There are few things more satisfying than a good film trilogy. To have a story split cleanly into three chunks, effectively giving viewers a beginning, middle, and end, except having it play out over 5-9 hours, instead of just a couple? There's something so great about it, especially when everything comes together and all three parts are strong.

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That's sort of (but not quite) what the following eight trilogies are all about. This is less about the eight best film trilogies of all time (though there's arguably some crossover), but more about which trilogies are the easiest to watch back to back to back; i.e., three films in one marathon session. Whether that's because they're consistent, varied, or too intertwined to watch with gaps in between, these are eight trilogies that are particularly well suited to being binged.

The Spider-Man Trilogy (2002-2007)

Spider-Man Trilogy

Sam Raimi's Spider-Man trilogy is an iconic one, with a strong first film leading to an even greater second film, and capped off with a third film that has some problems, but is memorable. As such, it might not score points for consistency, but all the films are a great deal of fun in their own way, and benefit from character arcs that do play out over multiple films.

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Tobey Maguire is also great throughout, and makes for a sympathetic yet also flawed Peter Parker who's a compelling character to watch grow over the trilogy. There are distinct and enjoyable antagonists for each, and Raimi's consistently fun and stylish direction ensures it's hard to get bored while watching any Spider-Man film within this trilogy. As such, it's certainly a trilogy that can be devoured in whole, within the space of one day.

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001-2003)

Lord of the Rings trilogy

With two movies just under three hours, and another just over, Peter Jackson's masterful Lord of the Rings trilogy is surely one of the longest film trilogies out there. That may initially be a turn-off for anyone considering a Lord of the Rings marathon, as nine hours is a lot to watch. But seeing as the trilogy as a whole was shot as one movie, watching all three films in one sitting does give the feeling of watching a single continuous and huge fantasy epic.

As for just what makes this trilogy so good? There are too many reasons to count. Fantastic locations, special effects that largely still hold up, tremendous attention to detail, great characters, brilliant music from composer Howard Shore, and the fact they managed to capture the spirit of the iconic books they were based on without alienating Tolkien's hardcore fans. You'd have to be very brave to watch the not quite as good Hobbit trilogy all in one sitting, though...

The Star Wars Original Trilogy (1977-1983)

Empire Strikes Back
Image via 20th Century Studios

There are now three Star Wars trilogies for the binge-obsessed to choose from. The prequel trilogy (1999-2005) is made up of three films that have been getting more recognition in previous years, compared to when they were first released, while the sequel trilogy (2015-2019) had potential, but lost those who liked (the somewhat divisive) Episode VII and (the even more divisive) Episode VIII with the release of Episode IX, which most viewers can agree wasn't very good at all.

As such, the original here is still best, with the original trilogy being the best bet for Star Wars fans who want a marathon. Luke Skywalker's journey from a bored young man in some boring desert to a Jedi Knight is a tremendously satisfying character arc, and everything else that makes the series great can be found in the original three Star Wars films. They're classics, and they're a lot of fun to watch together; what more needs to be said?

The Evil Dead Trilogy (1981-1992)

Evil Dead trilogy

There's a strong argument to be made for Sam Raimi's Evil Dead trilogy being the easiest to binge film trilogy of all time. For starters, each film is only about 80 minutes long, meaning in four hours, you can get through three full movies. There are individual movies that are longer than all three Evil Dead movies put together!

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The other thing that makes the Evil Dead trilogy such a great one to marathon is the fact that each movie offers something different tonally, all the while telling a (somewhat) consistent story with a sole protagonist, Ash Williams, who becomes progressively cooler and more powerful throughout. The first Evil Dead is a straightforward horror movie, while the second splits itself 50-50 between horror and comedy, and then the third film, Army of Darkness, ditches the horror genre almost completely, and is more of a slapstick medieval fantasy action movie. It's a wild and crazy trilogy to watch from beginning to end, the quality is surprisingly consistent, and the films themselves are always fun.

The Toy Story Trilogy (1995-2010)

Woody and Buzz from "Toy Story 3" comforting each other after leaving Andy

Toy Story might not be a trilogy anymore, strictly speaking, with the good (but not quite perfect) Toy Story 4 in 2019. But the fact remains: the first three Toy Story films do form a coherent whole, with the fourth film feeling like an epilogue.

Depending on the future of the franchise, maybe those first three films can be considered the "Andy trilogy"? Because ultimately, that's how those three films start and end: with Andy, the toys' owner, and the emotional ending of Toy Story 3 hitting so hard because that's when he finally says goodbye to them. They're undoubtedly emotional films, and each one is perfect, or at least close to it. For the quality of the films, and the way they so gracefully span 15 years in the lives of these beloved toys, Toy Story 1-3 is undoubtedly an amazing trilogy to watch all at once.

The Gamera Trilogy (1995-1999)

Gamera trilogy

Maybe before 1995, Gamera was arguably a Godzilla knockoff. He was a giant flying turtle (instead of a giant lizard who can shoot beams out of his mouth) who sometimes helped humanity and sometimes tried to destroy them, and even his foes looked similar to Godzilla's.

But in 1995, things changed, as between that year and 1999, the world was gifted the Heisei Gamera trilogy; three films that are among some of the best giant monster movies ever made. As shocking as it might be to say, these films rival the best of what the Godzilla series has to offer, with great action, cool special effects, fast pacing, and surprisingly compelling human characters (which is rare for giant monster movies!). For any Godzilla fans out there, there's no excuse not to check out at least these three Gamera movies.

The Before Trilogy (1995-2013)

Before Sunrise

To watch the entirety of the Before trilogy - from Sunrise to Midnight - is to spend almost two decades in the lives of Jesse and Céline. They're two young people who spend one romantic day together before parting ways, only to meet by chance some nine years later, and then nine years on from then, find themselves together as a couple, worrying about being parents, reaching middle age, and keeping their love for each other alive.

There's a risk of being overwhelmed with emotions by watching this trilogy in one go, but it's thrilling to watch the characters grow older and more mature, with the tone of each successive movie maturing along with them. The acting is great throughout, as is all the dialogue, and it helps that each movie in the trilogy is reasonably short - especially the middle chapter, Before Sunset, which is only 80 minutes long.

The Planet of the Apes Trilogy (2011-2017)

Planet of the Apes trilogy

The most recent batch of Planet of the Apes movies are surprisingly great. Rise is a good start, but then Dawn and War are arguably even better, and in the end, they tell a complete and satisfying story about the ape, Caesar, and his uprising against the human race.

They're far from cheesy, and the special effects used to create the CGI apes are admittedly amazing. They feel believable within the world, as are all their emotions, and the way they become progressively smarter and more of a dominant force to be reckoned with as the trilogy goes on makes watching all three films together very satisfying.

NEXT: Best Middle Movies in Film Trilogies