Top Ten Threequels

Sometimes the third time is the charm, and sometimes it's the end of the line. Which of these threequels brought it all home and which jumped the shark?

rank title points votes your vote

1 Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
The story is a rehash of the first movie (Nazis pursue an ancient artifact) but who cares when Sean Connery is playing Indy's dad? 89 171

2 Return of the Jedi
It would be better without Ewoks -- what wouldn't? -- but oh, the satisfaction of seeing the Federation's lackies get what they deserve! 89 173

3 The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Epic battle sequences and powerful emotional moments bring this Tolkein trilogy to a stunning conclusion. 87 189

4 The Bourne Ultimatum
Bourne (Matt Damon) gets his answers and we get serious bone-cracking action -- if that's not a win/win, what is? 23 91

5 Back to the Future Part III
The Old West setting is novel, the time twists are brain-teasing and Mary Steenburgen is the pluckiest frontier gal ever. 6 152

6 Rocky III
Rocky trains to "Eye of the Tiger," then faces off against Mr. T and Hulk Hogan! We pity the fool who fails to appreciate the awesomeness. -3 139

7 Star Trek III: The Search for Spock
The Enterprise is slated for the scrap heap and Spock's body and soul have been sundered: What true Trekkie wasn't on pins and needles? -24 126

8 Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome
Mel Gibson and Tina Turner dressed in ittie-bitty strips of leather -- who knew the apocalypse could be so hot? -33 129

9 The Sum of All Fears
Hmm... How did Harrison Ford turn into Ben Affleck in this third Tom Clancy/Jack Ryan movie? Oh, it's a prequel. That explains it. -41 79

Top Ten Threequels

Sometimes the third time is the charm, and sometimes it's the end of the line. Which of these threequels brought it all home and which jumped the shark?

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