The Top 10 Grossing Comic Book Movies of All Time

[CBR News]

With "The Avengers" breaking the all-time opening weekend record, CBR looks at the top ten grossing comic book movies of all time.


Full article here.

[britishmixedwhiskey]

This is sure to be Controversial ...but i dont understand why The second Batman film is so lauded over ? First time i saw it i thought it was fantastic but when i watched it back a couple of times on Blue ray i thought that Heath Ledger's Joker was a bit too overplayed. I know Critic's love "dark and gritty" movies in general but the fact its *as of writing this* still the Highest grossing comic book film does surprise me a little . And just so nobody thinks im a bias Marvel fan i actually preferred Green Lantern to Both Thor and Captain America (which im sure means my opinion is invalid now ) . But i Appreciate this article as i didnt actually Know MIB was based on a comic at all and i still remember watching the first one and being in awe of the Cgi .

I dont know if Avengers (assemble ) will get to number one but i hope it does as i thought it was one of the best ensemble films thats ever been comic based or not . My actual prediction is that it will be number 2 or 3 but i will be very happy to be proved wrong . Excelsior

[An Ear In The Fireplace]

Given past Joker actors, Heath Ledger comes off as almost understated. For me, The Dark Knight isn't one of those movies that improved with multiple viewings--I saw it three times when it came out, the second time I caught things I missed the first time, but by the third time it didn't excite me--unlike Superman the Movie, which I saw nine times when it first came out and I enjoyed it every time.

But I still think TDK is one of the best comic book movies. And where others would say it's too dark and gritty, I felt like it held close to the Bill Finger version of Batman. It's not the overpopulated Batman family world with super-powered costume villains flying around that you see in modern comics--but there are other kinds of comic books. TDK is back to basics classic Batman comics.

Batman Begins satisfied me in a lot of ways. I think it deserved a bigger audience than it got. But where BB had a lot of murky and hard to follow action scenes, TDK was staged a little better. And where the plot of BB was also murky and hard to follow, TDK was easier to track--yet still giving one a lot to think about. Also BB followed the usual plot pattern for comic book movies (part one: Secret Origins; part two: Baptism of Fire; part three: Battle for the City), TDK was able to change this up a bit, so it didn't feel as predictable as most comic book movies.

[jediracer]

...but i dont understand why The second Batman film is so lauded over ? r

I think because it is just a great movie, period. Take the whole 'superhero' element out of it and you would still have a great film. That can't be said of many other superhero films, which rely heavily on superpowers, aliens/space, supernatural, unbelievable science, etc.

[Lord Bravery]

Eh i disagree. TDK is dressed up as a great thriller but you take Batman, Joker and Two Face out of it and it wouldn't hold up. Too many plot contrivances and leaps in logic in terms of the police procedural element to work as a serious crime thriller, but they work with TDK because it's a comic book movie. That's why i'll never understand or agree with people when they say it transcended the genre. It didn't. It's still got the same old tropes and cliches, they are just dressed up in a serious manner.

Anyway Avengers will out gross it.

[An Ear In The Fireplace]

Probably by the end of this summer that top ten list will have many changes.

[verslibre]

Eh i disagree. TDK is dressed up as a great thriller but you take Batman, Joker and Two Face out of it and it wouldn't hold up.

Likewise, Avengers wouldn't hold up if you replaced them with, say, a bunch of the soldiers fom the Starship Troopers franchise. Or Shya LaPoof and Josh Duhamel from TF. Now why would anyone want to do that? :D

Anyway Avengers will out gross it.

Sure. But the individual characters' films could not.

[Lord Bravery]

Likewise, Avengers wouldn't hold up if you replaced them with, say, a bunch of the soldiers fom the Starship Troopers franchise. Or Shya LaPoof and Josh Duhamel from TF. Now why would anyone want to do that? :D

hahaha yea i get ya. But what i mean is, if TDK wasn't a comic book movie, i don't think it'd hold up as a straight up thriller. The fact it's a comic book movie allows those little plot contrivances and gaps in logic to work. It's a great comic book movie, i don't enjoy the film, but i'll admit it's well made. But i just don't think it transcends the genre like some do.

For example the mistake they made with the RICO thing, that wouldn't hold up in a completely straight crime thriller about cops and the mafia. But because it's a comic book movie, who cares?

Sure. But the individual characters' films could not.

True. But maybe after Avengers it's got a whole load more fans on board. I wouldn't be surprised if the solo movies gross a hell of a lot more than the ones before Avengers.

[Jordanstine]

Given past Joker actors, Heath Ledger comes off as almost understated. For me, The Dark Knight isn't one of those movies that improved with multiple viewings--I saw it three times when it came out, the second time I caught things I missed the first time, but by the third time it didn't excite me--unlike Superman the Movie, which I saw nine times when it first came out and I enjoyed it every time.

But I still think TDK is one of the best comic book movies. And where others would say it's too dark and gritty, I felt like it held close to the Bill Finger version of Batman. It's not the overpopulated Batman family world with super-powered costume villains flying around that you see in modern comics--but there are other kinds of comic books. TDK is back to basics classic Batman comics.

Batman Begins satisfied me in a lot of ways. I think it deserved a bigger audience than it got. But where BB had a lot of murky and hard to follow action scenes, TDK was staged a little better. And where the plot of BB was also murky and hard to follow, TDK was easier to track--yet still giving one a lot to think about. Also BB followed the usual plot pattern for comic book movies (part one: Secret Origins; part two: Baptism of Fire; part three: Battle for the City), TDK was able to change this up a bit, so it didn't feel as predictable as most comic book movies.

The thing that's so amusing about all this is that Chris Nolan's original "Batman Begins" did NOT even crack the Top 20 openings in comic book movies!

Both "Fantastic Four" films made it ahead over BB.

So when analysis were projecting how "The Dark Knight" would be based on BB's performance, they were projecting around FF or maybe lower end of the X-Men numbers.

But to have a franchise jump from #22 in "Batman Begins", all the way to #1 in "The Dark Knight" is something no one foresaw.

It wasn't until Heath Ledger's death that drove the masses to see the buzz about "Ledger's last film" - which I think to this day, TDK still holds the record for most female audience in the movie theaters for a comic book film at over 50%. Of course, TDK was also a good film that it drove more and more people to see.

[Lord Bravery]

You have to consider that Begins was coming off the back of Batman and Robin. The franchise was toxic at that point. It didn't do spectacularly well in the cinema, but home DVD/Blu Ray sales were great.

And with TDK? Yea Ledgers death and the mystery surrounding it helped, but it wasn't just his death, it was the fact that he was playing the most iconic comic book villain there is. It was a new film about Batman vs Joker. It was always going to make big bucks. And the goodwill coming forward from the people who did see Begins helped too.

[Candid Rook]

Likewise, Avengers wouldn't hold up if you replaced them with, say, a bunch of the soldiers fom the Starship Troopers franchise. Or Shya LaPoof and Josh Duhamel from TF. Now why would anyone want to do that? :D

Of course not but then nobody is coming up with comments like The Avengers is "A good movie first and a good superhero movie second", like somehow its more than just a superhero movie. Avengers is a good superhero movie. TDK, gritty, more realistic or not is a good superhero movie. Nothing more than that.

[idiopathic]

CBR should re-do this topic at year end since we have a couple of (big) comic book movies coming out this summer, and Avengers hasn't been out a month.

I didn't like Bale's Batman voice. His Bruce Wayne is good, but his Batman sounded like he had a very, very sore throat and was hard at times to make out what he was saying. It even made me chuckle a few times upon repeat viewing. Now if they used Kevin Conroy as the voice of Batman....

[KurtW95]

I didn't like Bale's Batman voice. His Bruce Wayne is good, but his Batman sounded like he had a very, very sore throat and was hard at times to make out what he was saying. It even made me chuckle a few times upon repeat viewing.

Rawrarawrarawraw!!!!!!

[verslibre]

Of course not but then nobody is coming up with comments like The Avengers is "A good movie first and a good superhero movie second", like somehow its more than just a superhero movie. Avengers is a good superhero movie. TDK, gritty, more realistic or not is a good superhero movie. Nothing more than that.

When I see these movies, I'm in the seat because these are superhero movies. I let others debate till dawn whether they're elaborate filmic portraits or heaping helpings of unalloyed schlock. It's safe to say TDK blew me away.

[Simbob4000]

I think because it is just a great movie, period. Take the whole 'superhero' element out of it and you would still have a great film. That can't be said of many other superhero films, which rely heavily on superpowers, aliens/space, supernatural, unbelievable science, etc.

No, The Dark Knight is in no way a great movie. Nolan was constantly undermining himself in that movie. Take the opening, great opening, then he adds this stupid ADR sounding comical voiceover talking about the Jokers "war paint"; not only does it sound bad, but it's a badly written stupidly "edgy" explanation for why Joker wears paint on his face. It's like they thought people would be sitting there going: Hey, what is a B.A. Billy Badass like the Joker prancing around in that face paint.