Entertainment Weekly posted this list of “21 Super Comic Book Movies”. Now, it’s not a top 21 list or anything like that, it’s more in the lines of recommendations. It’s a pretty superb list, too. Of course the usual Hollywood blockbusters are there: Iron Man, Dark Knight, X-Men 2, Spider-Man…but the list also includes movies that are sometimes overlooked as great comic adaptations. Such as Ghost World (which actually received an Academy Award nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay), American Splendor, Akira, Oldboy, etc. While superb, this list isn’t perfect. It includes Superman II, but not the first movie? Also, The Rocketeer is omitted and it is such a GREAT adaptation, it’s a shame it doesn’t get greater recognition. It also includes two movies from Alan Moore stories: V for Vendetta and From Hell, which are considered by most comic book fans as two of the worst. Now, I know there is no feasible way any studio or writer could have adapted Moore’s 500-page From Hell into a 2 and a half movie or what have you (it actually ran a little over 2 hours), but was there any real need to modernize V? V was never intended as an action, espionage type of movie. So both the plot and the audience suffered for such a mishandling of the characters.
In addition to the list of recommendations, EW also posted a WORST adaptations list. Now of course, this list is full of the no-brainers. Judge Dredd, Superman IV, Batman and Robin, Steel, Catwoman. You know? The movies that made you felt dirty by association. This list pretty much nails it, too, except for two movies. The 2004 Punisher with Tom Jane and Daredevil. I don’t really get the displeasure with DD from the comic book community. Especially when one sees the director’s cut that was released. Sad thing is, that DD is tagged right along with Elektra on the “worst of” list. Also on the list are movies I didn’t even know were made, such as a Brenda Starr movie, and Sheena.
Reading both the lists, what movies do you think were omitted from them?
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