Image: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Chris Luckett
Many lists that are predominantly populated by modern movies feel slanted to younger writers/readers who may not have an exposure to films older than they are or a contextual understanding of their importance.
The superhero movie is a unique beast, though. A few genres and sub-genres, like sci-fi, have been greatly helped by the advance of CGI over the last quarter-century. Sci-fi was still capable of brilliance with just ideas alone, though; superhero movies lend themselves so closely to goofiness, parody, or sublime farce that the modern age of computer effects has served largely to legitimize a type of film that often wasn’t taken very seriously before the new millennium, even when they starred icons like Superman or Batman.
All of which is to say in advance not to expect many older superhero movies here. Less than a quarter of the entries on their list would be old enough to vote in most countries. But every single one, older or newer, represents a height of the ever-evolving subgenre of superhero movies (with bonus consideration awarded for influence).
50. TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: THE MOVIE (1990)
Image: New Line Cinema
49. MYSTERY MEN (1999)
Image: Universal Pictures
48. ROBOCOP (1987)
Image: Orion Pictures
47. BIG HERO 6 (2014)
Image: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
46. THOR: THE DARK WORLD (2013)
Image: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
45. DESPICABLE ME (2010)
Image: Universal Pictures
44. THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2 (2014)
Image: Columbia Pictures
43. X-MEN: FIRST CLASS (2011)
Image: Twentieth Century Fox
42. HELLBOY (2004)
Image: Columbia Pictures
41. THE WOLVERINE (2013)
Image: Twentieth Century Fox
40. DOCTOR STRANGE (2016)
Image: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
39. THE CROW (1994)
Image: Miramax
38. SPIDER-MAN (2002)
Image: Columbia Pictures
37. BATMAN BEGINS (2005)
Image: Warner Bros.
36. ANT-MAN (2015)
Image: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
35. X-MEN (2000)
Image: Twentieth Century Fox
34. BLACK PANTHER (2018)
Image: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
33. SUPERMAN (1978)
Image: Warner Bros.
32. GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY (2014)
Image: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
31. IRON MAN (2008)
Image: Marvel Studios
30. THOR (2011)
Image: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
29. DEADPOOL (2016)
Image: Twentieth Century Fox
28. IRON MAN 2 (2010)
Image: Marvel Studios
27. BATMAN (1989)
Image: Warner Bros.
26. THOR: RAGNAROK (2017)
Image: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
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