Batman v Superman Spoiler Free Review

March 23, 2016March 23, 2016 | Rachel's Reviews

I was going to wait to do a spoiler free review of Batman v Superman until I see it Thursday (I ended up getting into an early screening today!). But I felt I should put a few comments down because some people will want to take their children to this movie and might hope I could give them some guidance in that regard. This review is spoiler free so I can’t say what happens but something happens that I think could seriously upset small kids. Just trust me.

Now let’s get on with my initial thoughts.

First I will remind you guys I’m not that rabid a Batman fan to begin with. The movies tend to focus too much on villains and Batman is usually a bore. I like my superhero movies to be about heroes rather than villains.

That said, I went to Batman v Superman optimistic and hopeful it would be a fun comic book movie. And for about an hour in I was enjoying it on that level and then unfortunately it takes a turn I did not like at all.

I will also say that my brother who is a huge Batman fan hated the movie, so take that for what you will. He was very upset and not in a good way.

It’s hard because one of the things that didn’t work at all is highly spoilery but suffice it to say that Zack Snyder thinks we are all stupid. He somehow thinks he can make a movie with a million hints at the Justice League Movie coming in 2017 and yet expect us to buy the ending…Come on? When you guys see it you will know what I mean. There is no way the ending is legitimate and it is all done to squeeze phony emotion out of fans and leave you in a phony cliffhanger for those dumb enough to buy it.

Ok. Off soapbox. There were things that worked quite well. Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman was actually quite good. If you had told me going into it that one of my favorite things about Batman v Superman would be Wonder Woman I would have said you were crazy but there it is.

Also, I liked some of the character development we got in the first hour of Batman and Superman. Ben Affleck was good as Batman although he is manipulated rather easily. But I thought the building off of the destruction of Man of Steel and questioning Superman’s powers was pretty good. Cavill is fine in the film but I still don’t see any chemistry between him and Amy Adams’ Lois Lane.

Jeremy Irons is good as Alfred although underused and Lawrence Fishburne as Perry White had a few moments of comic relief. Holly Hunter as a senator was kind of wasted.

Jesse Eisenberg didn’t work for me as Lex Luthor’s son but it’s not entirely his fault. The screenplay makes some leaps that I found hard to believe. He is granted clearance to things he really shouldn’t be. He’s places that don’t make sense for him to be at and he seems to know Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne’s alter-egos when he is first being introduced to both of them. He also manipulates Bruce very easily.

Let’s talk about the action. There’s really only one extended fight scene and then 2 dream sequences. The dreams were kind of annoying. The long fight scene is ok but the way it ends does not make sense for either character.

We all knew they would go from being enemies to friends within the movie. It’s in the title so I don’t think that is a spoiler but how that happens did not feel authentic or believable at all. Batman makes such a drastic shift and for a reason that I didn’t buy.

Boy it sounds like I really hated it. I guess the charisma of the stars provided enough marginal enjoyment for me to give it a ‘meh’ rating. I can totally see why my brother hated it.

I think a lot of fans will phantom menace this movie. It has a very low rotten tomatoes score and already I’m hearing defenses and ( if you liked it that’s awesome) but I wouldn’t be surprised if a lot of people come down on this movie once the novelty has faded and they look at it more objectively. We will see.

Oh and Doomsday looks terrible. I couldn’t believe how bad the CG was on him. Usually Zack Snyder at least gets that kind of thing right.

I just don’t know how anyone defends that ending. Zack Snyder tried to trick me and it’s not going to work! I may not be a huge Batman fan but I’m not stupid either.

Overall Grade- C-

I also don’t think Man of Steel fans will like this movie. It doesn’t have any of the sci-fi or edgier elements of that film. It’s a lot of people talking about Gods and God-like powers and not much of the showing like in Man of Steel.

My youtube review. A bit rambling but say what I needed to say.

All Superman Movies Quick Thoughts

March 21, 2016March 21, 2016 | Rachel's Reviews

So I did it! I set a goal to watch all the Superman and Batman movies before Batman v Superman. Watching Superman movies was interesting because most of them I hadn’t seen in a long time so it was kind of like watching them fresh. I’ve never been that big of a comic book movie person and Superman was always pretty far down my list, but I do have nice memories of Christopher Reeves. When I was in high school I read his autobiography and was very moved by his personal story.

Superman is a fun character because he is so pure. He’s practically the definition of a hero because his mere existence is to help humans and spread hope. Some of the versions miss this sense of hope and some forget it in favor of ridiculous comedy. I’d say you get a little bit of everything with Superman. At his core he should be a hero.

Just like with Batman, the Superman movies have their highs, lows and mehs. And just like with Batman I am going to do it Best Shot style and pick one image from each film that summarizes my experience watching it.

My thoughts on all the Batman movies here

So here we go…

Superman: The Movie

I’ll be honest this movie didn’t hold up for me the way I thought it would. Richard Donner’s film was a trailblazer in the world of comic book movies but my problem was how long it took to get going. It takes an hour before you meet Christopher Reeves’ Clark Kent/Superman and he doesn’t fly until almost the 1 1/2 hour mark. That was too slow for me.

Some of the origin story is compelling. I like Marlon Brando as Jor-El and his role as a kind of Savior character is interesting, but it just takes so long. I got bored. Now once we get to Christopher Reeves it is wonderful. He does such a good job differentiating the nerdy Clark Kent and the suave Superman.

I also felt that Margot Kidder as Lois Lane was wonderful and her and Reeves have excellent chemistry. My favorite scenes of the film was their date and the first time they fly together. I’m not the biggest fan of Gene Hackman’s Lex Luthor. I don’t mind a silly villain but he wasn’t charming silly but just annoying. John Williams theme is of course iconic and overall it’s an entertaining film, just not quite as great as I remembered it.

Superman 2

This was my favorite of the Superman films I watched. I saw the Donner cut because Richard Lester took over as director and made it a lot sillier. I didn’t have time to compare the Lester version so take that for what you will.

Still I liked that this film focused on Zod, Ursa and Non coming back to have revenge on Superman for their banishment. They are strong villains but the movie wisely focuses the most on Superman and his inner struggle over saving humanity vs having a loving happy life with Lois Lane. This gives a nice emotion and Reeves is very good in these scenes. Plus, you still have the great chemistry between Kidder and Reeves.

There is a little bit of Lex Luthor but luckily it keeps it to a minimum and the violence is strong but in shorter bursts. But mostly this film is great because of the journey of Superman and Reeves strong performance.

Superman 3

Now we get into the bad films. In Superman 3 Richard Lester is given full control and it’s not really even ‘so bad it’s good’. For something to be that kind of guilty pleasure it has to be sincerely trying to be good but this is just a boring, lazy, stupid movie.

Right from the beginning you know they are going for total slapstick with a pratfall routine where telephone booths are toppled over. It gets worse from there.

I felt bad for Richard Pryor because I don’t think I’ve ever seen a movie where an actor looked more intoxicated while filming. There were times you couldn’t understand what he was saying it was so slurred together. He plays a programmer who is used by a CEO to do all kinds of dastardly deeds.

Reeves is fine and there is an entertaining scene with him fighting both sides of himself- evil vs good Superman. But they remove Margot Kidder’s Lois Lane and give us Annette O’Toole as Lana Lang who he has no chemistry with.

I picked this shot of Richard Pryor because it showcases the problem of the movie with him skiing down the side of a building and then landing with no injuries. It’s just so stupid.

Superman 4

As bad as Superman 3 is, Superman 4 is even worse. The production team famously took all the money out of the budget so everything looks horrible. Everything from the costumes, special effects, script are horrible.

I guess only good thing about it is you get Margot Kidder back as Lois Lane but it sucks that things had to go out this way for her and Reeves, who were so wonderful together. You have so many cliches with the mean boss at the Daily Planet with the daughter who has hots for Clark (Superman/Clark Kent go on a double date with Lois/Lacy for a long segment).

We get the return of Lex Luthor who creates Nuclear Man which is embarrassing. Superman gives a speech at the UN and you can’t help but cringe. Maybe some people find this ‘so bad it’s good’ but it’s hard when nobody was even trying to make something good.

Superman Returns

Bryan Singer took a break from X-men to make his version of Superman in 2006. It’s not terrible but did we really need to see Lois as a bitter single mother? Brandon Routh is fine as Superman but he is off screen for long segments of time. It really could be called Lois Lane Movie because of the focus given her.

We get Kevin Spacey as Lex Luthor who I thought was surprisingly flat in the role. He’s kind of a bully to his assistant played by Parker Posey (who cries most of the film) and not a believable foe for Superman. Maybe I just don’t like the character of Lex Luthor? We’ll see if Batman v Superman can change my mind.

It does have a nice look to it and some impressive sequences. I particularly liked a scene where Superman stops a crashing plane. I liked it visually but also because it took brains and brawn to make it happen. That was cool twist for the character. Overall not a terrible watch but a little bit dry.

It does have many homages to the Donner films and I don’t know if it quite got that balance of originality vs reboot right? It’s tricky.

Man of Steel

Honestly it is the most divisive movie in history. I have grown weary discussing it with people, but I must own I didn’t hate it this time around. I was more ‘meh’. It’s takes Superman into a scifi direction and then adds a disaster movie component. I said while tweeting ‘it’s Superman if you combined Star Trek and San Andreas’ and I think that is accurate.

I hate the flashback structure and it’s not that the destruction exists it’s just gratuitous and repetitive. Do we need to destroy all of Smallville and then destroy building after building of Metropolis? Couldn’t the point be made more succinctly? They also screwed up Lois and Clark relationship. There is not near enough time with them together to believe their relationship or what happens/how she is used.

Michael Shannon is fine as Zod and his motivations are interesting. He is trying to save his people and I liked that. I also love Henry Cavill who is a very beautiful man. I just wish they gave us a few more moments like the kissing scene with him and Lois where he jokes about kissing an alien. It doesn’t have to be a joke but the whole movie he seems depressed.

Diane Lane is excellent as his mother but I didn’t like Kevin Costner as Pa Kent or how they wrote that character at all.

The breaking of Zod’s neck makes sense in theory but it’s at the end of one building after another and it feels gratuitous after such exhaustion.

Snyder needs to learn the art of subtlety and that sometimes less is more. This includes his Messianic imagery. This shot really captured the film for me. Cavill- great. Snyder’s excess- not so great.

And there you have it. I oddly had more to say about the Superman films than Batman. Go figure. I hope you enjoyed all of them.

What is your favorite Superman movie? Put in the comments sections and let’s talk! On to Batman v Superman.

My youtube review of Superman 1 and 2. If you feel so inclined give it a thumbs up.

Blindspot 3: Dark Knight Rises

March 3, 2016March 3, 2016 | Rachel's Reviews

This month I am taking care of my Blindspot entry early. This is the series where we watch a classic we have never seen before and give our thoughts on it. I have already done Blade Runner, Tron and now we look at The Dark Knight Rises. Yes my friends, today I saw Dark Knight Rises for the first time. I’m probably one of the few Americans who can say that!

The reason why I was hesitant to see it was because I didn’t really care for Dark Knight (I know shock. Ah, horrors, I have no taste!). It was too cynical, violent and frankly creepy for me. It was dominated by a mesmerizing villain and I don’t like stories about villains. I like stories about heroes. So I was reticent to see the final installment and then the Colorado Shooting happened and it put me over the edge. You can read my thoughts on that day here.

I quoted my cousin who said:

“How about the very movie that was showing in the theater where the shooting took place?! I know The Dark Knight Rises is the movie of the Summer, but I walked out because of how intensely violent I felt it was and the ruthless killer Bane was dark and evil. After 20 minutes I went back in because I didn’t want to feel left out… (wish i would have chosen differently now.) i know its bold to say, but we cannot keep watching this violence on screen and expect to be exempt from it in real life!”

I admit I have become a bit more immune to these things than back then but the violence in Dark Knight still bothered me when watching it a few weeks ago.

So that’s all kind of background to my viewing experience today. And…

I have to be honest- I liked The Dark Knight Rises a lot more than I thought I would. Why? Well, at its core is a message of hope that a city can rise up and confront evil. In the Dark Knight, on the other hand, the most noble soul turns into the villain. It’s the opposite message. Everyone, even Batman has an angle and isn’t that different from the Joker after all.

That’s not to say it is perfect but I did enjoy the viewing experience a lot more. I know I’m unique in that but I’m not writing these reviews to tell you what you want to hear but what I truly believe.

So basically the plot in Dark Knight Rises is Bruce Wayne is blamed for the death of Harvey Dent, who is looked at as a hero. He goes into hiding for 8 years. Bane, a masked beast of a man, played by Tom Hardy is on a mission to remove corruption from Gotham by removing what he see’s as injustice. Injustice with the government, wealth, commerce and everything else.

Bane is trained by Ra’s al Ghul from Batman Begins (who trained Batman) and he is also on a mission to kill Batman who killed Ra. Bane tricks Catwoman Selina Kyle to get Bruce Wayne’s fingerprints and he stages a takedown of the stock exchange destroying Bruce and Wayne Enterprises.

The plot does get pretty convoluted at that point but Alfred resigns (and is missing most of the movie), Lucius becomes involved, Commissioner Gordon is hunting down Bane as best he can and we get to meet John Blake who is essentially a Robin-type story. There is also Wayne Board Member Miranda Tate played by Marion Cotillard who wants to see a fusion reactor produced for energy but Bruce fears it could get into the hands of people like Bane.

Bane tries to stage a type of Marxist revolution killing off the powerful and rich while manipulating the common people with fear. This is in the end is not effective when many people fight back (literally in a type of battle) and Batman pays the ultimate price. The film leaves us with the message “a hero can be anyone”

One of the things that bothers me about most Batman movies is Batman is always the most boring person in the film. Dark Knight Rises is an interesting situation because he is not really the lead character. The City of Gotham is the lead, and its transformation is what is compelling.So basically Batman Begins is about Bruce becoming Batman. Dark Knight is about the Joker and the power of evil and corruption. Dark Knight Rises is about the City of Gotham and it finding its hope again.

That’s not to say there aren’t problems in the film. Batman is in the film too little and there are probably too many scenes of Bruce watching the action in prison. Also it can be difficult to understand what Tom Hardy is saying with that mask on. There are also other plotholes like his speedy recovery with a leg brace from a debilitating injury but it’s a comic book movie. I guess I expect that kind of heroics in a comic book movie. I don’t watch this genre for gritty realism. And in reality there are plotholes in Dark Knight whether people chose to acknowledge them or not.

I’m not saying Dark Knight Rises is a masterpiece. I don’t know if I feel that way about any superhero movie outside of The Incredibles; although there are many I enjoy. I’m just saying I appreciated the change in tone from the previous installment.

I also loved Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle. She was confident, sexy, and smart. Her performance certainly wipes the bad taste out of my mouth from Halle Berry’s Catwoman. That’s for sure! I thought she was really entertaining.

Miranda Tate while fine was more of an average character, and I don’t know that I completely buy her big reveal at the end. It feels a little cheap to me. Nolan didn’t need to make everything in all 3 movies tie up in a perfect bow. We even see Scarecrow in a cameo during the sentencing scene. That wasn’t really needed.

Also many of the other characters are relegated to bit roles. Alfred has very powerful moments but then is missing for most of the movie. Gordon we don’t see enough of , as well as a number of other characters.

As far as Bane goes I found his political motivations to ‘share the wealth’ kind of interesting but like I said he is tough to understand at times and is a little one-note. The fight scenes are intense but perhaps because I wasn’t as creeped out by Bane as Joker they didn’t bother me as much as the violence in Dark Knight.

If I’m honest you do kind of tell this was the B storyline that they had to use with Heath Ledger’s passing but I still think it turned out very well.

Dark Knight Rises feels like a comic book movie and not a crime drama. That said, having seen how the story ends I do appreciate the Dark Knight much more than I did before (it might not sound like it but it is true). I can now see the story as a true trilogy and the hopeful ending does make the middle violence a little more palatable. It is almost better to think of the 3 films as one long movie and not 3 separate stories. Of course the direction is well done by Nolan with beautiful cinematography from Wally Pfister and terrific score from Hans Zimmer. I don’t think Nolan has made a technically bad movie yet.

You could definitely make an argument that Dark Knight Rises is self-indulgent at its 165 minute time and there are definitely lags but over all I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would. Chop this one up to low expectations if you want.

There’s hope for Gotham and that makes me happy!

Overall Grade- B

Fantastic 4 Review

September 30, 2015September 30, 2015 | Rachel's Reviews

So with much trepidation I finally saw Fantastic 4. It is of course the huge flop produced by Fox and I guess the question is- ‘is it as bad as people say it is’. I guess it depends on what lens you are looking for and I think how invested you are in comic books and superhero movies. I have little investment in either so in the end I thought it was mediocre with some of the worst special effects I’ve ever seen.

The script is also kind of lazy. It is an origin story which is very predictable with the origin part coming very late in the movie. I’m surprised Simon Kinberg who wrote the terrific X-men Days of Future Past would allow for such a cliched story to get approved. I understand there were problems on the set and the studio interfered but that wouldn’t effect the entire story and the extremely predictable writing.

I also can’t give director Josh Trank a pass either because the story from start to finish was cliched and silly. It wasn’t just one scene that you could tell the studio messed with; although the last 20 minutes is definitely worse than the rest. It’s surprising with Trank because he made Chronicle a superhero film on a small scale that I really love. The special effects in that film on a minimal budget are much better than anything here. I don’t know what he was thinking with the special effects. The editing was also really amateurish.

I also didn’t like Reg E Cathey as Dr Franklin Storm. For being the father of 2 of the characters he seemed flat, unemotional and like he was delivering motivational speeches instead of being an authentic character. I always felt like he was reciting lines and not feeling the emotions of a parent.

Toby Kebbell is also shockingly bad as Victor Von Doom (one of the worst names in superhero villains IMO). He was so great in Dawn of the Planet of the Apes but it’s not really his fault here. He is given little to do and the special effects are so bad. People who were critical of Ultron in Avengers 2 need to take a look at Dr Doom because the characters aren’t that different but one is executed so much better.

I can’t overstate how bad I thought the special effects were. Especially every time we see Mr Fantastic (Reed Richards played by Miles Teller)’s arms stretch I couldn’t believe it. Also there were a lot of times when it was so obvious they were in front of green screens and it looked extremely fake. I guess The Thing (Ben Grimm by Jamie Bell) looked ok but he had this strange voice that was distracting.

Other than that I can’t think of a special effect that worked. They were on a syfy Sharknado level. (have you gotten the point that I hated the special effects…)

As far as things I liked I thought the 4 young leads were all good in their parts and I could see them being a good Fantastic 4 in another movie with better special effects and script. They save a lot of scenes with their charisma and chemistry. The music by Marco Beltrami and Phillip Glass was also a standout.

I thought they could have gone somewhere interesting with using the Fantastic 4 to help the military which they do with the Thing. On one hand he saves lives. On the other he is an agent of war. There was something there they could have worked with. The sets all look nice and while the origin of the super powers takes way too long I thought it had ok moments. I was also surprised how bloody the ending was for a pg-13. Normally blood=R

I would have been a lot angrier if it had been like Transformers: Age of Extinction and been almost 3 hours. This was 100 minutes so it left me just shrugging. And again I am not a huge superhero person. If I was I am sure this would have engendered a Maleficent response from me because I love that character and world. As it is I just kind of shrugged it off. It’s a lame superhero movie. Not the first and won’t be the last. In fact, the genre is probably past due for a stinker. Ha.

If you are curious to see if it is as bad as people say it is go see it. I think you will be shocked by the bad special effects like I am but I have friends who liked it. I’ve warmed up a lot to superhero movies in the last few years with movies like Guardians of the Galaxy, Avengers 1 and 2, Captain America 2 and Big Hero 6. This is way, way, way, way, beneath that level but I had a few little things I liked. Overall, I just thought it was super mediocre.

Overall Grade- D

Ant-Man Review

July 17, 2015August 7, 2015 | Rachel's Reviews

Back in 2011 I swore off superhero movies for good. I had seen the terrible Green Lantern movie and I was done. They were stupid, moronic, boring, self-important junk and I didn’t want to see another one again. So, if you had told me then I would be giving a positive review of a movie called Ant-Man I would have said you were insane. Yet here I am giving such a review for Marvel’s new movie Ant-Man. Nice job Kevin Feige and Marvel. With Ant-Man you have an entertaining time at the movies. It’s as simple as that.

Part of what makes Ant-Man work is they have assembled an incredibly charismatic and likable cast. I’ve been a huge Paul Rudd fan for years going all the way back to Clueless (and totally have a crush on him). He plays Scott Lang a thief who is recruited to be the next Ant-Man. As always he is a complete charmer in the role.

Scott is trained in the Ant-Man ways by Hank Pym played by Michael Douglas who looks like he is having a blast in a Marvel movie.

Another actor I always love is Corey Stoll who plays the villain Yellowjacket and has a swagger that is magnetic on screen.

Finally there are 3 friends of Scott from prison that are a riot- TI, Michael Pena and David Dastmalchian. Michael Pena is especially funny in his part as the Latino crook who knows art and wine.

Ant-man reminded me a lot of Sam Riami’s Spiderman and maybe a little bit of the original Ironman. It feels light and fun and superhero movies have gotten so overly serious of late. And yet it isn’t stupid like a Batman and Robin or Green Lantern.

There is a fair amount of humor and pretty much the entire plot of the movie is centered around Michael Douglas’ house so it feels very small (forgive the pun) in its scope. It is not like an Avengers movie where the entire earth could be destroyed by the rising of a city. This is a single building with one technology and one madman trying to control it. In truth it is a heist movie.

The training montages are a little ‘seen it all before’ but I liked the way they filmed the interactions with the ants and the CG looked very good in those scenes. Except for a CG rat which made me shout in the middle of the theater it caught me off guard!

Evangeline Lilly plays Hank’s daughter and I’m sorry but I do not think she is a very good actress. She was terrible in the Hobbit movies and she isn’t very good here. Just a bore and no chemistry between her and Rudd at all.

I could see how some might say this is a light weight superhero movie and in a way it is but I had so much fun with it. Like I said it is funny and for the most part has actors who can pull it off.

It also doesn’t get too mired in the MCU (which I kind of like those clues to the broader universe but I know others hate it). There is one cameo that is very well done and a few name drops but not distracting at all.

If you thought Jurassic World was fun I can’t imagine you not enjoying Ant-Man. In my mind it is much better silly entertainment. It’s not deep or profound or going to make you think about life. Ant-Man is just an enjoyable superhero movie with laughs, a good cast and some decent action set pieces I’ve never quite seen before.

I also liked that Bobby Cannavale plays the new love interest of Scott’s ex and for once he is actually a good guy. It’s such a cliche for the new guy to be a total jerk (I’m talking to you San Andreas!).

The entire family can go to Ant-Man. There is nothing offensive or off putting in it aside from a few very mild fighting.

There’s not that much to say about Ant-Man except this is the kind of movie I can have fun with. It does everything I need it to do and doesn’t distract me with big plotholes, annoying characters or a meandering script. I really enjoyed it.

Overall Grade- A-

Avengers Age of Ultron Review

May 1, 2015December 20, 2015 | Rachel's Reviews

Got to see Avengers Age of Ultron and loved it!! It’s a great movie and right up there with the original and recent strong Marvel movies like Captain America: Winter Soldier. They have a new villain named Ultron who is an artificial intelligence created by Tony Stark and is perfectly voiced by James Spader.

He’s the kind of villain that is all bad but is extremely dominating. There were a lot of moments where I didn’t know how they were going to get out of these situations. I really liked the 2 new additions with Quick Silver played by Aaron Taylor Johnson and Scarlet Witch. There is also another new character that I won’t spoil for you.

Joss Whedon has done it again with a script that is full of humor but lots of good action and tension. All the leads are funny but have moments of growth and development. We particularly see a new side of The Hulk and get to know more about the Hawkeye backstory.

Great music from Danny Elfman and the visual effects work great. The climax is very exciting and like I said I really didn’t know how they were going to defeat Ultron. There are also lots of cameos from the MCU.

I loved it. A very satisfying time at the movies.

As far as content there is a lot of carnage and a scene where a building is toppled to the ground with all the debris that felt a little too 9/11 inspired for my comfort levels. There is a tiny bit of language but nothing big. I’d say it is pretty family friendly.

Overall Grade – A- Content Grade- A

My Favorite Superhero Movies

February 27, 2015February 27, 2015 | Rachel's Reviews

Hey guys!

Now that I’ve been thoroughly depressed by the Oscars let’s talk about movies that will never get a live action Oscar- superhero movies. I have actually not been a huge superhero movie fan. In fact, in 2011 I wrote a post on my other blog called ‘Thumbs Down to Summer Movies’. I had recently seen Green Lantern and it was the tipping point. Here’s what I said

“It’s at this point I must make a confession- I don’t like super hero movies. It’s hard to explain why but I have never liked them. With the exception of Harry Potter, I can’t think of a super hero/fantasy franchise I’m a fan of (I’m a marginal fan of Lord of the Rings). I also like the original Star Wars and Indiana Jones, but they have been sullied by mediocre follow-ups in recent years.

Despite all the special effects I find most super hero movies boring and I don’t like 3D”

So, yes I had sworn off superhero movies and all their progeny but then Avengers happened and I smiled at these likable fun characters with witty dialogue. And we got 2014 and I saw Captain America 2 which was actually a spy movie, Xmen Days of Future Past which is actually a time travel story, Guardians of the Galaxy which is actually a space opera, and Big Hero 6 which is a movie about loss and grief in the guise of a superhero movie.

It was then I had a revelation ‘I like superhero movies when they aren’t superhero movies’. Ding, ding, ding! Fortunately for me Hollywood has figured this out and aside from the odious Man of Steel and the cluttered Amazing Spiderman 2 they have had a remarkable track record of late to the point where I’m actually looking forward to superhero movies now (although highly skeptical about Batman v Superman but we will see). Marvel at least has made me a believer.

I feel like I also have to give a caveat that I am actually not a big Dark Knight fan. It’s super well made and acted but it was just too violent for me and I found it cynical, dark and Batman is such a bore. I wanted him to lose the whole way through. You can all hate me now but it’s really how I felt….

So with all that what are my favorite superhero movies? Here goes.

10. Superman- Christopher Reeves is so charming as Superman and he makes an ok Clark Kent. It doesn’t get bogged down in exposition but is light and fun with great music and decent if hokey special effects. Gene Hackman is good as Lex Luther . Superman is kind of a boring superhero because he’s so perfect but this film finds the balance of embracing the silly while not being too silly (aka Superman 3 and 4…). We also don’t get too much of the Savior metaphors like we do with Man of Steel or Superman Returns that take themselves way too seriously.

9. Batman Mask of the Phantasm- Yep friends this is my favorite Batman movie. Maybe that won’t be a surprise because I love animation but I honestly think this is the best movie depiction of Batman. He’s not just a bore but he gets jealous, frustrated, happy, a mixture of emotions. Kevin Conroy is great as Batman and perhaps it is only in animation that you can pull off the mixture of Bruce Wayne and Batman because you can draw whatever you want it to be where an actor may just be better at one side than the other (same problem so far with Peter Parker). Mark Hamil is wonderful as Joker. It’s a well written script with a bit of a mystery involved but it isn’t too grim or violent. Now I just wonder when the heck it will come out on blu-ray!

8. The Rocketeer- A movie too often forgotten but a very sweet homage to 40’s action movies. It stars Billy Campbell as a stuntman who finds a rocketpack that was designed by Howard Hughes. Jennifer Connely plays his girlfriend and the rest of the cast is stellar with Alan Arkin, Timothy Dalton as our Nazi bad guy, Terry O’Quin and more. I defy you to not be charmed by it.

7. X-men: Days of Future Past- Of the big franchises Xmen has always been my favorite. Even when I had sworn off the genre I still kind of liked the X-men movies. Maybe partly because they are the only franchise to pull of interesting female characters and they almost always deal with something thoughtful and complex without getting mean spirited and who doesn’t like Hugh Jackman? I think the recent X-men Days of Future Past is the best of the 7 (including the Wolverine movies) to have come out. It has it all- amazing ensemble (Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Michael Fassender, Hugh Jackman, Jennifer Lawrence, James McEvoy I could go on. Almost every member of the cast has an Oscar nomination or win. Not bad for a superhero movie).

But its also the Inception of Superhero movies. The time travel element creates layers of a puzzle to figure out and Quicksilver is an amazing villain with special effects. It’s great!

6. Spider-man 2- For my money it is the only good Spider-man movie that has come out so far. The others have good elements but this is the only one that fires on all four cylinders. The special effects still hold up, the large set pieces like the train fight is gripping, Tobey McGuire is charming enough to get me to ignore Kirsten Dunst and James Franco and him have good rivalry. But really the reason the movie is special is Dr Octopus who is such a great, engaging villain. He has really positive motivations through a lot of the movie but he has no self control . It makes him very interesting and fun to watch.

5. Captain America 2: Winter Soldier- A great superhero movie because it’s not really a superhero movie. It’s a spy flick like Mission Impossible with an amazing villain for Winter Soldier, great action fight sequences, a car crash sequence which felt so real, Robert Redford is great (that’s the quality of actors we are getting now!). The Nick Furry twist was very clever and it is so well paced. It never lost my interest or got boring. They build the case with very minimal exposition typically housed within a trip to the museum or some other outing so it doesn’t feel like exposition. Captain America is likable and Chris Evans keeps the character innocent like a man from the 40s might be while still being tough.

4. Big Hero 6- I just got Big Hero 6 on blu-ray and watched it and loved it all over again. It is a superhero movie with real heart. I loved the connection of the two brothers through Baymax. It reminds us that those we love never really leave us because the love continues on. I also loved the diversity of the Big Hero 6 and I thought the motivation of the villain was really clever and surprised me. Also Sanfransokyo was gorgeously drawn and a fun new setting. Overall a huge win for Disney.

3. Guardians of the Galaxy- Don’t worry this is my last from last year. Guardians has everything I want in my superhero movie. It is a likable band of misfits that are gathered together to fight a bad guy. I love the friendship between Groot and Rocket. Chris Pratt is great as Starlord. It’s fun, keeps you guessing and has the best soundtrack I’ve heard in years. It really reminded me a lot of Star Wars with a much weaker villain, and that’s really its only mark against it. I think they actually picked the wrong villain. Nebula is much more complex than Ronan. Still I loved it!

2. Incredibles- Even when I had sworn off Superhero movies I still loved The Incredibles. What’s so great about this movie is it includes so many of my favorite genres all in one. It’s a family movie with a stay at home Mom and her 3 kids who all have their struggles, it’s a movie about work and how when we aren’t doing what we are made to do we aren’t happy, and its gorgeous animation. Every choice they made works. The villain is very scary with a believable and brief backstory. Edna is hilarious (no capes!), and the ending is perfect with everyone learning just the right lesson. Also love Samuel L Jackson as Frozone! It’s actually the first movie I saw when I came home from my 20 month mission for my church and it was a great choice to get reintroduced to cinema.

1. Avengers- This actually came out when I was in my ‘I hate superhero movies’ phase but it was the biggest movie ever so of course I ended up seeing it and to my surprise I loved it. What I liked most is it didn’t take itself too seriously. It was fun without being stupid. I hadn’t seen most of the precursor films leading up to Avengers except Ironman but I don’t think you need to enjoy the movie. Joss Whedon is such a great writer creating likable characters that we can root for and a team dynamic that is unpredictable.

I like that the destruction isn’t too bad and its not really trying to teach us anything. Just give us a team we can root behind and see them seriously challenged by a formidable villain in Loki, who I love. Tom Hiddleston is my favorite performance in the movie. He has motivation behind what he is doing and he never gets mean or too violent like the Joker can. He’s probably my favorite comic book villain, maybe because he doesn’t really see himself as a villain. In the end the script is well written and funny with good action. That’s enough to get 1 on my list.

So there you go! What do you think of my list? I know all of you would put the Dark Knight so maybe give me some other one’s besides Dark Knight you would have included? I’d love to hear.

What are the worst superhero movies? Well, I haven’t seen all of the worst but I’d probably say (does Howard the Duck count as superhero movie? If so than he’d be 1):

1. Catwoman

2. Batman and Robin

3. Superman 4

4. Green Lantern

5. Man of Steel