Here's the 2019 Edition of Free Swim's Cinematic Super Hero Show down.
I started this back in 2008 with the Top 20 Super Hero Movies ,and again in 2012 with Free Swim's Cinematic Super Hero Showdown 2012 Edition and then 2 years later with Free Swims Cinematic Super Hero Showdown 2014 Edition and then again in 2016 with Free Swim's Cinematic Super Hero Showdown 2016 Edition This years I've added a good amount of new super hero movies old and new.
The Super Hero movie genre is going strong and over the past few decades we've been graced with some truly memorable films and some sh*t fests we'd like to forget. I vaguely remember seeing Superman 1 in the theaters as a child and being completely blown away when Christopher Reeve flew over the Manhattan skyline, the advancement of CGI has taken the fantastic feats of Super Hero's from the comics and brought them to the silver screen, but the greatest special effects can't help a weak story or poor acting which is clearly evident in the last few movies on the list. Over the years, this list has revealed that almost every hero has one singular weakness....Second Sequelitis! The third movie in a Hero's franchise is usually the one that defeats them! The only Hero to break the mold so far is Captain America!
Super Hero Movies I still need to watch to add to the CSHS are The Punisher 04 & 08, Ghost Rider/ Ghost Rider SoV.
Super Hero Movies I need to re-watch before adding: The Punisher 89.
Super Hero Movies I need to re-watch before adding: The Punisher 89.
Check out my list, do you agree/ disagree with the order? Do you feel Superman IV isn't the worst offender on the list? Share your thoughts Leave a comment....
71. Superman IV: The Quest for Peace
This movie just goes to show how far a great franchise can fall when greed overcomes! Such a sad fall from grace...
70. Green Lantern
First off, let me say I think Ryan Reynolds is a good actor, and this was not the Super Hero movie for him. If the Deadpool movie ever gets out of development hell he has to get the part!
Now onto Green Lantern....I will say the female co star was smoking hot, and the special effects for parallax was decent in some parts....
That's pretty much it :/
the aliens from the Green Lantern Corps seemed like rejects from the Star Wars prequels.
It took me two tries to make it thru this movie....that's all I have to say. If you have to see it don't spend real money to do so coughinterwebzcoughcough
69. Ang Lee's Hulk
Eric Bana you choose unwisely....
I still can't get over those scenes where the hulk bounced across miles of desert to get somewhere, uggh, green poop!
After seeing the trailer for Ed Nortons The Incredible Hulk I think this franchise may be salvageable. I hope there's no super bouncing Hulk!
68. Spawn
I spent money to see this in the theaters back in 1997!? How much did a ticket cost back then? I want it back! Spawn's budget a whopping 40 Mil, I'd say 39.5 mil of it was used on the Spawn CGI and .5 on a story. The fact it made 87 million world wide is a super human accomplishment in and of itself.
I'm sorry, Martin Sheen is a good actor but he must regret doing this movie, same with John Leguizamo.
The sets felt like left overs from the original Crow movie and the battle between Spawn and Leguizamo's Violator in Hell was cringe worthy, they literally used Ctrl C Ctrl V to create the army and they used the same scene twice in less than 5 minutes.
I don't think this was the vision Todd McFarlane hoped for for his Comic Book Character that actually is really well drawn and has a very interesting story.
67. Meteor Man
I'm glad that Rodey Rhodes (Goldilocks) got his act together....the military really is beneficial for some people!
This came out in 1993, the MCU wasn't even a thing, I was in college and in all honesty I have zero recollection of this movie, but it was free on demand so I watched it with my son last night, Meteor Man is more of a period piece than a Super Hero flick. The message the movie tells is a positive one and Robert Townsend's character Jefferson Reed is a believable reluctant Super Hero, a man who truly cares about the people and the neighborhood he lives in. He receives super powers after getting chased down an alley and struck down by a meteor (kryptonite), but his ultimate power is martyrdom. This movie reiterates the saying "All it takes for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing."Meteor Man does boast an impressive cast! Robert Guillaume, James Earl Jones, Bill Cosby, Don Cheadle; Tommy Lister (The president of Earth), Samuel L. Jackson, and Chris Tucker (RUBY ROD!)
The reason I put Meteor man above Spawn, Hulk and Green Latern is because it doesn't take itself too serious but still conveys it's message without becoming a total comedy.
66. Superman III
65. Dare Devil
After watching this snooze fest I wished I was blind too!
Colin Farrel as Bullseye, Michael Clark Dunkan as Kingpin and Jennifer Garner as Elektra, the big names are there what happened? Not much, this movie was highly forgettable and boringly predictable.
Dare Devil never felt much like a Super Hero movie, just a bunch of actors playing super hero...meh.
The best part of this movie was the trailer.
Save yourself the time and money and find the Assault on Arkham animated feature instead.
Dare Devil never felt much like a Super Hero movie, just a bunch of actors playing super hero...meh.
64. Suicide Squad
The best part of this movie was the trailer.Save yourself the time and money and find the Assault on Arkham animated feature instead.
63. Darkman
OK so I did see this movie in the theaters way back in 1990 I had to hit the wiki to refresh my memory.
Before Ras Al Ghul Liam Neeson was DARKMAN...dun dun duuuhhh...
Unlike most of the super hero's in this list the movie preceded the comics. The origin of Darkman is more akin to comics like The Crow or good ol officer Murphy of the Chicago PD...
Darkman is a little too similar to Batman both wear masks, both are vigilantes, both are waaay too serious. Batman has awesome crime fighting tools (anti shark bat spray) and vehicles, Darkman has a Fedora!
I think Darkman could've benefitted if it had a better villain, instead we got Durant :/
62. Batman
"Some days you just can't get rid of a bomb."
Atomic batteries to power, turbines to speed!
This is a great intro to the Dark Knight for kids! I bought this movie for my son when he was 4 and a half and he LOVED it!
Bat-Shark repellent spray,
The Human Dehydrator,
The US military selling a pre nuclear submarine to a P. N. Gwynn with only a PO box address!
Campy, silly fun, perfect for kids!
KAPOWWW
61. Blade Trinity
Kris Kristofferson saw the direction this series was headed and punched his ticket. Don't get me wrong the cast was all great but putting three great ingredients together doesn't always make a great product.
Look Ryan Reynolds was not meant to a part of the GLC, and his personality didn't mesh well in this universe....but fear not there is a Super Hero for Ryan Reynolds....DEAD POOL!
Now to Jessica Biel, I don't care if some of her fight scenes looked poorly choreographed....it's London! Truth be told she's the only reason I made it thru this movie...dear God she's hotter than the sun....that's how she killed all those bloodsuckers!
And finally there's Wesley Snipes being his bad ass day walker self...."some mutha fuckas are always tryin' to ice skate up hill."
60. Hellboy II: The Golden Army
Hellboy vs The Elves of Lothlorien....this was so awful, I left wondering if I had watched an early screening version. Avoid this movie at all costs! waste of time!
59. Batman Vs Superman: Dawn of Justice
I did not enjoy this at all!
Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor was terrible.
Gal Gaddot felt shoe horned in.
Ben Aflek was better than he was as DareDevil but that's not saying much at all. And I still saw Ben Afleck not Bruce Wayne when he wasn't in the suit.
Doomsday was a visual embarrassment for the DCEU.
58. X Men III
I mean c'mon Bryan Singer hands the blue prints to Brett Ratner, the formula for success is right there and yet....
The movie wasn't a complete failure, I thought the Dark Pheonix was badass, Famke Jansen can be beautiful and horribly scary at the same time! Ian McKellan did a great job with Magnetto throughout the series, and Hugh Jackman IS Wolverine, but poor James Marsden, Cyclops ends up so pussywipped he dies at a lake and hardly gets mentioned there after!
And if your gonna kill off a central character like Charles "wheels" Xavier, have the balls to stick with your decision.
57. Captain Marvel
I was excited to see this when it was first revealed, I really was, then around the middle of 2018 something strange happened, I (40 something white dude) was labeled as the cause of all that's wrong with the Earth by Gillette and then Brie Larson (Captain Woman) started on her crusade to champion wamen of color and denounce white dudes. As the release crept closer and closer the drama came to a boil with Rotten Tomatoes conspiracy theories and padded BO #'s. I lost ALL interest in seeing this movie, I finally got around to watching it after Avengers end game and I watched it with as much of an open mind as I could and my biggest problem was Nick Fury just doesn't feel right. I get it that he's young and new to SHIELD but neither of them seemed to give half an F in this movie. This movie could've been so much better if it played like an X files episode!
56. Supergirl
I actually paid money to see this in the theaters back in 1984. Funny I don't have negative memories of this movie but after seeing it again the other night this movie is NOT very good! Kara almost kills the entire population of Argo city....a teeny tiny little city in "inner space" actually a pond in NYC, when she creates a dragon fly with the Omegahedron (sounds very powerful) and it fly's thru the cities protective shielding (saran wrap).
55. Spiderman III
It was #1, how could it be all the way down here at #29!?
I'm willing to bet anyone reading this dropped $9.75 to see this OVERHYPED mess last summer. Another classic example of a great franchise hitting sequelitis, not only that but the total misleading ad campaign, everyone and they're aunt thought Venom was gonna be the marquee villain! No, we got Sandman, and he wasn't very evil,he was a regretful thug trying to do the right thing for his kid but seemed to always be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Venom should've either been left for Spidey IV or made the main and ONLY villain. This movie failed to even come close to living up to the hype, too much was attempted too little was achieved.
54. Superman Returns
Up in the sky! It's a bird, it's a plane, no it's a deadbeat dad from Krypton! That was one hell of a kiss Kal El! Great, Bryan Singer is going to give us a fresh new vision for the Man of Steel for the twenty first century....maybe not. This Superman stands for truth, justice and avoiding alimony checks! WHAT!? Kevin Spacey as Lex Luther cool! Do we really need to know how he got all his wealth, do we really need Lex Luther AGAIN? Isn't there anybody else Superman could've fought? At least we find out why Cyclops didn't get a proper funeral at Xaviers crib now!
So I spent $9.75 for a polished retcon, thanks alot!
53. Judge Dredd
52. Superman II
Hey where's Richard Donner? Who's this Richard Lester guy?
What was intended to be a continuation from the first film ended up as the first sequel in an abysmal downward spiral of Kryptonian fecal matter. If you want to see Supes II as it SHOULD'VE BEEN do yourself a favor and pick up the Richard Donner cut.
51. The Wolverine
I think I'm turning Japanese, I think I'm turning Japanese, I really think so....
Maybe I'm just burnt out on Wolverine but this movie just had me rolling my eyes and face palming throughout...the bullet train scene stands out and the Silver Samurai fight at the end...meh.
This one's gonna fade into obscurity...
50. X Men Origins: Wolverine
Dysfunctional family, sibling rivalry, obesity, gambling, father/son issues, Will I Am getting a spinal tap, crappy CG adamantium claws, naked Hugh Jackman running around, killing defenseless old people, totally botched continuity....all forgiveable....
Absolute failure realizing the Dead Pool character......JIHAD!!!!
This one's gonna fade into obscurity...
50. X Men Origins: Wolverine
Absolute failure realizing the Dead Pool character......JIHAD!!!!
49. Thor: The Dark World
Thor the Dark World picks up immediately after the Avengers with Loki in shackles back in Asgard.
Best thing about TDW, Tom Hiddleston, worst thing Natalie Portman....her performance was so dialed in.
I loved the scene with Jane and Thor at the lake on Naboo Asgard where Thor tries to explain the convergence, Holy fuckin' De Ja Vu! Hiddleston does such a great job as Loki, Malekith doesn't get nearly enough time to be developed! He's just a token bad guy. The other aspect of TDW that was mentioned but never explored was the rivalry between Lady Sif and Jane Foster, that could've been fun to see....
The post credits scene was a great tie in but did I miss how the ether solidified into an infinity stone?
48. Amazing Spiderman
Although this reboot of the franchise was "better" than Spiderman III, I still didn't find it that good.
The casting was meh, I didn't enjoy Andrew Garfield's Peter Parker and his Spiderman came across as some punk kid with a chip on his shoulder and a problem with authority that got some "sick" abilities and a costume.
Martin Sheen as Uncle Ben didn't work for me either....I just saw Martin Sheen.
And Dennis Leary was Dennis Leary being a cop instead of a Firefighter.
Emma Stone is a fantastic actress and even her Gwen Stacey seemed hollow.
47. Venom
46. Antman
The final battle was hilarious. If you never see Antman you won't be lost with the MCU but it's a good simplistic superhero flick that doesn't take itself too seriously.
45. Thor
But this movie wasn't that bad....
Thor felt more like a good fantasy movie than a Marvel super hero movie to me, and unlike Iron Man it didn't feel like an origins movie either. I enjoyed Thor and can confirm he is no homo in this movie, but I wouldn't spend the money to buy it when it releases on Blu Ray & DVD. My review here: Thor Review
44. Hellboy
Guillermo del Toro brings a lesser known comic book hero to the silver screen. Ron Pearlman was great as Hellboy, Abe Sapien was cool to see on the big screen, the makeup Pearlman sports in the movie was very impressive. Nazi's, a baby from hell, Rasputin and hell hounds, unlike Judge Dredd, Daredevil and the Punisher this movie was a great representation of the comic book character, I'm looking forward to the sequel, The Golden Army!43. Spiderman
It certainly took the friendly neighborhood Spiderman a long enough time to hit the silver screen, but due to Spidey's acrobatic crime fighting style it was probably impossible to do without the power of CG. I enjoyed the origins story it was funny seeing him discover his new powers, Rosemary Harris as Aunt May was great, I really think she was terrific. And she Shined even brighter in Spidey II. Tobey Maguire was ok as Peter Parker and Kirsten Dunst did a commendable job as Mary Jane.
The weak link in this movie was Willem DaFoe, I loved him in Platoon, but his performance in Spiderman went from creepy to downright clownish as the Green Goblin. That helmet was awful!
It's understandable why Spiderman did so well.....everyone knows Spiderman!
42. Ant Man and the Wasp
So now we know why Ant-Man didn't show up in Infinity War, he was under house arrest after trashing that airport in Germany with Cap.
I really enjoyed this much like the first Ant-man movie, it is just simple fun. Not many know this but the title for the movie was originally gonna be Scott Lang's Day off. Favorite parts were the car chase scenes the weakest scenes were anything with the Ghost.... yeah Hanna John-Kamen is amazingly attractive but her character was ridiculous so the ghost suffers from Molecular instability which has her phase in and out of this reality and can allow her to pass thru solid objects but yet she never falls thru the ground?? Yeah I get it that the suit helps her control it but what happened when she was a child? what's to keep her from phasing out and sinking into the ground then phasing in while she's miles beneath the earth??? I thought Michael Pena was funnier this time around. This is a safe intro into the MCU for the little ones.
I really enjoyed this much like the first Ant-man movie, it is just simple fun. Not many know this but the title for the movie was originally gonna be Scott Lang's Day off. Favorite parts were the car chase scenes the weakest scenes were anything with the Ghost.... yeah Hanna John-Kamen is amazingly attractive but her character was ridiculous so the ghost suffers from Molecular instability which has her phase in and out of this reality and can allow her to pass thru solid objects but yet she never falls thru the ground?? Yeah I get it that the suit helps her control it but what happened when she was a child? what's to keep her from phasing out and sinking into the ground then phasing in while she's miles beneath the earth??? I thought Michael Pena was funnier this time around. This is a safe intro into the MCU for the little ones.
41. Batman Returns
I had the same one after leaving the theater...
Burton kinda screwed himself by having Nicholson's Joker in the first film whether he intended on a sequel or not. If this was the first and Batman returns had Nicholson's joker it would've worked out better IMO. As good as DeVito was as the Penguin it can't compare to Nicholson as the Joker...he's trumped both ways.
40. Dredd
This was a HUGE improvement over Stallone's Dredd movie! Simple story with intense action. The scene with Ma Ma high on Slo-mo in the tub was cool!
I did how ever see The Raid: Redemption shortly afterwards and the two movies are almost identical! Someone ripped off someone else's story.....
39. Dead Pool 2
For me DP2 was a a bunch of funny moments poorly edited together. I found the kid "firefist" extremely irritating, I couldn't care less about him so I had a difficult time caring for Cable's plot.I wanted to punch Dopinder....he was so annoying.
The X Force parachute scene was hilarious, and I loved the Colossus Vs Juggernaut fight.
I didn't enjoy all the self pitying from DP in this movie and some of the jokes dragged on for too long in my opinion.
The mid and post credits scenes were absolutely genius! Best use of time travel ever!!!
38. The Crow
38. The Crow
I remember seeing this back when I was in college and thinking, "Why couldn't the batman movies be this awesome?"
Brandon Lee....son of Bruce Lee as a reincarnated vigilante angel! C'mon the movie is awesome some start to finish, amazing atmosphere, all Goth, with the title song from The Cure....which I was also a big fan of!
A very cool movie about death and rebirth and then there's that whole Brandon Lee dying during filming a scene that's some crazy shit!
I remember my friends and I going frame by frame to find the moment he was shot...
FIRE IT UP!!!
37. Blade
When was the last vampire movie that made bloodsuckers so cool!? Blade was fresh and the hero was badass, Wesley Snipes was perfectly cast for the role, and Stephen Dorff as Deacon frost was a great choice also, the two played off each other too well. The overall story may have been a little hokey but it was fascinating to watch and goth kids everywhere rejoiced as this Superhero flick made vampires the in crowd.
The only low point in the movie for me was the end of the fight between Blade and Deacon Frost....the CGI effects where poor, the thing looked like a bubbling blood clot. Otherwise Blade was well worth the admission price.
36. X Men: Days of Future Past
Holy retcon Batman! Time travel can undo all the wrongs with X3 AND help realign this franchise. I'm getting burnt out on Wolverine. Michael Fassbender is great as Magneto...he breathes new life into the character. And speaking of new life....Quicksilver! I'm looking forward to seeing how Magneto's son crosses over to the Avengers franchise.
35. Man of Steel
The only other issue I have with Man of Steel is after the destruction of Zod's ship, Metropolis looks like Europe after WWII....it's totally FUBAR! Then Supes and Zod go mano a mano and destroy even more of Metropolis! Than minutes after Supes snaps Zods neck we see Clark walking into the Daily Planet and being introduced to Lois Lane!
34. X Men Apocalypse
I enjoyed this for what it was, an action movie loosely based on the comic. I liked the beginning in ancient Egypt and how they inter-weave the story of Apocalypse into history and perpetuate the ancient alien theories.
Not bad....not great.
Not bad....not great.
33. Dead Pool
This was a love letter from Marvel and Ryan Reynolds to fans of Dead Pool. I enjoyed the movie, it absolutely nailed the character of Dead Pool, the soundtrack was perfectly fitting and honestly Ryan Reynolds was not only the perfect casting but he kinda earned it after being that fake ass "deadpool" in the X-men origins Wolverine movie...
I couldn't keep track of the in-genre jokes but there was a shit ton of them! My favs were his jabs at his Green Lantern movie.
So Ryan you're 1 for 2 in the Super Hero genre (not your fault I know) lets kick some more ass in Dead Pool 2! Maybe Patrick "wheels" Stewart will make it for DP's second outing.
32. Iron Man 2
Everyone said Iron man 2, hell yeah! This movie is gonna be twice as good as the first!
Well it was bigger and had more action and Olivia Munn and epic indy car crashes but it really didn't seem better than the original in the end. It was fun but I wasn't feeling the Tony Stark charisma in IM2 like in The Avengers. And the final battle against Whiplash was very underwhelming.
A good sequel, larger scale, fun.....nothing epic like Alien to Aliens but a solid summer block buster experience.
31. Iron Man 3
Well it was bigger and had more action and Olivia Munn and epic indy car crashes but it really didn't seem better than the original in the end. It was fun but I wasn't feeling the Tony Stark charisma in IM2 like in The Avengers. And the final battle against Whiplash was very underwhelming.
A good sequel, larger scale, fun.....nothing epic like Alien to Aliens but a solid summer block buster experience.
31. Iron Man 3
This one was tough to place! Should I compare it to the Avengers movie or Ironman 2???
There was no chance IM3 was gonna be able to compete against The Avengers so I am comparing it to IM2. IM3 has some really awesome sequences but it also has some not so awesome moments ...
1) 10 y/o Harley Keener helps a billionaire genius track down the Mandarin
2) Ben Kingsley not really The Mandarin
3) Guy Pearce really the Mandarin....breathing fire
4) Super Pepper Potts saves Tony Stark
Lets see where the M.C.U. takes Cap and Thor after the events of The Avengers!
30. X Men First Class
Best Movie Evah
29. The Incredible Hulk
Can gamma radiation erase my memory of Ang Lee's Hulk movie?
This IS the Hulk I know! The Bruce Banner that's on the run from the U.S military, that is constantly moving around to avoid being caught. The one I watched as a kid.
Ed Norton reminded me of the actor from the TV series, Bill Bixby.
I liked Tim Roth's character, Gen Blonsky who devolves into The Abomination.
The fight between The Incredible Hulk and The Abomination was awesome.
HULK SMASH indeed!
28. Doctor Strange
This was a lighthearted fun trippy origins movie, my son who's turning 7 loves the MCU but had a hard time with this one....mostly due to the spiritual/ astral plane aspects. But there was some very cool action sequences my favorite one's were between Tilda Swinton and Mads Mikkelsen.
Visually, Doctor Strange takes the effects of Inception and cranks them to 11. Doctor Strange also reminded me of the first Matrix with Mr. Dr. Strange's journey of discovery.
Absolute hilarity from start to finish I enjoyed it as much as my son, and the soundtrack....pure gold!
TLBM really expanded my knowledge of the Dark Knight and his Universe...Lobster Thermador....who knew!
And thanks to the movie I now know the secret password to the bat cave computer!
26. Blade II
Guillermo Del Toro (Hell Boy) took the best parts of the first and added more blood, more gore, and more horror but was able to retain the cooler aspects of the Vampire lifestyle in the 21st century. Is the enemy of my enemy my friend or enemy...Blade teams up with the Bloodpack, a formidable squad trained to hunt down Blade but find themselves allied against a new strain of vampire.
As cool as Deacon Frost was he seemed like a vampire technophile compared to Nomak, son of Vamp lord Damaskinos. Namak may come from vamp royalty but he ain't no pushover. The fight scenes were crazy eye candy!
Guillermo Del Toro made the second instalment of the series the "Empire Strikes Back" of the Blade trilogy!
25. Captain America: The First Avenger
I was really surprised by Captain America, the first trailer didn't really sell this movie too well, the fan made one was pure gold though.
Captain America was a very entertaining movie with a superb cast and awesome action and Hugo Weaving as the Red Skull! Mr Rodgers.......
Chris Evans is perfect as Steve Rogers / Captain America.
Check out my Captain America Review .
25. Captain America: The First Avenger
Captain America was a very entertaining movie with a superb cast and awesome action and Hugo Weaving as the Red Skull! Mr Rodgers.......
Chris Evans is perfect as Steve Rogers / Captain America.
Check out my Captain America Review .
24. X-Men
Ian McKellan as Magnetto took some getting used to, Patrick Stewart as Charles Xavier was a perfect casting in my opinion.
Lite on action, and a rather silly story X Men accomplishes the difficult task of introducing so many different super hero's.
Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) steals most scenes and is the marquee character, which isn't a bad thing.
23. The Dark Knight Rises
The third and final chapter in Christopher Nolans Dark Knight trilogy was good, the movie mirrored the occupy wall street protests going in NYC. Bane represented the 99% (the lowest common denominator) ....the people's champion during batman's absence.
Watching TDKR was similar to having the last 50 pieces in a 1000 piece puzzle, you can see what the picture is gonna be but some parts haven't been figured out yet.
I'm glad Nolan choose Bane as one of Batman's final villains, he's well enough known without being mainstream and gave Nolan room to mold him to fit in this trilogies realm. Tom Hardy as Bane, Cillan Murphy as Dr. Johnathan Crane, Joseph Gordon Levitt as Detective John Blake...all members of team Nolan did fantastic jobs with their roles. The highlight for me was Marion Cotillard as Miranda Tate....her little secret was fantastic! Ya gotta always watch out for that slow blade!
A respectable conclusion to a fantastic trilogy for a comic book super hero!
22. Wonder Woman
I finally got around to seeing this and I was pleasantly surprised, I appreciate how they introduced Diana and the Amazons but then once Diana arrives in Europe she isn't slicing and dicing her way through all her obstacles in front of her. She discovers things aren't black and white and realizes her true strength isn't from anger....the dark side versus the light side so to speak.
Gal Gadot and Chris Pine seemed to have good on screen chemistry which could've been this film's Achilles heel if they didn't. Interestingly I didn't have an issue with the use of slo mo in this movie....it was used well to capitalize on the action scenes, at times it felt like a God of War QTE but, like I said, I wasn't distracting.
21. Avengers: Age of Ultron
The hype for Avengers Age of Ultron was at biblical levels and honestly there wasn't much of a chance of it meeting our lofty expectations, the movie was fun and had some spectacular action scenes, and seeing the World's Mightiest Super Hero's team up is awesome but....ultimately I feel AoU sacrificed the enjoyment of this individual film for the overall MCU experience.
Joss Whedon had alot of puzzle pieces that needed to connected in AoU in order to lay the groundwork for phase 3 and he did so masterfully but that's my overall issue with the movie....it felt like multiple movies pieced together to form a super hero mosaic.
20. Batman
Tim Burton takes the Dark Knight and puts his trademark atmosphere into Gotham City, Jack Nicholson creates a Joker that all others are compared to, I can't wait to see where Heath Ledger takes the Joker in the upcoming TDK! Michael Keaton does a good job as Bruce Wayne/Batman, but any scene Nicholson was in he stole the spotlight.
Burton's vision of Gotham was great but his Batman was not as dark as his comic version. Batman unlike most superhero's is more of an anti hero as he is more akin to a mercenary.
19. Spiderman: Far from Home
Honestly bringing Mysterio to the big screen could've/ would've failed in other studio's hands but they chose the perfect actor, Jake Gyllenhaal, to bring Quentin Beck into the MCU! Decent conclusion to Phase 3,
18. Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse
This movie is stunning AND it's story, not entirely new, was full of heart! When I say it's not entirely new I mean I've seen a similar story line in the third season of the animated series Ultimate Spiderman Web Warriors.
If you miss this in the theaters I can not recommend enough getting this on Blu Ray!
One of the strength's of this movie is the power of relationships, which is demonstrated with every character. For example Kingpin has a very understandable motive for what he's doing, Miles Morales and his relationship with his uncle Arron and his parents, Peter B. Parker's relationship with Mary Jane, Gwen Stacey's relationship with Peter Parker, and all the other Spidey's relationship with Miles Morales.
17. Big Hero 6
I can't believe I forgot this gem in all my previous Cinematic Superhero Showdown's! Although this is a Disney Pixar film BH6 is actually a Marvel Comic, I took my son to see this and I was floored at how much we enjoyed it.
The animation is is gorgeous, the voice actors do an incredible job and truly evoke the wide range of emotions in this movie.
This movie has lots of heart!
Yokai might be a little scary for the lil ones but other than that this is the perfect introduction to superhero's to your children....and Stan Lee does make his obligatory appearance!
I want a sequel! I want to See Tadashi return as
16. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
The sequel to the undisputedly awesome 2014 GotG is Frank Miller's recurring nightmare...but I loved it. In Vol 2 The team gets split up, Peter, Gamora and Drax crash the Milano. Peter learns who his father is and fights him after his father offers to rule the universe with him. Meanwhile Rocket and Yondu team up with Nebula but are betrayed and handed over to the bad guys..............................................................................wait a minute what movie am I writing about?
Long story short this was a terrific sequel that only suffered because of people's unrealistic expectations.
The whole Tazer Face scene had me laughing so hard I snorted like a pig!
What a comeback! I mean the first Thor movie was OK, I didn't really care for The Dark World but Ragnarok took all the good elements of the Thor movies and sprinkled in a more lighthearted tone more akin to Guardians of the Galaxy and HUZZAH! the best Thor movie to date! Cate Blanchett hit a grand slam in my opinion as Hella! Perfect Casting! And I also thought Tessa Thompson was another great casting choice.
15. Thor Ragnarok
What a comeback! I mean the first Thor movie was OK, I didn't really care for The Dark World but Ragnarok took all the good elements of the Thor movies and sprinkled in a more lighthearted tone more akin to Guardians of the Galaxy and HUZZAH! the best Thor movie to date! Cate Blanchett hit a grand slam in my opinion as Hella! Perfect Casting! And I also thought Tessa Thompson was another great casting choice.
I saw this with my son and he loved it...(he's almost 8 and thankfully was laughing so loud he didn't hear the orgy comment when they were headed towards the devils anus) and yes that's really in the movie!
Karl Urban as Skurge was good and Korg's voice was hilariously off.
I really enjoyed Ragnarok, the retro sound soundtrack, and visual style, it matched the fresh more fun approach of the movie and never felt over done or forced. Thor Ragnarok was definitely worth the price of a ticket!
14. Joker
There was a time when I respected the opinions of "professional" movie reviewers...
If your expecting to see the Joker creating mayhem in Gotham City, you're gonna be very disappointed!When DC movies do it right you get a brilliant film that exemplifies Art imitating Life. This is the case of Arthur Fleck in this film! The scariest thing in this movie is the fact that there could be an Arthur Fleck out there in real life! The socio/economic/polical atmosphere these days could make what I saw become reality...like I said when DC puts one of their properties in a believable
13. The Dark Knight
Before TDK came out I thought Nicholson's Joker would be the one all other's would be compared to, I was wrong Heath Ledger's (RIP) Joker is the most powerful and disturbing villain in any super hero movie I've ever seen, money, power, infamy, Ledgers Joker doesn't care about any of that he is the epitome of chaos. Aaron Eckhart does a great job as Harvey Dent/Two Face
12. Iron Man
After seeing this movie I decided to do this list, Iron Man was a fun ride! Simply put Robert Downey Jr. was a great casting choice for Tony Stark, as far as an origins movie I think it was slightly better than Spider Man 1, Jeff Bridges was a better villain than Willem Dafoe, and Iron Monger was so much better than the Green Goblin ugghh that mask was soooo stoopid! Gwyenth Paltrow's Pepper Potts was as good as Kirsten Dunst's Mary Jane, but I like Pepper Potts character a bit more. Iron Man was definitely worth the $10 a ticket...dam movie tickets are getting so dam expensive, and the theaters for the most part aren't reflecting the high prices in their quality....but that's another discussion.
11. X Men 2
Lets get the proverbial ball rolling! With the origins stuff out of the way more or less lets take these mutants to the next level. I wasn't to crazy about Ian McKellan's Magnetto in the first movie but he grew on me in each consecutive sequel. X2 started out with an attack on the president and set the stage for what was hinted at in the first movie. Humanity's fear of the unknown and the atrocities we do to each other because of our fears.
X2 unites the 2 mutant sides against the humans, this angle was also done in Blade 2...it worked well in both movies.
X2 also introduces Nightcrawler and Lady Death Strike to the cast of mutants, both visually impressive in their own way, Nightcrawlers makeup is very impressive, LDS beautiful yet deadly and the fight between her and wolverine was great! X2 adds more action without sacraficing the over arching story. A definite improvement over the first X Men film.
10. Spiderman Homecoming
Spidey really needed this movie to be good, after the roller coaster ride we've had with the last 3 and fortunately Homecoming was great, highly entertaining and I really bought Tom Holland as Peter Parker, and Michael Keaton as the birdman Vulture was the best realized villian Spidey has faced in his cinematic career in my opinion....yes I think Keatons Vulture is better than Molina's Doc Oc.
The movie did an incredible job fitting into the MCU and at the same time adding new layers to the Avengers/ MCU.
And kudos to Marvel and Sony for pulling off a plot twist that M. Night Shaymalan would be impressed by!
9. Spiderman II
What was that line from Scream 2? Oh yeah, "sequels suck", this doesn't seem to be the case for some of our super hero's...at least for the second sequel.
Like Blade and X2, Spidey hit the floor running in his sequel, unlike those two, Spiderman had to fight the good fight alone, but when Peter Parker resolved his persona issues he found himself facing the visually impressive Doctor Octopus. Played by Alfred Molina, he really did an amazing job with the villain. This movie had people cheering when Spiderman fought Doc Oc.
Spiderman 2 really captured the essence of the comic book character, every single character in the movie seemed like they were torn straight from the comic book! Great Super Hero, terrible delivery boy lol.
8. Captain America: The Winter Soldier
I'm sorry but does Gary Shandling look like a toad or is it me?
Amazing follow up to Captain America: The First Avenger and The Avengers! Far better than Iron man's post Avengers movie. The film stands on it's own and works well in the M.C.U. so joe movie goer can enjoy it and those that have been keeping up with the MCU can enjoy it for what it is and how it fits into the larger picture. Chris Evans was the ideal choice for Steve Rodgers. I enjoyed the story and how HYDRA survived in the shadows and continued to manipulate society from post WWII all the way to the present and actually infiltrated/amalgamated into SHIELD. This actually got me hyped to see the Agent Carter series also. There's so much shit going on heading into Age of Ultron! Hydra has an Infinity Stone, will Bucky help the Avengers battle Ultron, will Thanos show up? Will Magneto show up to free his children (of the atom)Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver?
7. Guardians of the Galaxy
8. Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Amazing follow up to Captain America: The First Avenger and The Avengers! Far better than Iron man's post Avengers movie. The film stands on it's own and works well in the M.C.U. so joe movie goer can enjoy it and those that have been keeping up with the MCU can enjoy it for what it is and how it fits into the larger picture. Chris Evans was the ideal choice for Steve Rodgers. I enjoyed the story and how HYDRA survived in the shadows and continued to manipulate society from post WWII all the way to the present and actually infiltrated/amalgamated into SHIELD. This actually got me hyped to see the Agent Carter series also. There's so much shit going on heading into Age of Ultron! Hydra has an Infinity Stone, will Bucky help the Avengers battle Ultron, will Thanos show up? Will Magneto show up to free his children (of the atom)Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver?
7. Guardians of the Galaxy
The number one reason I enjoyed GotG so much was IT'S A FUN MOVIE! It's an adventure in space, that isn't hindered by political intrigue, taxation of trade routes, scientists that act like they're sponsored by red bull when surveying a strange new world, messiah-like characters that save humanity from machines, yada yada yada.
Having prior knowledge of the comic's isn't really necessary to enjoy the movie and in fact may be a good thing if you're not in case the MCU made some changes to GotG cannon. The soundtrack as I suspected absolutely fits the comedic atmosphere of the movie with some amazing songs from the 80's!
Having prior knowledge of the comic's isn't really necessary to enjoy the movie and in fact may be a good thing if you're not in case the MCU made some changes to GotG cannon. The soundtrack as I suspected absolutely fits the comedic atmosphere of the movie with some amazing songs from the 80's!
It's been a long time since I've enjoyed a movie so much that I'd be willing to pay to see it a second time, but I would for GotG.
6. Batman Begins
Best origins story for any super hero so far, tied with Spidey 2 for best authentic representation of the character from it's comic book source material.
Why is this so much better than say Superman returns? Chris Nolan had an ORIGINAL vison, and didn't just polish up Burton's Batman. He also gave us a really unique villian instead of re-using the Joker again we got one of the franchises original villians, Ras Al Ghul and Sarecrow! Christian Bale is so much better as Bruce Wayne/Batman than Michael Keaton, George Clooney or Val Kilmer.
If the Joel Shumacher series left a bad taste in your mouth, Batman begins will be like a shot of Listerine!
Although this is the best representation of the comic book character, Batman Begins doesn't seem like a comic book story at all, absolutely worth having in your personal collection!
5. Captain America Civil War
I remember writing the review for Captain America: The First Avenger and saying how surprised I was at how much I enjoyed it, now 5 years later I'm writing to say, I expected a great Captain America movie and I got perhaps the greatest movie in the MCU to date...no pressure Star Lord.
4. The Avengers
The Avengers movie is best described as greater than the sum of it's parts, meaning as good as Iron Man 1 and 2, Captain America and Thor were The Avengers took all those awesome super heroes and amplified them to the power of greyskull the SUN!!
Super Fun Summer Super Hero Flick, Great Acting, Awesome Dialog, Special Special Effects.
3. Avengers Endgame
End Game and Infinity War are the films that define this generation much like Empire Strikes back and Return of the Jedi did in the 80's! Endgame is Fanservice in it's purest and most sincere form!
Check my full thoughts and feelings regarding Endgame.
2. Avengers: Infinity War
10 years the MCU has been building up to this and for those of you who have invested in these films the payoff was so incredibly worthwhile! The biggest complaint about the MCU has been the villians, save Loki and a few others that have stood out among the crowd. There's a reason why Thanos has been in so many post credits scene's.....he is absolutely the BEST Villian the MCU has had so far (sorry Loki)!
1. Superman
Super Fun Summer Super Hero Flick, Great Acting, Awesome Dialog, Special Special Effects.
3. Avengers Endgame
Check my full thoughts and feelings regarding Endgame.
2. Avengers: Infinity War
1. Superman
When you mention any other actor who's done a super hero movie none more than Christopher Reeve embody the Hero they played more in my opinion. Sure Superman is dated and the special effects pale in comparison to newer super hero movies like Guardians of the Galaxy, but none have the heart and soul that this film had! One of my favorite scenes in any movie is when Phyllis Thaxter as Martha Kent walks out to Clark Kent in the wheat field, that scene is beautifully understated and yet full of so much emotion!
Christopher Reeve's Superman represented all that was great about America and all humanity regardless of what was happening in real life. When I saw this as child I believed, just as the poster said...
The music by Johnathan Williams was just as powerful as Superman. Gene Hackman's Lex Luthor might not have been a very powerful villain but his diabolical plan was evil yet genius enough to qualify him for magna cum laude of evil villain school.
Superman remains a timeless American classic.
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