Comics Movies
Comics and movies both blossomed in the cultural landscape of the 20th Century. And as they flowered they cross-pollinated one another with their brightest blooms and their most effective arrangements. The digital revolution has opened many doors to the previously unfilmable, leading to an explosion in the number of comic book adaptations.
For many people 'comics movies' mean gaudy titans in tights pounding the snot out of one another. However, if you remove the properties of the two big American companies (DC and Marvel), a broader spectrum of the fantastic and mundane is revealed.
Presenting for your selection, a cornucopia of pocket universes born of ink, transformed into light. For Superheroes peruse the DC and Marvel sub-headings under Comics Movies, stage left.
Pictured: Marv (Mickey Rourke) takes a moment to collect his thoughts in 2005's "Sin City" - cinema's most faithful comic book adaptation to date.
Devilman (2004)
4.1/10
Director: Hiroyuki Nasu
Starring: Hisato Izaki, Yusuke Izaki, Ayana Sakai, Asuka Shibuya, Ryudo Uzaki
An ambitious live adaptation of the popular long-running manga, created in 1972 by Go Nagai ('Cutie Honey'), this sprawling apocalyptic tale begins wi... Read more
Tales from the Crypt / Vault of Horror (1972)
Director: Freddie Francis, Roy Ward Baker
Starring: Joan Collins, Peter Cushing, Roy Dotrice, Patrick Magee, Dawn Adams, Tom Baker,...
Two classic horror films in one volume. 'Tales from the Crypt' is a spine-tingling journey into terror with five unwary travellers trapped in catacomb... Read more
The Mask ( Blu-ray ) (1994)
6.9/10
Director: Charles Russell
Starring: Amy Yasbeck, Cameron Diaz, Jim Carrey, Peter Green, Peter Riegert, Richard Jeni
Inspired by the manic 1940s cartoons of Tex Avery and based on the comic book of the same name, this loopy tale has a bank clerk discovering an ancien... Read more
Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie (2017)
6.2/10
Director: David Soren
Starring: Kristen Schaal, Kevin Hart, Ed Helms, Thomas Middleditch, Jordan Peele, Nick Kro...
George Beard and Harold Hutchins are two overly imaginative pranksters who spend hours in a treehouse creating comic books. When their mean principal... Read more
The Spectacular Spider-Man: Volume 2 (2008)
8.1/10
Starring: Spider-Man
This all-new, action-packed series starts at the beginning, telling the awesome story of Peter Parker and his alter-ego Spider-Man, as he discovers hi... Read more
Watchmen: Tales of the Black Freighter and Under the Hood (2009)
7.6/10
Director: Mike Smith, Daniel DelPurgatorio, Eric Matthies
Starring: Carla Gugino, Jared Harris, Matt Frewer, Gerard Butler, Stephen McHattie, Jeffre...
Two short films taken from excerpts of Alan Moore's 'Watchmen' that didn't make it into the motion picture. Narrated by Gerard Butler, 'Tales of the B... Read more
Eko Eko Azarak III: Misa The Dark Angel (1998)
Director: Katsuhito Ueno
Starring: Hinako Saeki, Ayaka Nanami, Bang-ho Cho
Teenage witch Misa follows some disturbing clues to a private girl's school where she joins a drama group staging a play that involves Black Magic. Bu... Read more
Tintin: Mystery of Shark Lake ( aka Tintin and the Lake of Sharks ) (1972)
7.3/10
Director: Raymond Leblanc
Starring: Captain Haddock, Professor Calculus, Snowy, Tintin
Aka "Tintin et le Lac aux Requins". Someone is stealing priceless works of art from museums and replacing them with excellent forgeries. Meanwhile, fo... Read more
Countdown to Wednesday: An Inside Look at the Comic Book Biz and How To Break In (2003)
5.4/10
Director: Hal Long
Starring: Stan Lee, Mark Waid, Paul Dini, Marc Silvestri, Jim McLoughlin, Matt Hawkins
Referring to New Release day in the comic world, this documentary is a whimsical look at the mad world of the comics industry, featuring interviews an... Read more
The Beano Videostars (1998)
The world's wildest boy - Dennis The Menace - and his fellow stars from "The Beano" comic are here in sparkling animation. As well as Dennis's dogs, t... Read more