My Top 25 Favorite Comicbook Superhero Movies

.....or Capt. America

Okay okay,
I know that it's probably not cool putting up a film on a favorites list before the film has even come out,
but, I want to keep this list at an even round number.
And the closest runner up that I can put would be Iron-Man 2,
but even though I thought that it was a decent flick,
I have high hopes right now that the upcoming Marvel movie efforts of Thor and Cap are really gonna be awesome.
And since they're only a couple of months away from premiering, I figure I'd keep a space empty for 'em.
If both of these yet-to-be-seen movies turn out to be a bust,
the I'll go ahead and post up an entry for the second Iron-Man flick.
But for now,
I've got my fingers crossed for either of these two films.
Update:
Okay, I've seen both of these films and they both have a place on this list (separately, of course).
Once I find the time to write individual entries for Thor & Cap, I will.
Or die trying.

These types of animated movies that're spun-off of equally animated TV series, are usually ones that I don't hold much hope for.
Therefore, I was quite surprised at not only how much I enjoyed this big screen adaption the Bruce Timm little screen episodes, but also, at how I found it's story to be better than many of those of the TV program. Walking out at the end of Phantasm, I actually found myself feeling like the giant comicbook nerd that I truly am, but for years, had denied myself of truly being.


"Can't be too careful with all those weirdos around."

One of my fave flicks from the mid 80's was a film called Legend, starring Tom Cruise, Mia Sera and most importantly, Tim Curry, as Lord Darkness, one of the coolest (and by this point in time, one the most iconic) appearances of a demon lord ever captured on film.
Flash forward to the mid 2000's, and here is the silver screen adaptation of Hellboy, the comic-book creation of artist extraordinaire Mike Mignola.
Another crimson-skinned, muscled bound demon but with a much more devil-may-care attitude who could easily pass off as the slacker son of the aforementioned Darkness Lord of Legend fame.

I know that a lot of people panned this flick, but even as comic-book nerd, I still found myself really liking this big screen adaptation of The Man Without Fear.
Now while I don't think it was the greatest superhero movie ever made (and watching Matt Damon's fighting scenes in the Bourne Identity series makes me think his look would have fit the Matt Murdock persona much better that his partner in crime Affleck) but for me, it captured pretty well the feeling of the comic-book. Daredevil is a not a movie that I'll probably be recommending to any fellow comic-book aficiandos, but personally, I was very well entertained by it.
And besides, no matter what your feeling toward DD: The Movie, it comes off almost as the Citizen Kane of comix when compared to the dreadful disaster that was supposed to be it's spin-off sequel, Elektra.


"Hell’s Kitchen is my neighborhood. I prowl the rooftops and alleyways at night. Watching from the darkness. Forever in darkness. A guardian devil."

Damn! Lookit all those freakin' mutants!
The students of Prof. Charles Xavier's School Of Gifted Youngsters return, more grander, more powerful and more "mutantly" varied. Considering that this is a movie that needs to handle as many characters as it does, each one with an already firmly established background in the pages of the comic-book universe, it's amazing that they were able pull this project off to the extent that they did. As an example of what happens when a qualified director is allowed more freedom and more money than in the initial film. For this sequel, X definitely seems to mark the spot.


"You are a god among insects. Never let anyone tell you different."

Look! Up in the sky!
It's a bird! It's a plane!
It's the Rocketeer!
Okay, maybe the ol' Rockster doesn't have a snazy saying like Superman.
But still, as an old skool superhero, he still rocks.

What I like best about this straight from the comic-books movie is that it's just that; straight from the comic-books.
These days, comic-book properties are changed so much, that the comic version and the film version look almost like two different characters.
This film seemed to go out of it's way to make the characters look like the ones in the four-color pages. Current films of the genre don't even bother to get actors who look like the characters they're supposed to be portraying. They bank on getting whoever is the hottest name.
In The Rocketeer, every face looks like it sprout from directly from the magazine. Thus ensuring the the smiles of the standard comic=book nerd are just as wide as the average viewer.

   Princess Diana always had a weird history in comic books. Obviously, when she started out, she was supposed to be the female version of Superman. However,with the advent of World War 2, Superman was being touted as DC Comics' premiere patriotic superhero, particular with the part of his slogan of fighting for "the American way. However, since his color scheme was already estabished as the three primaries of redm blue and yellow, they wanted a character that wore the colors of the flag. Which were regulated towards Wonder Woman, maybe because of the whole Rosie the Riviter craze that was being promoted in the U.S. in order to motivate each citizen, male or female, to do their bit. But after the war, WW now needed more of a focused direction because, back then, superhero comics were more a form of escpist entertainment whose major audience were boys. However, since comic books weren't really being regulated by any kind of ratings system or organization, it seemed like someone in editoral at the DC offices who was in charge of her comic, WW's started to develope a thinly veiled theme of S&M on her covers in which the warrior princess was continually posed in an obvious tied/bound position that only a much more mature eye would catch. Apparently, once that little no-no was caught and eliminated, the only other option the publishers could come up with in order to make Wonder Woman's sales numbers more competitive, her superhero garb was removed and she more of a super-powered fashion model who fights crime. Obviously, this was an attempt to try and cash in on the more feminine side of comic book collectors (who were the ones who were keeping romance comics on the newstands and magazine racks).       After that unsuccesful phase, WW's comics was still being published more for the sake that she was an icon in DC's line-up, but sales were never anywhere near what Batman, Superman and most of the other testicular titans were raking in. Her direction in limbo was finally given a more proper push in the lates 80's and early 90's when comics were reaching a new golden age in profits, and her character was finally moving more towards the bad-ass she-warrior that she shoulda always been. And this was finally reflected in this sraight to DVD (a sign that despite her push towards a valid JLAer, she hadn't completely found a substantial fanbase to match her mainstream male Justicers yet) that was released in 2009. Pre-Gadot, this Double W may still may have been in the form of a cartoon,but in this animated interpretation of the Amazonian wunder, she was finally approaching the bad-ass broad with balls that she should've always been ( and will become once the DCU flicks mange to get it right).


"I'm an Amazon, Steve. We're prepared from birth to give our lives in battle."

One of those rare times that I like the film version of the character more than the one in the comicbook.
Because in the movie, the Crow's a Goth who actually has the ability to kick your ass. Which makes the Crow the epitome of an oxymoron. Of course, I would never say that to his face.
I mean, y'know.... if I was character in the movie or somethin'.


"Tell them death is coming for them, tonight. Tell them Eric Draven sends his regards."

I was a fan of the Mask back when hardly anyone knew anything about the comic-book.
So for me, it was kind of surprising when I heard that a movie about this character was going to be released.
Now, since superhero movies were just starting to finally prove to be able to generate attendance from the general public, I knew that there was no way they were going to be able to translate the dark humor and the violent tone of the comic for the silver screen, so I just assumed that out of necessity, Hollywood was just to completely re-invent the character, and Hollywood being Hollywood, would just completely eff it up.
However, they somehow were able to make this reinvention work for the medium of a live action movie. Not perfectly, mind you, but with the bizarre ingredients that were required for the basis of this weird, reality-altering anti-hero, it came off pretty well & pretty consistent. While the Mask doesn't hold the weight of any of its comic-book colleagues of this genre, it held it's own enough to be successful at the box office and not spawn the ire of nerds like me who, especially at the time, just wanted to see these kinds of films earn a little more respect.


"It's party time. P-A-R-T-why?... Cuz I gotta!"

Even though I agree with the general consensus that this is the better flick, I'm not surprised that this movie only fared as well at the box office as Ang Lee's version of Marvel Comics' mega-muscled, misconstrued, misaligned and often misunderstood monster hero.
The Hulk always seemed to me to be a super-heroic Frankenstein's monster (or maybe a more diminutive King Kong?). Therefore, it's theme has been basically the same as we've seen many times before, with no real difference in respect to a unique emotional angle. In both versions, the effort to be able to create a character that the audience could connect to never was successfully established. Or at least, established to a degree that could hold that audience during the inevitable "battle-royale". Personally, I was able to crossover a bit more just because as a comic book nerd, I already had a nostalgic connection to this character (the Incredible Hulk was one of my favorite comic books as a kid). But as everyone knows, a comic book geek is not very representative of the every-man.

[Speaking Portuguese badly] "Don't make me hungry. You wouldn't like me when I'm hungry." (Pause, then in English) "Wait, that's not right."

Marvel's initial effort at trying to do what Burton did with the Batman: Introduce the webhead as a serious legitimate property for film.
One of the things that usually bugs (pun unintentional) me about comicbook based movies is that the changes made in the character's universe for the sake of the film are usually so off, that it oft-times it strays away too far from the character's unique feel that helped to separate it from that of other superheroes.
Spider-Man's debut featured adaptations in the wallcrawler's world that showed that not only did Sam Raimi and crew understand the character's premise, but also, respected it as well.


"Whatever life holds in store for me, I will never forget these words: 'With great power, comes great responsibility.' This is my gift. My curse. Who am I? I'm Spider-Man!"

Just for the fact that Burton's version was the first serious effort outside of the comic-book to try and depict The Caped Crusader as a true Dark Knight of justice.
Okay, so maybe, the latest incarnations of the Batman have sort of watered down the impact of the Caped Crusader's modern film debut.
And maybe, Jack Nicholson, for the role of the Joker, was a little too old, not to mention, not exactly in the kind of shape that one would expect for a Clown-Prince of Crime.
But in the same manner of Marlon Brando in Superman's 1st big budget blockbuster, Nicholson also brings a certain class and credibility to a movie based off a comic-book. And just as in Clean & Sober, Michael Keaton shows that he can provide the kind of weight that is needed for more "non-humorous" roles.


"Have you ever danced with the devil in the pale moonlight? I always ask that of all my prey. I just like the sound of it."

A much more cohesive origin story than Marvel's major player, Spider-Man's first go-at-it. The problem with the first film of any superhero flick is to be able to show enough of a detailed origin while still leaving enough room in the film for a transition of the character learning to deal with his/her powers and then some kind climatic confrontation with some sort of antagonist figure. I found this movie to be much better paced than other initial efforts of Marvel properties like the Hulk or Spider-Man, with a much more naturalness to the characters, as evidenced by Downey Jr's humor and the comfortable chemistry between he, Gweneth Paltrow and Terence Howard.


"Iron Man? That's kinda catchy. Not technically accurate, since it's a gold titanium alloy, but…"

A dystopian British nation must be saved by the tyrannical totalitarian government under which it has become subjected to since a recent nuclear war that has left much of the Earth crippled. And who will act as the people's modern/futuristic Robin Hood, to inspire hope within the masses of a spiritually tattered land of The United kingdom? In this case, it will be the mask vigilante known as "V". And so confident is this anarchist avenger of the masses, that he requires naught but swords to combat gunplay, a name no longer than that of a single letter, and a mask based not on of fear, but one based instead on a visage of a happy but rebellious historical figure.
Based on Alan Moore's maxi-series, he is a famed comic-book writer whose storytelling is just so rich in detail, atmosphere and concepts, that it can almost seem impossible to capture even just a sliver of it's essence onto a film adaptation. Therefor, even though this movie quite obviously cannot compare to the comic-book series, just the fact that it was able to retain anything at all from Mr. Moore's work to any kind of degree of consistency to the story
(which, IMO, is the only movie to do so far) is enough to mark it as a success for me.


"People should not be afraid of their governments. Governments should be afraid of their people."

I went and got this movie not just because the original 1978 Superman movie was & still is my second favorite movie of all time (The Godfather is my all time No. 1, for those of you still wondering), but also because, I kept hearing how Richard Donner's original script for the sequel was better than the one released back in 1980.
I must say, after watching this Cut, I don't agree. Maybe it's because of the childhood sentimentality that I hold for Supe's first two outings on the big screen, maybe it's because the iconic ending of Krypton's Last Son flying around the globe seems to fit better in the first film (IMO, anyways), or maybe it's just harder for me to see Donner's original vision via the different scene edits and jumbled outtakes and screen tests.
I could go into a much more lengthy discussion about this, but, since my movie lists are long enough as it is, I'll save that for another forum.
However, I will say that my disagreement is not so far away with the opinion of the majority when it comes to this subject. This Cut is still an excellent view as a movie, and for someone who grew up on these versions of Kal-El's cinematic exploits, it was exceptionally cool to catch a glimpse of what could've been almost new chapter from the superhero film series that actually made me first believe that a man could fly.


"You promised me the son of Jor-El."

After bombing at the box office back in the mid-nineties, Judge Dredd gets a most well-deserved reboot.
Set in a British dystopia, Dredd is the most infamous of the "Judges", heavily padded law enforcers who do triple duty as judge, jury and executioners.
Although the scars the of universally panned 1995 Sylvester Stallone debacle probably contributed for the financial failure of this version, the story in this film was not just a big leap in quality, but for many comicbook fans, including myself, it qualifies as one of the top ten picks for 2012.
Here's hoping that the positive word-of-mouth that has become attached to Dredd helps to shine some hope on the future of this franchise.


"Mega City One. 800 million people living in the ruin of the old world and the mega structures of the new one. Only one thing fighting for order in the chaos: judges."

An average teenager dons the identity of Kick Ass and decides to fight crime with no superpowers or experience,
Red Mist, a mobster's son, follows suit using dad's money and the Mistmobile,
Big Daddy is a Batman clone who shows everybody how it's done,
and Hit Girl....well, she just practically steals the whole show.
A foul-mouthed fun-filled over the top action flick that's probably not for the faint-hearted comic books fans whose preferences off the spinner rack were mags like "Archie".


"F#ck this, I'm getting the bazooka!"

While Tim Burton's was the first to finally introduce the down to earth grittiness that revealed Batman as the real badass that we who read his comics knew that he really was, there was still a certain flamboyancy (as is in all of Burton's films) that allowed those filmmakers whose followed in this franchise after Burton, to systematically bring the Caped Crusader down almost to the level of Adam West doing the bat-toosie.
This reboot came along and completely eliminated the almost irreparable bat-damage still lingering in the minds of general movie-goers.
I remember sitting thru the first scene of this film and thinking to myself that it was hard to believe that what I was watching was actually a superhero movie. I can even overlook the fact that the Bat-Mobile was now more of a massively unbatlike tank/dune-buggy hybrid than it was an actual sleek yet indestructible @ss-kicking ride that all we average joe mortal-types like to fantasize about owning.


"I'm Batman."

Okay, after his intro in the first movie, Supes finally gets to take the kid gloves off, kick some real @ss and take names. Three rogue Kryptonians come to Earth to reveal to the Last Son of Krypton that he's not exactly the last son of Krypton. And though this isn't as good as the first one, it's still a pretty solid for a sequel, especially back when good sequels were rarer than last sons of Krypton.
The only problem is, his love for a mere mortal woman demands that his cape, tights and superpowers have all gotta go.
And so the fate of the world finds itself hanging in the balance as The Man Of Steel must decide between either his heart's desire of kneeling before Lois Lane,
or
his super-terrestrial duty of kneeling before Zod.
In the end, Kal-El discovers comes to discover that with great power not only comes great responsibility, but also, great sacrifice too.



In this, the second installment to the very first comic-book super hero blockbuster, the strength of the Lois Lane/Clark Kent romance subplot, merely hinted at in the first film, is one that adds enough emotional depth to the film's super-powered theme that it negates much of the flaws that resulted from this movie's stilted production (even the infamous out-of-left-field "wtf" moment when Superman pulls off a big plastic-wrap S insignia off his chest during the climatic battle with Zod and his Kryptonian Krew.)


"I expect better manners from my guests, Zod."

Now, even though as a comicbook nerd, I own the graphic novel, I haven't read Watchmen in years, And it was only about twice that I picked up the book,
so I don't remember it clearly.
Which I think was an advantage, because since I can't really recall what would be the parts that didn't make it into the film, for me, the story felt incredibly full and tight. Since the concept of the Watchmen was alot more intelligent than the time-constraints of the film allowed it to be, for me personally, the movie felt very much like the kind that Marvel were putting out when they first started to "grow up" with runs like the Claremont/Byrne era of X-Men or Frank Miller's Daredevil (before the company sold out & reverted drastically to the immature stories of the 90's).



In the end, I really enjoyed the way this movie panned out, and from what I remember in the graphic novel, I definitely think that the film's version of the ending fit in perfectly within the context of the media in which it was told.
Really good stuff that I really found myself enjoying a lot more than I expected when I first walked in.


"Give me smallest finger on man's hand. I'll produce information. Computer unnecessary."

Originally, a very insignificant character in the Marvel universe, blood hunter Blade is transformed on the big-screen into a sword-welding bad-ass with the kind of fighting skillz that the Dark Knight only wishes he possessed. The fight scenes in this movie are a true stand-out for any kind of action flick and the story and visuals supersede any Marvel publications that the vampiric vigilante was ever involved in.
Now this is how all comic-book superhero film adaptations should be approached.



(BTW, even tho as a comicbook movie, I have Blade ranked at #5, as a vampire character, Blade definitely rates as #1.
So, for any vampires out there reading this, I don't care what your position is in the bloodsuckers' hierarchy, Blade would still kick all yo' asses.
Suckas.)


"You better wake up. The world you live in is just a sugar-coated topping. There is another world beneath it - the real world. And if you want to survive it, you better LEARN TO PULL THE TRIGGER!"

Loki, the God of Mischief, arranges the worldwide conquest of the Earth. Because he's a cosmically powered super-villain, and that's basically the goal of most cosmically powered super-villains. His latest scheme of global domination involves the use the Cosmic Cube and a vast army of extra-dimensional aliens.
And the fate of the world hangs in the balance.
As usual.
"Avengers Assemble!!"


"Puny god."

Considering that it seems like everyone and their grandma went out to go see this, do I really need to explain why this one kix so much ass...?
Gotham City is falling apart, Bruce Wayne is becoming more distant, chaotic vigilantism is growing more rampant and on top of it all, there's some crazy make-up wearing Joker out there taking advantage of it all.
Christopher Nolan updates the Caped Crusader to modern standards, Christian Bale puts an overly husky voice to the cowl, and Heath Ledger in a final performance that marks a high point in his all too short career.


"You'll hunt me. You'll condemn me. Set the dogs on me. Because that's what needs to happen. Because sometimes...the truth isn't good enough. Sometimes people deserve more. Sometimes people deserve to have their faith rewarded."

In this follow-up to ol' Webhead's mega-successful intro into the silver screen, Peter Parker roughs thru his dilemmas with the same down-to-earth frustrations as in the comic-books, his relationship with Mary Jane convincingly reaches it's next level, and Dr. Octopus is portrayed much better as a villain than he ever was on the printed age.



The most I could've hoped for this sequel was that it be at least half as good as it's predessor.
Instead, Spidey-2 turned out to become one of my favorite movie adaptations of a comicbook superhero ever.
Which I guess I should've anticipated since before I entered the theatre, my spider-senses didn't go off, all atingling an' sh*t.


"I wanna tell you the truth... here it is: I'm Spider-Man. Weird, huh? Now you know why I can't be with you. If my enemies found out about you... if you got hurt, I could never forgive myself."

Kal-El is the last survivor of Krypton, a distant planet that was destroyed thru ecological disaster.
Here are Earth, our yellow sun provides him with the power of a god.
Under the name Superman, Kal-El has the ability be fly faster than a speeding bullet, be more powerful than a locomotive and to leap over tall buildings with a single bound (his flying ability probably helps him with that). Not to mention x-ray and heat vision, withstand extreme temperatures, hurricane force breath and the ability to wear a wardrobe ensemble consisting of a cape, boots and colorful underwear worn over equally colorful tights.
And what does Superman do with all this power that would allow him to squash us mere mortals with not so much as a mere thought?
He uses it to protect us from all those who would mean us fair citizens harm through the violation of truth, justice and the American way.
Because even within an alien sentient being, no matter how distant his origins, or how impervious he may be to gunfire, there's always chance to find a heart of a hero.
And when it comes to the Man Of Steel,
that's just how he rolls.



No matter what anyone says, Superman is the original gangsta of superheroes. So it is only fitting that the last son of Krypton's big-budget movie debut should turn out to be the one that all other comic-book based superhero movies must be measured by. And while I know that this movie does have it's dated flaws, it was, just like the character whom it portrayed, the one that started on how epic the idea of a superhero could truly be.


"Uh, no, no thanks. I never drink when I fly."