Hey there Schmoeville!
They may not have Superman, Batman, or Wonder Woman, but Marvel has it’s fair share of superheroes that inspire and entertain, and once they started hitting the big screen over 25 years ago, they’ve gathered a whole new legion of fans. These days we talk a lot about Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe, but there’s no denying that Sony and Fox have been in on the act for awhile, and between the three studios, there have been plenty of box office hits (as well as a few misses). There have even been a number of critical hits, all of which have keep the comic book train chugging along (much to the relief of us fans!)
So, with this weekend’s Doctor Strange entering the mix, we wanted to hear about some of YOUR favorite Marvel Movies (so far…there are plenty more to come), and here they are!
Eric Warner: Guardians of the Galaxy
One of Marvel Studios biggest risks took place in the summer of 2014 with the release of Guardians of the Galaxy. A virtual unknown property except to comic book “sweaties,” of course. Despite the failure of the initial run of the comic book the studio’s risk paid off in a huge way. I was hooked from the opening credits as Peter Quill dances his way while listening to his Sony Walkman on his quest to obtain a secret orb. Although the main villain is slightly underdeveloped I believe Thanos is the true bad guy to look out for in the future. The mixture of humor, amazing special effects, and one of the best musical soundtracks gives the audience a space opera for the modern age. I laughed out loud multiple times and danced in my seat during the closing credits to “I you want back” by the Jackson 5. I absolutely love this film from the straightforward story that has a special place in the Marvel MCU. The cast of characters works perfectly together with both live action and motion capture. I cannot wait for next summer for Volume 2. Oh, and if anyone asks me who my favorite character is, it’s Groot. He just makes you want to hug a tree after watching the movie. Anyone who has not seen this film I would highly recommend it to them. “I am Groot.”
Jessica Beardsley: Captain America: Civil War
This movie was so emotionally resonant for me. I felt the characters’ struggles. I feel like after 12 movies, we earned this story line. The balance between amazing action, levity and heartfelt emotion was spot on. I have never been so engaged in a scene as I was in the bunker scene. I feel safe in saying that my favorite line in all the MCU is Tony’s “That’s not yours, you don’t deserve it, my father made that shield.” It’s a game changer.
Matt Beer: The Avengers
The Avengers perfectly captures what the MCU had become in phase one. It has some of the best performances from Robert Downey Jr, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, and Tom Hiddleston (making him one of the most beloved villains of the past decade). This movie is like watching a comic book on screen and those reasons are why to me, The Avengers, is the best Marvel film ever made.
Anthony Casalnova: X-Men: Days of Future Past
Combining the new X-Men: First Class cast with the cast from the original trilogy could have been a bloated mess. Instead, we get the best of both worlds and one of the best comic book movies ever. Not only is it a great sequel to First Class, but it also fixes some of the mistakes made by X-Men: The Last Stand, giving us a satisfying ending to the original trilogy. Watching all the X-Men getting killed off in horrific ways was crazy unexpected and that happens in the first five minutes. Although Wolverine is a key component, as he usually is in X-Men films, the story really revolves around young Charles Xavier. This is an Xavier we haven’t seen before – a man with no hope, who feels completely helpless and has to find his way again. The scene between James McAvoy (“new” Xavier) and Patrick Stewart (“original” Xavier) is great. X-Men: Days of Future Past has great action, great writing, great acting and great emotion. It’s easily my favorite Marvel movie and one of my favorite comic book movies. Oh yeah, and that Quicksilver scene is awesome.
Paul Wulff: Spider-Man 2
The film that holds a place in my heart is Spider-Man 2, starring Tobey Maguire, in which the main villain is Doctor Octopus. I chose this movie above all of the others because, as a man who is straight edge, I decided that my Bachelor Party should consist of dinner at a local restaurant, followed by a viewing of Spider-Man 2, then on to close the night with a bonfire until all had expired for the evening. Heralded as the best Spider-Man film to date, this movie brings intrigue, action, romance and both internal and external conflicts to every character that comes on screen, from Peter, to Mary Jane, to Aunt May, even to Harry Osborne and the Doctor himself. Doctor Octopus, played by veteran actor Alfred Molina, brings a human element into a character that you truly feel for, and what makes this portrayal even better, is the use of practical effects for his tentacles. I will always remember this movie for various reasons, but most importantly, because it was the movie I shared with close friends in celebration of what was to come.
Mathieu Chin-Quee: Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Over the past few years, when it comes to superhero movies, you have to know that Marvel is king. Leaving fanboy wars out of it, they’ve owned both the box office and critical acclaim; whether they be under Disney, Fox or Sony. However, the cream of the crop will always remain the MCU, which is where my pick for best Marvel movie lies, Captain America: The Winter Soldier. The Winter Soldier is not only far and away the best Marvel movie, not only far and away the best superhero movie, but I’d argue that it’s one of the best movies in general of the last decade. It’s certainly up there for me, as it’s in my top 20 films of all time. The film’s first 20 minutes introduces you to some great humor, drama dealing with Cap’s transition into the modern world, and incredible action aboard the Lemurian Star, and it doesn’t slow down there. The film manages to up the ante the entire way leading to an incredibly satisfying, but open ended, finale. Unlike other Marvel movies, it doesn’t suffer from an underused villain, using Bucky from the previous installment and Hydra as a whole, upending the entire MCU and creating a ripple effect for the films to come. From the jaw-dropping action and fight choreography, to the story that is still having monumental effects on the MCU as a whole, to the acting, to the criminally underrated score by Henry Jackman, The Winter Soldier is the best Marvel film ever made.
Maxance Vincent: Captain America: Civil War
This is not only my favorite Marvel movie, but, in my opinion, the greatest superhero movie ever made. It’s been 12 movies. We got to know and became attached to these superhero characters because the MCU is deeply immersive. We’ve seen them save the world multiple times, but we’ve never seen them fight each other. The 17 minute airport fight, shot with IMAX, is probably the best on-screen superhero movie action scene ever made. When Ant-Man transformed into Giant Man, audiences were giving the movie a standing ovation (and it wasn’t even finished yet). For viewers who related to every superhero the MCU has presented so far, the fight between Cap, Iron Man and Bucky is extremely heartbreaking. The build-up to the fight, Black Panther, and the show-stealer SPIDER-MAN are some of the KEY elements as to why I think that Captain America: Civil War is my favorite Marvel movie. I was already invested in Marvel in general, but this film has me MORE invested now.
Christopher Tovar: Blade
Simply put: perfect casting, great story, amazing fight scenes, awesome action, perfect use of violence and gore where it needed to be used. A lot of people forget that, before all the MCU films, the original Spider-Man trilogy and the original X-Men movies, we had Blade, which in my mind gave life to superhero movies when they were a forgotten genre in cinema.
Zachary Sosland: Guardians of the Galaxy
I had plenty of fun with my cousin when we saw Guardians of the Galaxy in theaters for the first time. Thanks to intriguing characters, expertly crafted comedy, and a memorable soundtrack, this film is not just another Marvel movie, but rather a James Gunn space opera. In fact, talking about the original makes me even more hyped for the sequel!
Matthew Kearns: The Amazing Spider-Man
My favorite Marvel movie has to be The Amazing Spider-Man because Spider-Man is my favorite Marvel character and this movie got me interested in the character. The film is a great retelling of the Spider-Man origin, and of course Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker/Spider-Man, to me he is the best Spider-Man. He nailed the role, so when I think of Spider-Man I think of him. But the film also has the best romance out of any Spider-Man film, with Gwen Stacy played by Emma Stone. I have no problem believing that Peter and Gwen are in love in this movie. The rest of the cast, including Sally Field, Denis Leary and Martin Sheen is also great. I feel that this movie gets a bad rap because of its sequel and I think that is wrong. Give the film a watch again and hopefully like me you’ll see this is the best Spider-Man movie.
Jamail van Westering: Captain America The First Avenger
One of the reasons it is my favorite is because it’s a great period piece. It doesn’t shy away from the fact that Captain America was created for Propaganda in World War II, and they made the costume really work (even though it shouldn’t have worked). Plus, everybody turns in an amazing performance, especially Chris Evans and Hugo Weaving.
Kees Cornelisse: Deadpool
Deadpool is one of the most recent comic book movies to be released, but what made it unique is that it’s not like other comic book movies. It has an R-rating that is very well deserved and needed to make the movie as good as it is. Also it makes fun of the genre and Deadpool is the perfect character for that, seeing as he breaks the fourth wall and has more freedom with that. Lastly, the people involved in making the movie are all big fans of Deadpool and wanted to do it justice, so it’s also great for the readers of the Deadpool comics. Therefore I believe it’s the best of all the Marvel movies and I absolutely love it.
Ryan McKenna: Captain America: Civil War
For starters, this movie is wildly entertaining. It has great character moments, some of the best action sequences we’ve seen in 2016, and is a genuinely fun ride. What makes it the best is that it is thematically powerful and brings together a number of dissonant story threads to make one functional whole. This film is, in many ways, the greatest universe building film as it capitalizes on and repairs work that other filmmakers have done. It also takes a strong theme of anti-government and libertarianism from Captain America: The Winter Soldier and pushes it to its logical conclusion and challenges viewers in a meaningful way which is something that all great films do and lesser comic book adaptations have failed to do over the years. Finally, it serves as a very emotionally resonant story for characters we have had time to know and appreciate which makes it all the more heartbreaking when this film reaches its eventual conclusion.
Raymond Haddad: Spider-Man
When talking Marvel movies, most people directly go to Marvel’s amazing cinematic universe, but there is one movie that, in my opinion, started the superhero craze and that movie is Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man. As a kid, nothing was better than dressing up as my favorite Stan Lee character and crawling around the house like Spider-Man, and when the web-slinger came to the big screen, it was nothing less than perfection! Raimi was able to blend the genius of Peter Parker with the smart-mouthed crime fighter that was embodied by Tobey Maguire. With a supporting cast that were straight out of the comic book and a villain that scared many children, Spider-Man was able to be a perfect origin story and bring justice to the character that both Stan Lee and Steve Ditko put on the page. This film personified my whole childhood and is one that always able to take me back to the child I was and relive the days of pretend crime fighting in my living room.
Eric Mitchell: Captain America: The Winter Soldier
This film has such an amazing story, is a game changer in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and also gave Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. an amazing conclusion to its first season. I also feel that Robert Redford does not get a lot of credit for his villain in Alexander Pierce.
That’s quite a list (with Captain America: Civil War leaping into the lead), Schmoeville! Do you agree with these choices or there are a few that we missed (X2: X-Men United is one of my personal favorites!)? Sound off below!
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