meanspartan
Member
So after seeing the Avengers 2 last night, I felt now was a good time to rank my favorite Superhero films of all time with a short blurb on why I liked each one. I also do my five least favorites, and a couple movies that aren't good enough for my "best" list but are not terrible either, are also mentioned. I also left out Guardians of the Galaxy. I know, I know, it's in the Marvel Universe and they'll probably be in Infinity Way. It's a fantastic and fun film, but it just didn't quite feel like a Superhero movie to me.
I'd love for you guys to do the same, and tell me why you agree/disagree with mine. Let's nerd out a bit! There will be some spoilers, though I will be very vague with Age of Ultron as it is still very recent.
Best
1. The Dark Knight
There really can't be any other at the top of my list. This movie stands as a good film in it's own right independent of the "Superhero" label, an achievement which I think only Captain America: The Winter Soldier matches. It was just such a bold film with some of the decisions it made, like killing off a love interest in a horrific way and having a legitimately terrifying Joker, a performance which very well may have helped kill Heath Ledger.
2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Number 1 was an easy choice, this is the spot that was hardest for me to choose. Perhaps Captain America 2 was helped a bit by how relatively recent it was as well, I'll admit that. But to me, this is clearly the best of the Marvel movies and the one which will be the most watchable 20 years from now. It relies far less on CGI and is content on being a very good espionage thriller. It also wins points for being such a huge improvement over the previous film- I expected nothing going in as I thought "The First Avenger" was merely mediocre. What I got was a movie that was shockingly so good that it made the first movie just a little bit better in context. Extra points for stealthily making this almost as much a Black Widow movie as a Captain America one.
"Before we get started, does anyone want to get out?"
3. Spiderman 2
This one comes with a major asterisk, which is that I have not seen it in several years and so I am pretty sure some of Toby Maguire's slightly cheesy interpretation of the character might not hold up. But if we judge movies by the time they were released the way we do games, then this movie absolutely deserves this spot. The first Spiderman in 2002 was solid and probably the best Superhero movie to be released in a decade because of the wasteland left in the wake of the late 90s Batman "Films", but this one did everything even better by not being too burdened with an origin story and by showing what kind of an effect Superpowers were having on the life of an otherwise poor 20-something. It very possibly might fall down this list if I watch it again, but I am confident it would remain in my top 10.
4. Batman Begins
Not gonna lie, I am a huge Batman fan and so his movies take up a disproportionate amount of my list. Batman Begins however might be the most important Batman movie ever made. It isn't as good as its sequel, but it created a visceral and somewhat realistic take on Batman when the last thing audiences remembered about the character was George Clooney pulling out his bat themed credit card at a charity auction. He wasn't quite as much a detective, more of a ninja. But I got the feeling that if Batman were to exist, he'd be something like Nolan's interpretation. The antagonists were kind of lackluster and origin stories are never my favorite since we always know the basic outline because superheroes are established characters- but this movie did so much else right. Like the best Batsuit ever. He might not be able to move his neck, but he looks damn good. I mean, look at it!
5. Iron Man
The Iron Man movies to me have been kind of like the reverse of Captain America. I didn't much care for the First Avenger, but loved the sequel. With Iron Man, the original was fantastic but the sequels are entirely forgettable. Robert Downey Jr was a revelation as Tony Stark, he basically IS Tony Stark for all intents and purposes. I was very much sold on him being a smart but spoiled rich kid who reforms his ways after a very traumatic experience. The only reason this didn't climb further up my list was because I felt the ending was a tad weak.
6. The Avengers
I am such a huge Joss Whedon fan. Nobody does dialogue like him, and nobody can handle an ensemble as well as him. Buffy and Firefly are two of my favorite shows of all time. But even I had doubts anyone could make a Superhero team-up work. How do you have so many characters on screen and make the movie work within just 2-3 hours? But Whedon did it. Like the first Iron Man movie, I felt the ending was a bit weak however. Loki just never felt like a big enough threat to justify needing all the Avengers to beat him. But I got to see Iron Man throw down with Thor and later Thor vs. the Hulk, one of the best movie clashes I've seen. I got to see these characters interact with each other in a way only Whedon could make happen. And that flying aircraft carrier was pretty cool too.
7. The Dark Knight Rises
Weird admission about this one. It's not as good as the first two, but I have rewatched it many more times than the others. I really can't explain why either. It has problems- the plot becoming a bit too unbelievable in an otherwise slightly more realistic series, Bane being awesome but then being revealed to be a puppet, not simply allowing Bruce to have died from the blast at the end which I feel would have been a much more powerful ending, and most simple of all the burden of having to be the sequel to the best Superhero film of all time. But I god damn love hearing Bane talk. I love the "Dark Knight Returns" influences. I love Batman and Bane's first fight scene where we see Batman really lose in a physical confrontation for the first time ever.
8. Superman 2
Being born in 1989, this one is at a disadvantage because of how old it is. It is also disadvantaged by the fact that I've never much cared for Superman- a god whom the creators realized was too OP so they created the lamest plot device ever to nerf him, Kryptonite. He's a boy scout but his too-extensive abilities make him less interesting that his Marvel counterpart in the personality category, Captain America. All that said, this is the best Superman film ever made. Ya it is cheesy thanks to how old it is, but Superman is SUPPOSED to be cheesy, not some brooding dude who pretends to hate his powers (oh woe is me with my godlike strength and speed). ARE YOU LISTENING SNYDER?!?!
9. Batman 1989
People seem to have forgotten that Heath Ledger got just as much doubt for being cast as the joker as Ben Affleck is now getting for taking on the Batman role, maybe more. He has just become so iconic. But before Ledger, Jack Nicholson's gangster-like take on the Joker was the standard. I did like Keaton as Batman, but this film felt like it should have been called "The Joker" with how much Nicholson conquered screen time. Tim Burton's gothic and somewhat creepy Gotham is still probably my favorite cinematic version of the city. Nolan's Gotham was obviously more realistic, but that also meant it was less interesting. This movie set the standard for what a Superhero movie should be, a standard I'd argue is still followed today. Of course the 90s Batman movies would generally be terrible so this is the only one in that continuity I really like. Returns was ok, but it felt a bit too much like a Burton dark fairytale. Worth watching for Michelle Pfeiffer's iconic take on Catwoman though.
10. The Amazing Spiderman
There is only one reason that this movie is on this list at all, and that is because I think Andrew Garfield is perhaps the best casting job for his role of anyone on this list other than maybe Downey Jr as Tony Stark. Toby Maguire was likable in his movies but he didn't quite feel like the wisecracking Spidey we all know and love from the comics Garfield fucking NAILED it, and had great chemistry with Emma Stone to boot. Which makes it all the more depressing that their excellent performances were wasted on a pretty mediocre script. Spiderman has probably the best rogues gallery this side of Batman, and they went with the Lizard. Really? And again, an origin story when a simple montage at the beginning would have sufficed. But Andrew Garfield was just so good in the role....
Worst
1. The Amazing Spiderman 2
Ok, so this one isn't actually worse than some of the other duds on the list. But it was so incredibly disappointing. I liked the first movie on balance because like I said, Andrew Garfield is a great fit for the role. And I figured now that they had the origin story out of the way, this movie could provide Garfield with much more to work with. Instead, I got a shit movie that wasted Garfield again. They even managed to ruin Gwen Stacy's death scene with a stupid web hand thing that was cheesy and lame. The film was such a letdown that Sony came to terms with Marvel on letting them use the character again. Word is Garfield can't come back though- which sucks big time. Marvel likely would have given him the script he deserves. Oh ya, Electro was in this too huh? Just remembered that now. That's how forgettable this movie was. They wasted Dane Dehaan as well.
2. Batman and Robin
What killed the dinosaurs? THE ICE AGE!
3. Spiderman 3
I don't hate this one as much as AS2, because at least two good movies came before it. There was a ton wrong with this one and it is arguably worse than AS2, but I just don't hate it enough to keep writing about it. A bad movie, but at least Maguire got some good ones too.
4. The Fantastic 4 (both of them)
Haven't seen either of these in years, and I remember next to nothing about them other than that they were terrible. It was not in their interest that Jessica Alba could turn invisible, as she was the only thing on screen worth looking at.
5. Man of Steel
I actually didn't hate this one until I thought about it more and more. It just all falls apart the more you analyze it in your head. The extensive flashbacks were dumb and they should have just told the story linearly, Superman should have dragged Zod out into the ocean to fight, just too much stuff to list and I am getting tired. It is more entertaining than anything else on my "worst" list, so I guess I have to give it points for spectacle. And I heard someone say that it is a bad Superman movie, but a great Dragonball Z movie. I kind of agree.
Other
Age of Ultron
I said earlier that Whedon is the master of ensembles. And he is- but even his expertise only just baaaarely held this one together. It's not a bad movie and it is very entertaining, but it is bloated. And I worry that it is like Man of Steel in that if I think about it too much, I'm gonna like it a lot less.
XMEN
Ok shameful admission time. I haven't seen a single one of these, not one. As a kid I was never into XMEN much so when the first films came out I didn't care. Years later, I was somewhat interested but too lazy to go back and rewatch the 3-4 films already out and so I just never got caught up with this series. It very well may have some entries worthy of being in my top 10, so I just felt like I owed it this explanation.
Iron Man 2 and 3
I'm of the opinion that Tony Stark only needed the first Iron Man movie and then he should have just appeared in the Avengers and other films in that vein (like the upcoming Civil War). Iron Man 2 had a lame antagonist, while Iron Man 3 ruined the Mandarin and had a conclusion that seems like it is not even fucking canon (he seems to not want to be Iron Man at the end and destroys his suits, but then is back for the Avengers 2. Wut.)
Thor
Entertaining movie I guess.But forgettable to me. I don't give two shits about CGI Land (Asgard) either. I do really like Thor within the Avengers though, so I guess I'm glad this movie existed to establish him. But my lack of caring for his particular story has made it so that Thor 2 is still the only Marvel movie I haven't gotten around to seeing.
And that's it I guess! Time to go to sleep. I might add more tomorrow if I realize I forgot stuff.
I'd love for you guys to do the same, and tell me why you agree/disagree with mine. Let's nerd out a bit! There will be some spoilers, though I will be very vague with Age of Ultron as it is still very recent.
Best
1. The Dark Knight
There really can't be any other at the top of my list. This movie stands as a good film in it's own right independent of the "Superhero" label, an achievement which I think only Captain America: The Winter Soldier matches. It was just such a bold film with some of the decisions it made, like killing off a love interest in a horrific way and having a legitimately terrifying Joker, a performance which very well may have helped kill Heath Ledger.
2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Number 1 was an easy choice, this is the spot that was hardest for me to choose. Perhaps Captain America 2 was helped a bit by how relatively recent it was as well, I'll admit that. But to me, this is clearly the best of the Marvel movies and the one which will be the most watchable 20 years from now. It relies far less on CGI and is content on being a very good espionage thriller. It also wins points for being such a huge improvement over the previous film- I expected nothing going in as I thought "The First Avenger" was merely mediocre. What I got was a movie that was shockingly so good that it made the first movie just a little bit better in context. Extra points for stealthily making this almost as much a Black Widow movie as a Captain America one.
"Before we get started, does anyone want to get out?"
3. Spiderman 2
This one comes with a major asterisk, which is that I have not seen it in several years and so I am pretty sure some of Toby Maguire's slightly cheesy interpretation of the character might not hold up. But if we judge movies by the time they were released the way we do games, then this movie absolutely deserves this spot. The first Spiderman in 2002 was solid and probably the best Superhero movie to be released in a decade because of the wasteland left in the wake of the late 90s Batman "Films", but this one did everything even better by not being too burdened with an origin story and by showing what kind of an effect Superpowers were having on the life of an otherwise poor 20-something. It very possibly might fall down this list if I watch it again, but I am confident it would remain in my top 10.
4. Batman Begins
Not gonna lie, I am a huge Batman fan and so his movies take up a disproportionate amount of my list. Batman Begins however might be the most important Batman movie ever made. It isn't as good as its sequel, but it created a visceral and somewhat realistic take on Batman when the last thing audiences remembered about the character was George Clooney pulling out his bat themed credit card at a charity auction. He wasn't quite as much a detective, more of a ninja. But I got the feeling that if Batman were to exist, he'd be something like Nolan's interpretation. The antagonists were kind of lackluster and origin stories are never my favorite since we always know the basic outline because superheroes are established characters- but this movie did so much else right. Like the best Batsuit ever. He might not be able to move his neck, but he looks damn good. I mean, look at it!
5. Iron Man
The Iron Man movies to me have been kind of like the reverse of Captain America. I didn't much care for the First Avenger, but loved the sequel. With Iron Man, the original was fantastic but the sequels are entirely forgettable. Robert Downey Jr was a revelation as Tony Stark, he basically IS Tony Stark for all intents and purposes. I was very much sold on him being a smart but spoiled rich kid who reforms his ways after a very traumatic experience. The only reason this didn't climb further up my list was because I felt the ending was a tad weak.
6. The Avengers
I am such a huge Joss Whedon fan. Nobody does dialogue like him, and nobody can handle an ensemble as well as him. Buffy and Firefly are two of my favorite shows of all time. But even I had doubts anyone could make a Superhero team-up work. How do you have so many characters on screen and make the movie work within just 2-3 hours? But Whedon did it. Like the first Iron Man movie, I felt the ending was a bit weak however. Loki just never felt like a big enough threat to justify needing all the Avengers to beat him. But I got to see Iron Man throw down with Thor and later Thor vs. the Hulk, one of the best movie clashes I've seen. I got to see these characters interact with each other in a way only Whedon could make happen. And that flying aircraft carrier was pretty cool too.
7. The Dark Knight Rises
Weird admission about this one. It's not as good as the first two, but I have rewatched it many more times than the others. I really can't explain why either. It has problems- the plot becoming a bit too unbelievable in an otherwise slightly more realistic series, Bane being awesome but then being revealed to be a puppet, not simply allowing Bruce to have died from the blast at the end which I feel would have been a much more powerful ending, and most simple of all the burden of having to be the sequel to the best Superhero film of all time. But I god damn love hearing Bane talk. I love the "Dark Knight Returns" influences. I love Batman and Bane's first fight scene where we see Batman really lose in a physical confrontation for the first time ever.
8. Superman 2
Being born in 1989, this one is at a disadvantage because of how old it is. It is also disadvantaged by the fact that I've never much cared for Superman- a god whom the creators realized was too OP so they created the lamest plot device ever to nerf him, Kryptonite. He's a boy scout but his too-extensive abilities make him less interesting that his Marvel counterpart in the personality category, Captain America. All that said, this is the best Superman film ever made. Ya it is cheesy thanks to how old it is, but Superman is SUPPOSED to be cheesy, not some brooding dude who pretends to hate his powers (oh woe is me with my godlike strength and speed). ARE YOU LISTENING SNYDER?!?!
9. Batman 1989
People seem to have forgotten that Heath Ledger got just as much doubt for being cast as the joker as Ben Affleck is now getting for taking on the Batman role, maybe more. He has just become so iconic. But before Ledger, Jack Nicholson's gangster-like take on the Joker was the standard. I did like Keaton as Batman, but this film felt like it should have been called "The Joker" with how much Nicholson conquered screen time. Tim Burton's gothic and somewhat creepy Gotham is still probably my favorite cinematic version of the city. Nolan's Gotham was obviously more realistic, but that also meant it was less interesting. This movie set the standard for what a Superhero movie should be, a standard I'd argue is still followed today. Of course the 90s Batman movies would generally be terrible so this is the only one in that continuity I really like. Returns was ok, but it felt a bit too much like a Burton dark fairytale. Worth watching for Michelle Pfeiffer's iconic take on Catwoman though.
10. The Amazing Spiderman
There is only one reason that this movie is on this list at all, and that is because I think Andrew Garfield is perhaps the best casting job for his role of anyone on this list other than maybe Downey Jr as Tony Stark. Toby Maguire was likable in his movies but he didn't quite feel like the wisecracking Spidey we all know and love from the comics Garfield fucking NAILED it, and had great chemistry with Emma Stone to boot. Which makes it all the more depressing that their excellent performances were wasted on a pretty mediocre script. Spiderman has probably the best rogues gallery this side of Batman, and they went with the Lizard. Really? And again, an origin story when a simple montage at the beginning would have sufficed. But Andrew Garfield was just so good in the role....
Worst
1. The Amazing Spiderman 2
Ok, so this one isn't actually worse than some of the other duds on the list. But it was so incredibly disappointing. I liked the first movie on balance because like I said, Andrew Garfield is a great fit for the role. And I figured now that they had the origin story out of the way, this movie could provide Garfield with much more to work with. Instead, I got a shit movie that wasted Garfield again. They even managed to ruin Gwen Stacy's death scene with a stupid web hand thing that was cheesy and lame. The film was such a letdown that Sony came to terms with Marvel on letting them use the character again. Word is Garfield can't come back though- which sucks big time. Marvel likely would have given him the script he deserves. Oh ya, Electro was in this too huh? Just remembered that now. That's how forgettable this movie was. They wasted Dane Dehaan as well.
2. Batman and Robin
What killed the dinosaurs? THE ICE AGE!
3. Spiderman 3
I don't hate this one as much as AS2, because at least two good movies came before it. There was a ton wrong with this one and it is arguably worse than AS2, but I just don't hate it enough to keep writing about it. A bad movie, but at least Maguire got some good ones too.
4. The Fantastic 4 (both of them)
Haven't seen either of these in years, and I remember next to nothing about them other than that they were terrible. It was not in their interest that Jessica Alba could turn invisible, as she was the only thing on screen worth looking at.
5. Man of Steel
I actually didn't hate this one until I thought about it more and more. It just all falls apart the more you analyze it in your head. The extensive flashbacks were dumb and they should have just told the story linearly, Superman should have dragged Zod out into the ocean to fight, just too much stuff to list and I am getting tired. It is more entertaining than anything else on my "worst" list, so I guess I have to give it points for spectacle. And I heard someone say that it is a bad Superman movie, but a great Dragonball Z movie. I kind of agree.
Other
Age of Ultron
I said earlier that Whedon is the master of ensembles. And he is- but even his expertise only just baaaarely held this one together. It's not a bad movie and it is very entertaining, but it is bloated. And I worry that it is like Man of Steel in that if I think about it too much, I'm gonna like it a lot less.
XMEN
Ok shameful admission time. I haven't seen a single one of these, not one. As a kid I was never into XMEN much so when the first films came out I didn't care. Years later, I was somewhat interested but too lazy to go back and rewatch the 3-4 films already out and so I just never got caught up with this series. It very well may have some entries worthy of being in my top 10, so I just felt like I owed it this explanation.
Iron Man 2 and 3
I'm of the opinion that Tony Stark only needed the first Iron Man movie and then he should have just appeared in the Avengers and other films in that vein (like the upcoming Civil War). Iron Man 2 had a lame antagonist, while Iron Man 3 ruined the Mandarin and had a conclusion that seems like it is not even fucking canon (he seems to not want to be Iron Man at the end and destroys his suits, but then is back for the Avengers 2. Wut.)
Thor
Entertaining movie I guess.But forgettable to me. I don't give two shits about CGI Land (Asgard) either. I do really like Thor within the Avengers though, so I guess I'm glad this movie existed to establish him. But my lack of caring for his particular story has made it so that Thor 2 is still the only Marvel movie I haven't gotten around to seeing.
And that's it I guess! Time to go to sleep. I might add more tomorrow if I realize I forgot stuff.
