Top Ten Super Hero Films

10. Superman

Most the Superman films are bad. Really bad. In fact, Superman isn’t really that good either. But it was a huge step forward in the genre. It nudges a few better movies off the list for just being made before everything else.
9. Batman

Tim Burton’s original Batman film is very good. It changed the genre for the good. If you’ve ever seen a comic-book movie before it, you know I’m right. Jack Nichelson’s version of The Joker is also really fun.

8.The Crow

Alex Proyas came out with this gem and Dark City very close to each other. Both are incredibly good films. Make sure you see both. I feel like The Crow has been lost in the fray of new comic book movies. See it!

7. Hell Boy

As far as origin stories go, this one isn’t bad. It is fun and action packed. It is one of those films you sit through annoyed, knowing it is just a prequel to a better film to come.

6. X-2

X-men 2 is a decent adapation of the X-men comic-book/television series. I’ve never been happy with any of the X-men movies. I’ve softened to them recently but still hate the third. This remains the most effective, thought-out version. The Nightcrawler, as my brother has convinced me, might be the most successfully realized comic-book character ever.

5. Spiderman 2

My brother and I have loved Sam Raimi’s movies since we were little. It can never be emulated the joy of discovering his classics such as Evil Dead, Evil Dead 2, and Army of Darkness, etc. I felt a little bit of that joy when watching his follow-up to Spiderman.

4. Batman Begins
It was out done by its sequel, but remains the best origin film ever. It is so dark. So realistic. We actually begin to believe the possibility Batman could exist in real time and space. Christopher Nolan was destined to be an indie psychological thriller director until he helmed the batman series and became a household name. Thank god for that.
3. Watchman

Like so many, I came to Watchman through the graphic novel. It is a great book and a great movie. Zach Synder’s adaptation is not perfect, but it as close as it is going to get. The change to ending was also a wise choice. This isn’t the best comic book movie ever, but it never had a chance to be. The book’s narrative and structure are too complicated for a perfect screen adaptation. I’m still waiting for the perfect directors cut.

2. Hell Boy 2

This is such an entertaining movie. Some director’s films sweat joy. I don’t know exactly what that means. But some films you can just tell the directors love making movies. Francois Truffaut claimed that he was only interested in the joy or pain of filmmaking. It really applies to movies like this. I remember walking out of this movie and claiming it was the best comic book movie ever made. The Dark Knight came out a few weeks later…

1. The Dark Knight

I love this movie. What makes this a perfect film, as well as being the best action film ever made, is its ability to cross all audiences without sacrificing quality. Christopher Nolan’s follow-up to Batman Begins gets everything right. The action occurs in front of the camera, the tension, the musical score, the IMAX photography, the suspense is built through characters we believe, and Heath Ledger’s performance make this the best Superhero film ever made.