the only movies I've done this with is the Infernal Affairs trilogy and the Friday the 13th series. with Infernal Affairs, I loved the first one so much I had to own the trilogy, regardless of what reviews I heard of the 2nd and 3rd ones. With Friday the 13th, I've always just enjoyed the series in general even if it was really uneven.

I'm just waiting for them to release Beastmaster II and III.

I should know better but I can not seem to help myself. Not long ago, I picked Aura Battler Dunbine Volume 1 (an ADV anime release). I was rather underwhelmed and could not imagine myself ever watching this mess again. Of course I picked up the volume with the collectors box and had to go ahead and buy the next 11 volumes. Its madness

I have the same problem as you OP!!

I also had that problem but then realized that even though the extra titles added to the "complete" collection of the series, they make the rest of your collection look like crap

I'm fairly obsessive about this, too. My philosophy is that if I like two or more installments in a movie franchise, I will plan to purchase the entire series in time, even if the others are essentially crap. I am a completist.

I love the first two Jaws, and I'm probably the only human being alive who likes Jaws: The Revenge (I think it's good in its own right, when not compared to the first two), but Jaws 3 has always sucked. I would pick up all four, though, to have a complete collection.

I love Halloween. I think Halloween II is good, though inferior. Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers and Halloween 5 are a slight departure, but do carry on the Michael Myers myth, and are good, again, in their own rights. The rest of the sequels that follow are okay, more or less, though nothing comes remotely close to the spirit of John Carpenter's original work. Halloween III, from what I've seen, is junk. Worse than Jaws 3. But I like the rest of the series, so the set must be complete.

Beverly Hills Cop. First two are great, third sucked by any estimation. The first three Superman movies went from great to good (yes, I really like Superman III), but the fourth was terrible. Batman. First and second are great, third was good (maybe Tim Burton producing helped keep it above water), but Batman & Robin sank hard. Would happily get all of the above. Looking forward to the Batman special edition boxed set coming later in the year.

When it comes to movies where there are only two in a series, the choice is a little harder. Speed was awesome; Speed 2: Cruise Control was terrible. Not sure if I would get both. Starship Troopers was great; Starship Troopers 2: Hero of the Federation was nowhere near AS good, but neither was it bad. I enjoy it for what it is. So I would definitely buy both.

Now, if there exists a series where I like only one movie in the series, I will probably get just that one and leave the rest. The Lion King is actually the only example I can think of at the moment. Never seen the others, but they look much too kiddie for me. And the original is not special enough to me to warrant the whole series. I think there are very few series where I would actually like one part of it and have no interest in the rest.

Genre collections is another big one for me. Tend to want to buy all zombie movies (28 Days Later, Dawn of the Dead, etc), all "inbred cannibal" movies (Wrong Turn, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, etc), all Quentin Tarantino movies, all Kevin Smith movies, and so on. But with those come the potential for a lot of movies that I would never care for by themselves. If you get all movies by a particular director, or all movies that match any given criterion, there will probably be many that would never find their way onto your shelves under normal circumstances. So I try to be more selective.

--THX

My way of avoiding having to decide whether or not to complete certain collections is to not like certain franchises to begin with. For example, I see a lot of people list series like Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm Street, Halloween, and several other horror franchises. Well, for one thing...shouldn't this tell you something about the genre itself? That these franchises that get long-winded in their sequels that it eventually tears down the credibility of the select few good movies of the particular franchise.

The only sequels that I have generally come with a box set of the whole collection. Like Speed 2, which I don't find all THAT bad, myself. And although the Shumacher Batman films may not be that great, I'm still gonna get them when the 2-disc SEs are released later this year.


That said, the only sequels that I have that are in any way questionable in their standing with the originals, IMO, are:
Highlander 2 - SE
Speed 2
Scorpion King
2 Fast 2 Furious
Bad Boys II (Although I like it better than the original)
Matrix Reloaded
Matrix Revolutions (Again, I like both as much as the original. Each are good in their own right.)

I've always had a passion for film watching/collecting....but don't consider it an addiction...or problem. When I use to burn and harvest the northern cali dank bud....now that was a problem and an addiction. Hell...it was a huge risk.

Building my library is none of those. And my answer to the thread title would be very un-helpful for you:

...it all just depends!! With some I'm a completist....with some...I am not. I really only can buy/add to the library what I like/love.....but usually it's not something I can't stand. But if I can own some Fulci fodder...then I guess I can own anything.

No, I have self-control.

For example, I own:

• Alien, Aliens, and hell, even Alien vs. Predator, but not Alien 3 or Alien: Resurrection. The only redeeming quality of Resurrection is the underwater scenes.
  
• Star Trek I-VI and First Contact (yes, I like V), but not Generations or Insurrection. I might buy Nemesis. It wasn't a great film, but I was entertained. That applies to a lot of these.
  
• The Mummy and The Mummy Returns, but not The Scorpion King.
  
• None of the Disney sequels.
  
• Star Wars: Episode II, but not Episode I or IV-VI (unhappy about the story changes). Will buy Episode III if it's any good. If I see Episode I for a low price I might consider it for the lightsaber battles and the underwater visuals.
  
• Only the new-era Godzilla movies, but not 2000, since it's dubbed.
  
• Rush Hour 2 and Shanghai Knights, but not Rush Hour or Shanghai Noon. I don't know, I just like the sequels more than the originals in this case.
  
• Jurassic Park III, but not Jurassic Park or The Lost World. I'll buy the first one when I see it on sale, but I'll never buy the second one.
  
• The Matrix, The Matrix Reloaded, and The Animatrix, but I bought and then returned (unopened) Revolutions.
  
• Conan the Barbarian, Predator, Highlander, and Planet of the Apes, but none of their sequels (Escape From the Planet of the Apes is so incredibly awful). I might buy Conan the Destroyer if I see it on sale since I like the first one so much, but not Red Sonja.
  

Looking at the list, it looks like I have really crappy taste in movies, but I really don't. I just find that I tend to rewatch fun action-adventure movies much more than weighty and throught-provoking ones, even though the latter are often better films.

Also, I plan on buying the second season of Rurouni Kenshin, maybe the first, but definitely not the third.

I am a completeist for the most part.
But I am not planing on getting Home Alone 3 or 4
OR Christmas Vaction 2

Exactly! If I had Jaws 8 and Halloween 23 in my collection, I'd be too humiliated to ever allow anyone inside my house again. On the bright side, that would greatly reduce the number of requests to 'borrow' my movies.

And a strange sense of what makes a movie.

Let's see...

OK, you say that what made Resurrection passable was some "special effects" scenes.

Then you say you don't have the OT because you don't like the story changes....WHAT STORY CHANGES??? Some additional special effects changed the story? No, Greedo shooting "first" doesn't count.... And to own Episode II out of all the Star Wars movies gives one the gumption to go

This one just baffles me, as most people tend to loathe Part III and praise the original, but not so much Part II. I happen to enjoy all three.

This one is a little more understandable. However, do you always tear out the last third of a book if you don't like the ending? That is, if you can tolerate Reloaded (which I consider to be The Matrix II Part A), why not tolerate Revolutions (which is The Matrix II Part B)

I must be weird cause I only buy the movies I like.

Breakfast with girls: While it does seem you have self control, it seems you're not taking into account which titles you need to use your self control with. To only own Ep.II out of the SW series, and claim the OT have bad story changes is quite baffling. If anything, Ep.II has the weakest story of all, even if the OT was changed to just a 5 hr. long Ewok battle.

I own the original and part 3, and have absolutely no intention of owning part 2. My reasoning is that I thought "The Lost World" was a big piece of crap that was in denial about being a piece of crap, whereas part 3 was a straight-up "dinosaurs killing people" flick (which I enjoyed).

I'm patiently waiting for a re-release of The Matrix, but that will probably never happen. I refuse to purchase Reloaded and Revolutions, no matter what the cost may be, and won't buy the original snapper-case release knowing that a better version does exist, even though it's only available in the complete box set.

I own Speed, but won't buy Speed 2.

I did purchase the Alien Quadrilogy, but I only dislike Resurrection (the last 30-45 minutes killed the film). Alien 3 is actually my favourite.

I intend to purchase the Nightmare on Elm Street collection, but right now I only own Freddy's Dead. But I will probably never buy Freddy vs. Jason.

I own Short Circuit 2, but not the original. That's just a procrastination thing, though. I will get it, but it's not a priority.

I own The Crow, and The Crow: Salvation. I intend to purchase The Crow: City of Angels, but I'm not in a rush, as I didn't really enjoy it.

so, for me, I guess it's a case-by-case basis.

obsessive collecting is a subconcious countermeasure to compensate for some type of inadequacy, childhood deprivation, self esteem issue, or pure obsessive compulsive disorder. Hoarding mentality is very common for people that were denied the toys they wanted as a child, or had a rough childhood.

DVDs are great toys, fun to buy, fun to watch. But if you have to buy every single movie in a series even though you admit they SUCK, then guess what . . . youve got problems.

Ooooo, you guys are creepy.

It's a case by case scenario for me too. If I can pick up a set dirt cheap and there's something in it I can take or leave that's okay, but I won't go out of my way to buy a title I don't like for the sake of completism. No Speed 2 for me!

Buy something I don't like? No thanks.

No, I said it had one visual that was its only redeeming quality. Yes, visuals are a part of a movie.

Okay, screaming aside, to briefly answer your question, Episode II is what it is. It's not a great film. It's an okay film with some entertaining sequences. Episodes IV, V, and (to a lesser extent) VI are great films, and I feel they were weakened by the changes. I said "story changes" to differentiate between those and the technical changes, which I liked. Story changes include, yes, Greedo shooting first, as well as the musical number in Return of the Jedi. This is my opinion, and since I don't want this to become another Star Wars thread, this will be my last response to the topic.

There was a recent Jurassic Park thread about it. There were quite a few people who only like the first and third entries. The middle entry is plodding and idiotic (the gymnastics scene alone prevents me from rewatching it). The first is a fantastic film; the third is a popcorn flick. I like them for different reasons.

I'm the type of person that doesn't feel compelled to watch things in sequence. I'll watch The Matrix Reloaded by itself, or Back to the Future Part III without watching the first two. As standalone movies, I like The Matrix and Reloaded better than Revolutions.

Let me check my shelves. Godfather III, Superman III & IV, Alien Resurrection, American Wedding, Robocop 2 & 3...

Yes, it would seem I too have this strange affliction.

I have just the opposite condition, an aversion to having to purchase inferior sequels/related works just to get the title I want. I did buy the "Godfather" set when released, watched "Godfather III" twice to confirm that I didn't care for it, and immediately traded it away when the announcement of the individual releases was made (though I didn't think I'd have to wait this long for "Godfather II").

And I never purchased "The Fly", even though Cronenberg is among my favorite directors, only because it was attached to that tumor of a sequel...until hopefully this Fall!

"Return of the Jedi", sadly, remains on my shelf.

I only buy films or TV shows that I like. I'm not so "addicted" to DVDs that I'll buy them for the sake of "completing the series". Hooray for self-control! Here are the titles in each show/series I own:

TV shows:

Alias - 1 & 2, didn't like 3, so I won't buy that.

24 - 1 - 3, and will buy 4. Liked all the seasons so far.

The X-Files - 1 - 7, but hated 8 & 9 when David Duchovny left. Won't buy those.

The Simpsons - 1 & 4, planning on getting all the earlier seasons. Haven't liked the most recent seasons, so I might skip on those.

Seinfeld - 1 - 3, I think I'll actually complete this series.

Movie Series:

Alien - Alien & Aliens, hated 3 and Resurrection, so I skipped out on the Quadrilogy.

Batman - Plan on buying SEs of Batman and Returns, maybe Forever if it gets a new cut, but not Batman & Robin.

Jack Ryan - Clear & Present Danger, Hunt For Red October, and Patriot Games. Didn't like Sum of All Fears.

Die Hard - The whole friggin' trilogy. That's right!

Godfather - Have the boxset; III is clearly weak but I don't hate it so I keep it in.

Coen Brothers - I haven't seen them all, but I own everything from Fargo - Ladykillers EXCEPT Intolerable Cruelty, because that was boring.

Hannibal Lecter - Silence, Hannibal, and Red Dragon. Haven't seen Manhunter but I suspect I'll like it.

Jurassic Park - 1 and 2, didn't like 3. These were some of the first DVDs I bought, so I may trade in Lost World as it doesn't hold up for me.

Superman - I and II, had no interest in III or IV.

James Bond - I'm the biggest James Bond fanatic I know, so as soon as the newest editions come out I WILL own them all.

Matrix - I own the Ultimate Boxset, because I actually liked all three films.

Star Trek - 4, Generations, First Contact. Plan on getting 2, 6, 9, and 10. Haven't seen 1, 3, or 5 yet.

Star Wars - Nothing. The prequels ruined the series for me, and I'd rather watch my old VHS tapes of the originals than pay for the "updated" DVDs.

Yes, it would seem so.