best comic-book-based movies

[stumpy]

This has come up before, but I just saw the list on moviefone and noticed a couple that I hadn't seen, like American Splendor, that are now on my to-see list. There were also a few movies I have seen (and liked) that I didn't know were based on comics, like Ghost World and Road to Perdition.

I think most of their selections were pretty good. I don't generally judge this sort of movie on how true the movie was to the details of the comic book or graphic novel. I go more by how much they capture the flavor or underlaying premise of the character or they general mood or theme of the graphic novel or mini-series. That's why liked Spider-Man, Batman Returns, and Sin City so much and why I didn't really agree that The Hulk should have made the list (though I am not really as familiar with him).

Any other recommendations or comments on their list?

[quiet]

I thought they had a pretty good list, I mean sin city is almost frame by frame exactly like the graphic novel.  For me, there is a difference between a superhero adaptation as opposed to some of the others that usually deal with hard boiled crime or the everyday mundane which lends itself more to the big screen.
In terms of superheroes, I think the Spider-man movies take the cake. I know the green goblin looked like a cast off from an episode of power rangers but they were able to tell  pretty authentic spider-man stories, set in their own universe, without being bogged down with rying to tell every spider-man story ever.  I thought the x-men movies (1 and 2 not the third one) did this pretty well, along with batman begins.
I agree with you on hulk, although anger is the source of his power, they laid it on a little thick and they did not stay close enough to their comic book counterparts.

thoughts?

[catwhowalksbyhimself]

Glad to see that Mystery Men made that list.  It was a box office flop in a huge way, but it seems to have a lot of fans anyway.

[thalaw2]

What?!?!  No Dark Justice?   :D :D :D :D :D :D


Godzilla used to be a comic and his/her movie didn't make it.

[konbiz]

X-men 2, for me was an amazing movie, although the other 2 were nowhere near as good.
Spider-man movies are also very good.
I loved Batman Begins.
Hulk so-so.
Road to Perdition very good.
Daredevil.... well.... I liked Kingpin in it.
I still need to see Sin-City.
300 was OK, although the fight scenes were mindblowing.
Thats all I can think of, off of the top my head.

[UnkoMan]

Too bad A History of Violence is on that list. Man was that movie ever dull.

[BentonGrey]

I can't believe that Hulk was on that list....bah.  I still say that it has to be extremely hard to ruin a Hulk movie...and yet Ang Lee did it. 

Still, the rest on the list I'm okay with, although I haven't seen History of Violence.  I think Dick Tracey should be a bit higher, that movie is freaking amazing!

[zuludelta]

Of the comic-book based films that I've actually seen, here's my list:

1. Sin City (2005)

2. The Crow (1994): seems to be underrated as far as adaptations go... given how cumbersome the original comic mini-series could be at times, I think director Alex Proyas did an excellent job translating the main points of the book to the screen... also, Brandon Lee died making the film, so, you know, you have to like it or the ghost of Bruce Lee will "one-inch punch" you in the nads while you're sleeping

3. Spider-Man (2002)

4. X2: X-Men United, a.k.a. X-Men II (2003): there could've been any number of ways they could've screwed up a superhero team movie and for the large part, they avoided most of them

5. Ghost World (2001): excellent, poignant story. Throw in a teen Scarlett Johannsen and Steve Buscemi at his neurotic-best and you've got a winner

6. Blade (1998): sure, Blade II might have had a bigger budget, but I think Blade was singularly responsible for reviving the superhero movie genre after the debacle that was Schumacher's Batman films. It didn't make a bongload of money, but it made enough that producers stood up and started taking notice

7. Hulk (2003): the two biggest problems with this film: (a) not enough of Hulk smashing things; and (b) not using the "Lonely Man" theme song from the 1977 TV series... seriously, I waited throughout the credits hoping that they'd play it at the end. Still, I'm a huge Hulk fan so I can selectively overlook many of the movie's faults... including Nick Nolte's "Absorbing Dad".

8. Ghost In the Shell (1995): never really appreciated this film until I read one of philosopher Dan Dennett's essays on identity, and the issues Masamune Shirow's story raises concerning the topics of consciousness, intentionality, and free will are all very valid and well thought-out. And if you're not into the philosophical rumination, you can always just stare at a half-naked Motoko Kusanagi shooting up rogue androids... the film works on multiple levels  :D

9. Lone Wolf and Cub: Sword of Vengeance (1972): I'm a sucker for a good samurai drama, and this is one of the better ones out there... I didn't know it at the time but this was probably the first comic-book movie I ever saw. Based, of course, on Koike and Kojima's excellent manga   

10. Appleseed (2004): More Masamune Shirow goodness. Not as thought-provoking as Ghost in the Shell, but as a showcase for modern animation techniques, is a perfect example of how to meld traditional anime style with current CGI technology.

[herodad1]

i'm a big hulk fan also.when the hulk was in the scenes it was good.the rest of the movie was terrible.the fx on the hulk and the things he smashed were good.i heard there may be another with the abomination in it.i hated the absorbingman dad in the hulk also.loved the gamma dogs too.

[Ajax]

1. Sin City: In terms of adaptations this one was (as stated numerous times before) pretty much flawless.

2. A History of Violence: This is a really good movie if you know what to expect and that is a very interesting look at violence. Cronenberg was a perfect choice for this movie and Viggo is an amazing actor.

3. Ghost World: (See Zulu's comments)

4. Spider-Man 2: The writers understand Peter can't stop growing and has to face new problems as a both Petey and Spidey for the movie to work. That is why this movie worked. If it wasn't for the ending (with the MJ runaway bride) this movie would have been perfect. Plus Doc Ock translated better than Green Goblin.

5. Dick Tracy: This movie was one of the first movies I remember seeing and holds up even in todays Tarantino-esque movie world. Visually it is able to capture the look and feel of a Dick Tracy comic without being too heavy handed.

6. Spider-Man: The origin had it's bumps like the organic webs and a very goofy looking Green Goblin. But William Defoe pulls it off and the rest of the cast comes together to bring Spider-Man to life (save Kirsten as MJ). It's obvious that Raimi understands the comics and what makes them great and that is Peter Parker. Also J.K. Simmons IS J.Jonah Jameson. Though the ending at the cementary (though true to Peter) was a bit of a let down.

7. Batman Begins: I am a big Nolan fan and more so now then before this came out since he breathed life into a dead movie franchise. He brought Batman back as the "Dark Knight" and replaced the glam (and batnipples) of the previous movies with a grittiness that is needed to do Batman right. Though the movie had some flaws like Dawes finding out the Batman = Bruce. Oh and also the focus on Bruce Wayne as being an actual character and not an excuse to give the A-list actor some face time was another reason this movie was such a success.

8. 300: This was a feast for the eyes. Visually stunning and just plain gorgeous. Everyone knows the story of Thermopolye and Millers/Snyders version is a bit sparse in comparison to other renditions but the story isn't the point of the movie. The point was to make a beautiful movie and two hours of intense action, I think they succeeded and that is why this made the list.

9. Hellboy: This was just a fun movie plain and simple. Ron Pearlman is perfect as Hellboy and the rest of the class meshes off eachother so well that it is fun to watch them interact. Add Guillermo Del Toro's dark almost gothic style of directing and you have a great movie.

10. Blade: All three were good. Yes all three, even the last one though not as good as the first two, had it's moments making it a worthwhile watch. Wesley Snipes redefined Blade and what it means to be the Day Walker.

[Night Dragon]

Without looking at the list (Don't wanna bias my picks by seeing theirs first) my top pics for comic-based movies :

1. Superman - From top to bottom, this is my #1 comic book movie. This is what really got me into comics. From the powerful score to the (then) amazing special effects to Chris Reeves as Clark/Superman. I could gush on and on about how utterly cool this movie is.

2. Sin City - As said before, this is an almost perfect translation from page to screen.

3. The Crow - One of my all time favorite movies... EVER! I literally wore two VCR tapes out watching it (not to mention the soundtrack cassette). A dark haunting story with a nice dark comedic streak ( "I say I'm dead, and I move." hehehe).

4. Spider-Man 2 - I liked the first one, but the second seemed to be a bit more comfortable in it's own skin. The only thing not too great was Tobey's need for 'face' time, which lead to Spidey getting unmasked at the drop of a hat. I did like making Doc Ock a bit more of a tragic misunderstood villain.

5. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - The movie might be a bit closer to the animated 'toon, but it still was pretty darned sweet to see live action turtles kicking some serious Foot Clan backside. Plus... Casey Jones RAWKS!!

6. Batman Begins - Batman : Year One updated for the 21st century. The only major gripe I have at all with this movie is Bruce with the gun. It makes sense, and I understand it totally. I just always liked Batman's rejection of using any kind of firearm. The minor gripe is Bruce handing Rachel his I.D. on a silver platter. (At least it was Alfred that let Vicki Vale into the batcave in Batman).

7. Men In Black - Yep, M.I.B. . And It was based on a comic (granted I never read said comic). I love the interaction between Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith, it's a buddy cop movie that I can watch with Layne and Caitlyn and not worry about R rated material.

8. Catwoman - Just Kidding.

8.  Hellboy - Not quite as perfect an adaptation as Sin City, but damn if Ron Pearlman doesn't look like Mike M. artwork got brought to life.

9. X-Men 2 - Something Linsay said when we watched the first X-Men is how naturally the evil mutants would be attacking people, they looked like freaks and would get treated like freaks. And all the good mutants were all handsome and beautiful. Which is why I like X-2 more over the 1st, plus the opening scene with Kurt.... awesomeness.

10. Fantastic Four - I loved everything in this movie, except for Doom. And since Doom is such a big part of FF, that knocks it down to the bottom of my top ten. Great choice for an actor, bad idea for backstory. Electro-Doom?? He's a genuis too, he could have made his own armor with weapons in it. I would have had the storm not effect him, but cause an explosion and scar him, and go from there.

Honorable Mentions :

11. (Tie) The Phantom / The Shadow - Okay both aren't based off comic books, but one is a comic strip and the other is a pulp fiction hero. Still I love both movies, even if they are a bit cheesy and over the top at times (Of course that's why I like them).

[lugaru]

God, finally somebody mentioned the crow. I would even knock any of the superman movies off that list to get the crow on it.

[thanoson]

1- Heavy Metal. Not a comic book, just a mag with lots of comics in it. Still holds up.

2- Blade. Snipes and Douriff were perfect opposites.

3- Superman 2. We got Zod, Clark losing his powers, Lois finding out and lots of shots of the Fortress.

4- The Crow. I miss Brandon. Wonder what he would be starring in now.

5- Tank Girl. Lori Petty had this down to the t. And I don't mean Ice T.

6- Sin City. Awesomeness

7- X-men 2

8- Superman. This was a good golden age storylike movie.

9- Hellboy

10- spider-man 2