The Movies

The pinnacle; Whedon meshes all the solo films while lifting them to a higher level.

The penultimate crossover film, a new standard!

Unprecedented in so many ways, Endgame is a culmination of ALL that came before it, the Russos conduct it like a perfect symphony, to its last note.

The Once and Future King lets love rule.

One of the most resonant and engaging romance stories that I've ever seen.

A stunner; a solo film on the level of AVENGERS. Character, complexity, commentary.

A complex thriller focused sharply as a riveting character drama.

Terrific adaption of Gloeckner's edgy and farcical coming-of-age graphic novels.

This film does a great job of tying up multiple timelines and stories, while paying homage to one of the greatest X-men stories of all time.

My favorite live action Batman movie.

This film actually improves on the excellent first with its ambition, complexity, and surprises.

Captain your own destiny.

Best comic book costume onscreen since Superman. Entertaining, captures the character perfectly, the passion shows in the production.

Another fine adaption of one of Posy Simmonds' brilliant graphic novels.

The only real Tarzan movie ever made, staying remarkably true to the first books.

No Charlie 27, no Vance Astro, 5 minutes in I didn't care. Rocket Raccoon on the silver screen.

After my third viewing, I didn't think it was possible to create a better comic book film.

A serious art film from a serious art form.

Plug In, Tune Up, ROCK OUT! Puts the art in party.

To this day, I can't picture anyone else as Superman. They made me believe a man can fly.

The Light arrives to save us from darkness

It gets at the heart of the racial conflict that made the comics so poignant.

An incredibly well constructed and well designed piece of work - bringing new realms to life in a competent, engaging storyline.

This cult favorite is a much better, much more accurate version of Dredd, in a gorgeously shot, violent romp featuring a malevolant Lena Headey as a solid villian.

A fantastic extension of the first movie, this one builds off the last and emotionally creates a great springboard to feel the true weight of being a hero and paying the price.

I always told anyone that would listen that the perfect Captain American movie had to be set in WWII. Never in my wildest dreams did I believe it would happen.

RDJ brings the character to life in a true commitment to the character that will indelibly change the Marvel Movie Universe, laying the groundwork for great things to come. Well directed, this movie shows the heart of a hero in every sense and carries itself with feeling and a great sense of humor.

The best adaption, even with changes, ever done from Alan Moore's formidable ouevre.

An eye-opener, on every level.

This is the most inclusive and progressive version of the story.

Logan is a fantastic omega opus for the Hugh Jackman's Wolverine, with true heart in a masterfully shaped dystopia.

A compelling version of the indie fave.

You can't help but love this seemless continuation of the first film.

Hemsworth and Hiddleston carry a difficult mythos and knock it out of the park.

Bigger, bolder, better!

Bringing a levity to the overly dark DCU is a breath of fresh air and Levi is perfect for the job.

A fun preamble for what promises to be a more epic sequel with The Wasp.

A crescendo; overwhelms any plotholes with epic power and sheer intensity.

Despite some plot oddities, I loved the depth and scope of this film. But don't damsel Jane, please.

A spot-on realization of Tardi's frowning hero and her surreal Victorian pulp adventures.

Zwigoff (CRUMB, GHOST WORLD) scores again with a fine take on Clowes' satirical thriller.

An enjoyable romp, with some fun characterizations and imaginative use of future tech, a story of heart and family at it's core.

A great movie, and an amazing start to the Marvel empire. They took a solid C character and brought it to life with a beautiful visual style and some stellar fight choreography.

One of the most fantastic intros around, the movie is comedic, indie fun.

Visceral, bloody and ambitious in it's choreography, Oldboy is not to be messed with.

Chris Evans shines in this dystopian future vision, a singularly focused class war on a moving train.

A great return to form at the hands of Raimi, some fantastic work that gives the right nods to the material, lifting it up while allowing Tobey to truly inhabit the role.

A good film of an exemplary graphic novel by Posy Simmonds.

Reverent and generally effective, if a bit stodgy. The alternate ending actually works.

A great depiction of a crucial storyline in the character's history, this movie has a lot working for it, though Viper seems unnecessary and more time should have been spent in the central family conflict.

A great visualization to the printed work, Mignola's character is brought forth in a visceral, solid magnitude, with incredible set pieces and a defining performace by Perlman.

Mendes delivers a great character study and a touching story in a gangster drama gone wrong. Hanks delivers a serious, committed role with some beautiful cinematography and great tension.

This wins over with pure style. A visual feast with just enough edge and humor.

A great film in every right way. Faithful, fun, frenetic, fulfilling.

A lot of things go well for the movie - War Machine, Black Widow intro, Mickey Rourke, great action sequences by Tartakovsky. Some of the drama seems a bit artificial and clunky at times, but is still an enjoyable watch.

An unexpectedly fine turn that, along with BLADE, launched the modern superhero film renaissance.

I had some pretty low expectations but was pleasantly surprised by the scope and scale of Aquaman, they aimed for epic and mostly got there.

Cronenberg, complemented with a stellar cast creates a tense, dramatic tale with an emotional appeal.

This film is a much better version than the original comic source.

Akin to 'Ultimate Spider-Man'; sums the best of the first two Spideys with new depths.

A much better follow up with a clear direction towards the cartoon universe.

James McEvoy and Michael Fassbender do the unthinkable and follow their predecessors incredibly well, giving Magneto his just desserts as one of the best villains of all time.

This movie would have been a 9 with Matt Ryan in it.

Brandon Lee's best performance in a gorgeous, gothic revenge tale.

The other best adaption of Alan Moore, though the book is infinitely deeper and better.

The beginning story of Norton's Banner is by far the most interesting part of the story, devolving into a final punch up that carries no real weight or emotion

Beautifully designed, the film captures the tone and design of the art deco age, with a lovely homage to the work.

Well executed but a disappointing follow up to where we last left the X-Men.

A mixed bag. The sexiness, design, and weirdess flow; the pacing, angles, and dialogue ebb.

The best, truest Batman film of the 1960s.

Brutal, foul-mouthed and comical, this movie honors the work it came from: brutal, foul-mouthed and comical.

An enjoyable film that captures the essence of the source material.

Same deal as the first movie. I'd see Red 3 under this formula.

Would have loved to see the actual director's cut to get the movie we were promised.

Milius delivers a complete vision for the character and Arnie does deliver in a role meant for him. The film is lifted by a great performance by James Earl Jones and well-realized art direction.

A pleasant surprise of a movie I expected to suck.

This movie actually gets funnier to me over multiple watchings, it has some great moments and great characters, if a little flat in it's writing on occassion.

Would have loved this more if Superman wasn't a deadbeat dad. Suffers from Singer being too close to the source material.

This movie should've come out 5 years ago, it might have done better and not been as predictable. Still the buddy cop routine is amusing and Hardy makes it fun to watch.

Ang Lee takes a risk on trying to bring the medium to life - comic panels and all - and equating the source of the hulk's rage to an abusive source. It suffers from a convoluted ending in which the movie tries to tie up too much at once.

Saddled with an impossible task of following the Avengers and a waste of the Mandarin, still a great film.

Jim Carrey embodies the character whole-heartedly and is complimented by the over the top nature of the comic and it's cartoon like qualities. Very watchable and fun.

A shame Billy Zane didn't get a better recognized character to get behind, with all due respect to Lee Falk.

A good extension of the first movie, deepening the history of Pete's father and some great visual moments with introduction to the Sinister Six, but the Electro story is a tad embarrassing and shoddily written.

Alright, but not as engaging as the first one.

Beautiful to look at but hated the Penguin and it was a waste of Christopher Walken.

They took some time on developing Bruce Wayne - Kilmer brings a level of believability to the conflict within and an emotional depth that was lacking in the first two.

Taking away the Vietnam story hobbles the intent and spirit of the character.

A fun version of the indie fave, it's a pop culture, post apocalyptic sendup with some popcorn fun built in. An Ice T as a crazed fighting mutant kangaroo. Fo real.

This movie is the closest to the comic ever done. Very true to the original characters, as one of the 3,000 people who bought it from the beginning.

The movie does the book justice. An underrated adaptation.

An over-rated film on thin source material.

Surprising faithful translation of Crepax's erotic adventure hero, Valentina, even duping his famed panel montages.

On paper, this movie sounds fantastic - James Bond and Han Solo take on the alien hordes - but the result is a mediocre story with cardboard characters and a thin plotline. I wanted to like it!

A pretty faithful and entertaining frolic.

A decent take on the character for basic fun.

A colossal mis-fire on my favorite DC character. See Guardian of the Galaxy for how to do it right.

An interesting and rare experience of the creator translating their own graphix to the screen.

This movie lacks the central heart of the first film, driving to an obvious conclusion, in a brutal mess.

I feel like I should have cared more about the character than I did. It lacks an emotional connection.

An entertaining, if somewhat predictable film with some great fight sequences and all star cast.

Your standard sequel disappointment.

It's a shambling mess, not Altman at his height, but surprisingly faithful and devious underneath.

The opening evolution of young Logan, tracking him and Sabretooth through the ages is a highlight and unfortunately the only one of the movie.

I still sing tomorrow, today.

Held together by solid re-imagining and solid acting. Engaging.

This is actually a pretty decent spoof of consumerism, and an affable comedy.

Everything right and wrong about Frank Miller, unadulterated.

Way better than I feared, thank god they weren't aliens.

What I loved in it was a 9, what I hated was a 1.

A failed attempt at bringing a cult hero to life.

An admirable job in attempting to capture the essence of the character, but the movie is overblown and obvious.

This is a hot mess. While some elements probably sounded like a great idea, the end product is a stilted, cardboard cutout mess.

A neglected star that can't find a stage.

Nothing says 80s like Erin Grey in a satin pantsuit!

An interesting idea to progress the storyline, it is well shot, if somewhat forgettable, and less emotionally resonant.

Not a total travesty. The fault lay in compressing and miscasting the best story arc.

Corny and forced, the movie is fun at times but is over-ridden by some bad writing and a clunky construction.

The main action is average, but the funky frills along the way make it fun.

A decent antic that works well for young folks.

They spent a lot of money on effects, and Jeff Bridges is fun to watch, but Reynolds is the same character again, and the movie is ultimately forgettable.

Van Damme is Van Damme in this scifi movie of the week

A pretty good graphic novel turned into an okay film.

Way better than I feared, thank god they weren't aliens.

The 14 year old me gave it a 10, until he killed the criminal in the belltower. Batman is not a killer.

The textbook case of the inferior sequel; three villains, no sense.

Sigh. Takes the two most important story arcs and does neither well. (Spidey 3 disease.)

I love Jennifer Garner, and the character, but this movie strays far from the source material to deliver an uninspired, bland romp.

Super cheese and super awesome, best comic film soundtrack ever. The ultimate B movie.

A substantial step up from the last film but the damage had already been done.

Smarmy, derivative, from a sharp director who deserves better materal.

Biggest let down in comic book film history. This is how you bring Galactus to life?

Nick Cage, in a desperate measure to make a few bucks, goes completely over the top in this joke of a film.

Visually interesting and Eva Green gives a great performance, but the overall structure of the movie isn't compelling. It pales in comparison to the first.

Chow Yun Fat is awesome. Unfortunately, this movie is about as serious as the title.

The happy ghost gets a haunted take.

An embarrassment of riches of stories you can tell about this character and this is the best you can do?

Some good Mod craft amid random chaos.

Well designed, but a predictable, ridiculous mess.

Formulaic, amiable fluff.

Ultimately forgettable and difficult to reproduce McFarlane's signature style.

High marks for craft, but the film plays like an also-ran of 'Princess Bride', with an overly-camp DeNiro.

The idea is better than the execution, which is oddly mediocre.

Saw it for free and worth the price I paid.

As disappointing as it was, it's still a Ghost Rider movie.

The exciting comics are dishonored by a perversely contrary film both flat and dreary.

An insult to Alan Moore's essential series and the audience. Watch the "Penny Dreadful" show instead.

The over the top violence takes away from the very idea of the character, into a more sadistic place.

A strangely dead film, and deeply unfortunate in a genre that needs more strong female leads.

Predictable fare, somewhat entertaining, Stallone is Stallone.

Apostasy. Some strong craft, undone by a climax so heinous it is unforgivable. Forever.

Forgettable, poorly acted and directed, this a sad homage to the character but at least she didn't run around in a chain mail bikini. Perhaps it should have been a comedy.

The only reason to rate it this high is based on the visual style it created.

The inferior sequel, from which superhero films didn't recover for 15 years.

Aside from good period detail, the film is a camp disaster that insults the original superhero.

Couldn't finish it, too difficult to buy Seth as Britt Reid.

I don't remember this one very well, and maybe that's for the best.

I think this movie was worse than the first one. Did Vanilla Ice to the song for it? I think so.

The opening credits were better than the film, and that's not saying much.

I might need to watch this again. Maybe. It is loosely based on some great work, pre-Moore, but a product of it's time.

A crime against humanity. Even faded memories are painful.

The height of bad ideas - pro-ball player in a ridiculous silly mess.

Catwoman, female leads, and Halle Berry are all great essentials. But this film demeans all three.

Yikes.

Run away or get burned.

I'm not even sure how this got made, given the abject failure of Superman III. Terrible writing, Reeve is wasted again in the sad final outing for the franchise.

Impossible to comprehend how Frank Miller could get Eisner so wrong. It's like the most respected musician in the world recording lost Beatles songs and making them unlistenable.