatoes 78%
No. 26 · 2000 · Film · 2h 23m · 43rd in story order
Cast Away
Chuck Noland, a top international manager for FedEx, and Kelly, a Ph.D. student, are in love and heading towards marriage. Then Chuck's plane to Malaysia crashes at sea during a terrible storm. He's the only survivor, and finds himself marooned on a desolate island. With no way to escape, Chuck must find ways to survive in his new home.
Why it matters: A FedEx engineer stranded on an island for four years.
- Starring
- Tom Hanks, Helen Hunt, and Nick Searcy
- Director
- Robert Zemeckis
- Box office
- $430 million on a $90 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.8 · Rotten Tomatoes 88%
No. 27 · 2002 · Film · 2h 9m · 7th in story order
Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance
A deaf man and his girlfriend resort to desperate measures in order to fund a kidney transplant for his sister. Things go horribly wrong, and the situation spirals rapidly into a cycle of violence and revenge.
Why it matters: A kidnapping to pay for a sister's kidney goes wrong.
- Starring
- Song Kang-ho, Shin Ha-kyun, and Bae Doona
- Director
- Park Chan-wook
- Box office
- $2 million on a $4 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.5 · Rotten Tomatoes 53%
No. 28 · 2003 · Film · 2h · 8th in story order
Oldboy
With no clue how he came to be imprisoned, drugged and tortured for 15 years, a desperate man seeks revenge on his captors.
Why it matters: A man is locked in a room for 15 years without being told why.
- Starring
- Choi Min-sik, Yoo Ji-tae, and Kang Hye-jung
- Director
- Park Chan-wook
- Box office
- $18 million on a $3 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 8.3 · Rotten Tomatoes 82%
No. 29 · 2003 · Film · 1h 40m
Intolerable Cruelty
A revenge-seeking gold digger marries a womanizing Beverly Hills lawyer with the intention of making a killing in the divorce.
Why it matters: A divorce lawyer falls for a gold digger.
- Starring
- George Clooney, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Geoffrey Rush
- Director
- Joel Coen
- Box office
- $120 million on a $60 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 6.3 · Rotten Tomatoes 76%
No. 30 · 2004 · Film · 1h 39m · 1st in story order
Shaun of the Dead
Shaun lives a supremely uneventful life, which revolves around his girlfriend, his mother, and, above all, his local pub. This gentle routine is threatened when the dead return to life and make strenuous attempts to snack on ordinary Londoners.
Why it matters: Edgar Wright's zombie comedy; strawberry Cornetto, for blood.
- Starring
- Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, and Kate Ashfield
- Director
- Edgar Wright
- Box office
- $39 million on a $6 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.8 · Rotten Tomatoes 92%
No. 31 · 2004 · Film · 2h 8m · 24th in story order
2046
Women enter and exit a science fiction author's life over the course of a few years after the author loses the woman he considers his one true love.
Why it matters: The writer from In the Mood for Love, years later.
- Starring
- Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Gong Li, and Faye Wong
- Director
- Wong Kar-wai
- Box office
- $20 million on a $12 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.4 · Rotten Tomatoes 87%
No. 32 · 2005 · Film · 1h 55m · 9th in story order
Lady Vengeance
Released after being wrongfully convicted and imprisoned for 13 years, a woman begins executing her elaborate plan of retribution.
Why it matters: A woman jailed for a child's murder plans her revenge.
- Starring
- Lee Young-ae, Choi Min-sik, and Kwon Yea-young
- Director
- Park Chan-wook
- Box office
- $24 million
- Scores
- IMDb 7.5 · Rotten Tomatoes 76%
No. 33 · 2007 · Film · 2h 1m · 2nd in story order
Hot Fuzz
Former London constable Nicholas Angel finds it difficult to adapt to his new assignment in the sleepy British village of Sandford. Not only does he miss the excitement of the big city, but he also has a well-meaning oaf for a partner. However, when a series of grisly accidents rocks Sandford, Angel smells something rotten in the idyllic village.
Why it matters: A London supercop in a sinister village; the blue Cornetto, for police.
- Starring
- Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, and Jim Broadbent
- Director
- Edgar Wright
- Box office
- $81 million on a $12 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.8 · Rotten Tomatoes 91%
No. 34 · 2007 · Film · 2h 40m · 37th in story order
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
Outlaw Jesse James is rumored to be the 'fastest gun in the West'. An eager recruit into James' notorious gang, Robert Ford eventually grows jealous of the famed outlaw and, when Robert and his brother sense an opportunity to kill James, their murderous action elevates their target to near mythical status.
Why it matters: Jesse James's last months, through the eyes of the man who kills him.
- Starring
- Brad Pitt, Casey Affleck, and Sam Rockwell
- Director
- Andrew Dominik
- Box office
- $15 million on a $30 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.5 · Rotten Tomatoes 76%
No. 35 · 2007 · Film · 2h 38m · 38th in story order
There Will Be Blood
Ruthless silver miner, turned oil prospector, Daniel Plainview, moves to oil-rich California. Using his son to project a trustworthy, family-man image, Plainview cons local landowners into selling him their valuable properties for a pittance. However, local preacher Eli Sunday suspects Plainview's motives and intentions, starting a slow-burning feud that threatens both their lives.
Why it matters: An oilman's rise and ruin in early 1900s California.
- Starring
- Daniel Day-Lewis, Paul Dano, and Kevin J. O'Connor
- Director
- Paul Thomas Anderson
- Box office
- $77 million on a $25 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 8.2 · Rotten Tomatoes 91%
No. 36 · 2007 · Film · 2h 2m · 39th in story order
No Country for Old Men
Llewelyn Moss stumbles upon dead bodies, $2 million and a hoard of heroin in a Texas desert, but methodical killer Anton Chigurh comes looking for it, with local sheriff Ed Tom Bell hot on his trail. The roles of prey and predator blur as the violent pursuit of money and justice collide.
Why it matters: A hunter takes drug money and a killer follows him.
- Starring
- Javier Bardem, Tommy Lee Jones, and Josh Brolin
- Director
- Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
- Box office
- $172 million on a $25 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 8.2 · Rotten Tomatoes 93%
No. 37 · 2007 · Film · 1h 41m · 44th in story order
I Am Legend
Robert Neville is a scientist who was unable to stop the spread of the terrible virus that was incurable and man-made. Immune, Neville is now the last human survivor in what is left of New York City and perhaps the world. For three years, Neville has faithfully sent out daily radio messages, desperate to find any other survivors who might be out there. But he is not alone.
Why it matters: The last man in New York after a plague.
- Starring
- Will Smith, Alice Braga, and Charlie Tahan
- Director
- Francis Lawrence
- Box office
- $585 million on a $150 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.2 · Rotten Tomatoes 68%
No. 38 · 2008 · Film · 1h 36m · 30th in story order
Burn After Reading
When a disc containing memoirs of a former CIA analyst falls into the hands of gym employees, Linda and Chad, they see a chance to make enough money for Linda to have life-changing cosmetic surgery. Predictably, events whirl out of control for the duo, and those in their orbit.
Why it matters: Two gym employees find a CIA analyst's memoir on a disc.
- Starring
- George Clooney, Frances McDormand, and Brad Pitt
- Director
- Ethan Coen and Joel Coen
- Box office
- $164 million on a $37 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7 · Rotten Tomatoes 78%
No. 39 · 2010 · Film · 1h 48m · 41st in story order
Black Swan
A committed dancer struggles to maintain her sanity after winning the lead role in a production of Tchaikovsky's "Swan Lake."
Why it matters: A ballerina loses herself to the lead in Swan Lake.
- Starring
- Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, and Vincent Cassel
- Director
- Darren Aronofsky
- Box office
- $329 million on a $13 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 8 · Rotten Tomatoes 85%
No. 40 · 2010 · Film · 1h 49m · 46th in story order
Inside Job
A film that exposes the shocking truth behind the economic crisis of 2008. The global financial meltdown, at a cost of over $20 trillion, resulted in millions of people losing their homes and jobs. Through extensive research and interviews with major financial insiders, politicians and journalists, Inside Job traces the rise of a rogue industry and unveils the corrosive relationships which have corrupted politics, regulation and academia.
Why it matters: A documentary on the 2008 financial crisis.
- Starring
- Matt Damon, Bill Ackman, and Jonathan Alpert
- Director
- Charles Ferguson
- Box office
- $8 million on a $2 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 8.2 · Rotten Tomatoes 98%
No. 41 · 2013 · Film · 1h 49m · 3rd in story order
The World's End
Five friends who reunite in an attempt to top their epic pub crawl from 20 years earlier unwittingly become humankind's only hope for survival.
Why it matters: A pub crawl during an alien takeover; the mint Cornetto.
- Starring
- Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, and Paddy Considine
- Director
- Edgar Wright
- Box office
- $46 million on a $20 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 6.9 · Rotten Tomatoes 89%
No. 42 · 2013 · Film · 3h · 47th in story order
The Wolf of Wall Street
A New York stockbroker refuses to cooperate in a large securities fraud case involving corruption on Wall Street, corporate banking world and mob infiltration. Based on Jordan Belfort's autobiography.
Why it matters: Jordan Belfort's fraud-fuelled rise as a stockbroker.
- Starring
- Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill, and Margot Robbie
- Director
- Martin Scorsese
- Box office
- $407 million on a $100 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 8.2 · Rotten Tomatoes 79%
No. 43 · 2014 · Film · 1h 47m · 42nd in story order
Whiplash
Under the direction of a ruthless instructor, a talented young drummer begins to pursue perfection at any cost, even his humanity.
Why it matters: A jazz drummer and an abusive bandleader.
- Starring
- Miles Teller, J.K. Simmons, and Paul Reiser
- Director
- Damien Chazelle
- Box office
- $50 million on a $3 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 8.5 · Rotten Tomatoes 94%
No. 44 · 2015 · Film · 2h 2m · 13th in story order
Sicario
An idealistic FBI agent is enlisted by a government task force to aid in the escalating war against drugs at the border area between the U.S. and Mexico.
Why it matters: An FBI agent is pulled into a cartel operation on the Mexican border.
- Starring
- Emily Blunt, Benicio del Toro, and Josh Brolin
- Director
- Denis Villeneuve
- Box office
- $85 million on a $30 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.7 · Rotten Tomatoes 91%
No. 45 · 2015 · Film · 2h 21m
The Martian
During a manned mission to Mars, Astronaut Mark Watney is presumed dead after a fierce storm and left behind by his crew. But Watney has survived and finds himself stranded and alone on the hostile planet. With only meager supplies, he must draw upon his ingenuity, wit and spirit to subsist and find a way to signal to Earth that he is alive.
Why it matters: An astronaut left behind on Mars.
- Starring
- Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, and Kristen Wiig
- Director
- Ridley Scott
- Box office
- $631 million on a $108 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 8 · Rotten Tomatoes 91%
No. 46 · 2015 · Film · 2h 11m · 48th in story order
The Big Short
The men who made millions from a global economic meltdown.
Why it matters: The few investors who saw the 2008 housing crash coming.
- Starring
- Steve Carell, Christian Bale, and Ryan Gosling
- Director
- Adam McKay
- Box office
- $133 million on a $28 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.8 · Rotten Tomatoes 89%
No. 47 · 2016 · Film · 1h 42m · 14th in story order
Hell or High Water
A divorced dad and his ex-con brother resort to a desperate scheme in order to save their family's farm in West Texas.
Why it matters: Two brothers rob the bank about to take their family ranch.
- Starring
- Jeff Bridges, Chris Pine, and Ben Foster
- Director
- David Mackenzie
- Box office
- $38 million on a $12 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.6 · Rotten Tomatoes 97%
No. 48 · 2017 · Film · 1h 47m · 15th in story order
Wind River
An FBI agent teams with the town's veteran game tracker to investigate a murder that occurred on a Native American reservation.
Why it matters: A tracker and an FBI agent investigate a death on a reservation.
- Starring
- Jeremy Renner, Elizabeth Olsen, and Gil Birmingham
- Director
- Taylor Sheridan
- Box office
- $45 million on a $11 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.7 · Rotten Tomatoes 87%
Spiritual Trilogy box office and budgets
The 45 Spiritual Trilogy films with reported numbers have grossed $4.75 billion worldwide on about $1.10 billion in combined budgets, roughly 4.2 times what they cost. The biggest is The Martian at $631 million, 13% of the franchise's total on its own, followed by I Am Legend ($585 million) and Cast Away ($430 million).
Measured against what it cost, the best return belongs to The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, which made 32 times its $1 million budget. The weakest was Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance at 49% of its $4 million budget. As a rule of thumb, a film needs about two and a half times its budget at the box office to cover marketing and the theaters' cut.
The best and worst rated Spiritual Trilogy movies
Across 48 rated titles, Spiritual Trilogies averages 7.7 on IMDb. The top of the list is The Good, the Bad and the Ugly at 8.8, then Whiplash (8.5) and Amadeus (8.4). At the bottom: Intolerable Cruelty (6.3) and Prince of Darkness (6.6). Money and quality don't line up perfectly: the highest grosser, The Martian, is only the 15th best rated.
- The Good, the Bad and the Ugly8.8 · RT 97%
- Whiplash8.5 · RT 94%
- Amadeus8.4 · RT 90%
- Oldboy8.3 · RT 82%
- For a Few Dollars More8.2 · RT 92%
- The Thing8.2 · RT 85%
- There Will Be Blood8.2 · RT 91%
- No Country for Old Men8.2 · RT 93%
- Inside Job8.2 · RT 98%
- The Wolf of Wall Street8.2 · RT 79%
Who appears in the most Spiritual Trilogy movies
Monica Vitti leads with 3 appearances as Claudia and Valentina Gherardini, ahead of Clint Eastwood (3) and Benito Stefanelli (3). Counted from each title's top-billed cast.
| Actor | Role | Titles | First and latest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monica Vitti | Claudia / Valentina Gherardini | 3 | L'Avventura (1960) to L'Eclisse (1962) |
| Clint Eastwood | Joe / Manco | 3 | A Fistful of Dollars (1964) to The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966) |
| Benito Stefanelli | Rubio / Luke 'Hughie' | 3 | A Fistful of Dollars (1964) to The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966) |
| Maggie Cheung | Su Li-zhen | 3 | Days of Being Wild (1990) to 2046 (2004) |
| Tony Leung Chiu-wai | Chow Mo-wan | 3 | Days of Being Wild (1990) to 2046 (2004) |
| Nicolas Cage | Dr. Stanley Goodspeed / Cameron Poe | 3 | The Rock (1996) to Face/Off (1997) |
| George Clooney | Everett / Miles | 3 | O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000) to Burn After Reading (2008) |
| Simon Pegg | Shaun / Nicholas Angel | 3 | Shaun of the Dead (2004) to The World's End (2013) |
| Nick Frost | Ed / PC Danny Butterman | 3 | Shaun of the Dead (2004) to The World's End (2013) |
| Rafe Spall | Noel / DC Andy Cartwright | 3 | Shaun of the Dead (2004) to The Big Short (2015) |
| Brad Pitt | Jesse James / Chad Feldheimer | 3 | The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007) to The Big Short (2015) |
| Jon Bernthal | Brad / Ted | 3 | The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) to Wind River (2017) |
Spiritual Trilogy directors and creators
28 filmmakers have directed or created Spiritual Trilogies; Joel Coen has the most, with 4.
- Joel CoenO Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000), Intolerable Cruelty (2003), No Country for Old Men (2007), and Burn After Reading (2008)
- Michelangelo AntonioniL'Avventura (1960), La Notte (1961), and L'Eclisse (1962)
- Sergio LeoneA Fistful of Dollars (1964), For a Few Dollars More (1965), and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966)
- Roman PolanskiRepulsion (1965), Rosemary's Baby (1968), and The Tenant (1976)
- Alan J. PakulaKlute (1971), The Parallax View (1974), and All the President's Men (1976)
- John CarpenterThe Thing (1982), Prince of Darkness (1987), and In the Mouth of Madness (1994)
- Wong Kar-waiDays of Being Wild (1990), In the Mood for Love (2000), and 2046 (2004)
- Krzysztof KieślowskiThree Colours: Blue (1993), Three Colours: White (1994), and Three Colours: Red (1994)
- Park Chan-wookSympathy for Mr. Vengeance (2002), Oldboy (2003), and Lady Vengeance (2005)
- Edgar WrightShaun of the Dead (2004), Hot Fuzz (2007), and The World's End (2013)
- Ethan CoenNo Country for Old Men (2007) and Burn After Reading (2008)
- Miloš FormanAmadeus (1984)
- Michael BayThe Rock (1996)
- Simon WestCon Air (1997)
- John WooFace/Off (1997)
- Robert ZemeckisCast Away (2000)
How long it takes to watch every Spiritual Trilogy movie
All 48 titles add up to 96 hours. That is about 49 two-hour evenings, or 10 days of ten-hour binges. The longest film is The Wolf of Wall Street at 3h.
The 4 best rated films: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, Whiplash, Amadeus, and Oldboy.
Everything takes about 3 months.
Track what you've watched on the timeline and it counts the hours left.
Upcoming Spiritual Trilogy movies
- Sicario 3Date to be announced
- Wind River: RisingDate to be announced
- I Am Legend 2Date to be announced
Common questions
What order should I watch the Spiritual Trilogy movies in?
Spiritual trilogies are three films with no shared characters or plot that belong together by director, theme or tone. Some are named by their makers, like Edgar Wright's Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, The World's End) and Park Chan-wook's Vengeance Trilogy; others are fan inventions, like the Cage Uncaged trilogy of The Rock, Con Air and Face/Off. Each trilogy has its own rail here; watch the three films in release order.
How many Spiritual Trilogy movies and shows are there?
There are 48 titles in the Spiritual Trilogies franchise: 48 films and 0 series, released from 1960 to 2017. 3 more are announced: Sicario 3, Wind River: Rising, and I Am Legend 2.
How long does it take to watch all the Spiritual Trilogy movies?
About 96 hours for all 48 titles, counting every episode.
What is the first Spiritual Trilogy title in chronological order?
Shaun of the Dead, set in First in the trilogy. In release order the first is L'Avventura (1960).
What is the next Spiritual Trilogy release?
Sicario 3, date to be announced.
What is the best Spiritual Trilogy movie?
By IMDb score, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966) at 8.8, followed by Whiplash at 8.5.
What is the highest-grossing Spiritual Trilogy movie?
The Martian (2015), with $631 million worldwide. Spiritual Trilogies films have made $4.75 billion in total.
Who has appeared in the most Spiritual Trilogy movies?
Monica Vitti, in 3 of them as Claudia.
What is the longest Spiritual Trilogy movie?
The Wolf of Wall Street, at 3h.
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