Super!

Superhero:
Pronunciation: -"hir-(")O, -"hE-(")rO
Function: noun: a fictional hero having extraordinary or superhuman powers; also: an exceptionally skillful or successful person

It’s great to see an article like this… not just one that seriously compares comic/superhero movies, but one that compares them as movies to be taken seriously. I can’t help but think though, that the world is much more interested in my top-10 comic/superhero movies. It’s not that I’m a narcissist, it’s just that… come on. You know? That’s what I’m sayin’.

So... from the home office in Dekalb, Illiniois... my "top-10" comic/superhero movies of all time:

10. G-Men From Hell
I admit, it’s not the greatest film you’re likely to see, but it’s such a faithful adaptation of Mike Allred’s vision that I can’t help but love it.

9. Mystery Men
This film is woefully underrated, you axe me.

I’d kill for a "Bowler" action figure… literally. If you have one, and you want to test me... don't. Mystery Men takes us back to the salad days when Janeane Garofalo wasn’t insufferable, and Ben Stiller was... well… funny. All that and Tom Waits too! It somehow strikes a balance between irreverence and reverence for the source material… it’s funny and touching… it shovels well. Oh, and look for Dana Gould, the funniest man in the whole live-long world.

8. Hellboy
The film The Hulk wanted to be.

I dunno what it is about Ron Perlman and prosthetics, but man, you put those things together, and you’ve got a hit on your hands! Thrilling, poignant, and all on the same epic scale of Mike Mignola’s comics. You know what the man said: "On a gathering storm comes a tall handsome man in a dusty black coat with a red right hand."

7. Unbreakable & Sin City
It's my list, and I say two films can tie for 7th.

Unbreakable... I just dig this film! It’s a little heavy-handed, but captivatingly so!
Sin City... I've gushed about it already... but trust me: it's damn gush-worthy.

6. Spider-Man
I never thought this film would get made… and then to have Sam Raimi make it? I’m never that lucky!

Tobey Maguire nailed Peter/Spidey in an incredible… no, astonishing… actually, amazing… I mean, spectacular spider-film for the ages. Sam got it all right, and while Spider-Man 2 is a better film, this is the film that made me believe a man could swing. You know, from webs... I already knew he could swing the other way... well that's what I've heard, anyway. Seriously, I was giddy when we saw Spider-Man... it made me feel like a kid again... and that, my friends, did not suck.

5. Batman
I liked Sam Hamm’s concept of watching Batman start out; watching him learn, and seeing the repercussions of his actions and decisions.

Mostly though, I loved Anton Furst’s production design, and Tim Burton’s commitment to bringing Bob Kane’s vision of the Dark Knight’s dark night to the big screen. And for the record? I think Michael Keaton was a great choice for Bruce/Batman. So there.

4. Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the Eighth Dimension
If you don’t think this is a superhero movie, watch it again.

In the movie, he saves the girl, and the world, and gets back in time to play the piano.

Tell you what, watch it again anyway. Dude's a neurosurgeon, rock star, visionary, defeater of evil... and he married the Queen of the Netherlands... just like me.

3. Donnie Darko
"Donnie Darko? What the hell kind of name is that? It's like some sort of superhero or something."
"What makes you think I'm not?"

2. X-Men
The opening scene alone makes this a must-worship film.

I've never been that impressed by any of the myriad of X-Men comics... the whole "misunderstood outcasts who serve a society that shuns them" premise... big deal. Every kid who's ever worked at McDonald's can tell you the same tale... but man this film does it for me. I only hope Bryan saved some of this magic for Superman Returns.

1. Superman – The Movie
Was there any doubt?

Nothing about this movie disappointed me that summer afternoon in 1978... nothing. The same is true today. Christopher Reeve was perfect as Superman, and even better as Clark. Gene Hackman was a tad campy as Lex, but even then I knew better than to question anything Gene Hackman does, so I went with it.... Now, older and wiser, I see the wisdom of Gene's ways... well, not really... but he's Gene Hackman, dammit!

I tell you... Clark and his mother standing in the cornfield; that John Williams score swelling up around them... and Superman turning back time to save Lois (who never sounded more Canadian than that moment after she cheated death... what's the deal with that?)... those moments moved me, and shaped me.

Gee whiz... that was a great summer....