Top 10: Comic-Book / Graphic Novel Movies

There are times, even though they are few, when Hollywood gets everything right. When a movie blows you away to a degree where you can't help but kneel down and thank the heavens you're alive. This was one of those all-too-rare moments.

With its crisp dialogue, stunning action scenes and some of the best actors ever to grace the screen in our modern age, you got everything you need for a great evening rife with goosebumps, excitement and 100 % pure entertainment.

That being said, it's my great pleasure to confirm that Christopher Nolan has done it again. As if Batman Begins wasn't enough to please our appetite, he has brought us yet another fantastic comic book adaptation.

In fact, this movie is so unbelievably good, that if I had my own award show, these are just some of the titles I would honor it with:

* Best movie of 2008

* Best Batman movie ever

* Best comic-book movie ever

* One of the best action films of all-time

* One of the top 10 movies of the decade

I could go on and on all day long with this. My point is, The Dark Knight is not just a movie, it's a cinematic masterpiece that will have you coming back for more. It's the bright ray of hope that Hollywood so desperately needed, to get itself up on its feet again and stand proud like never before. It's the movie that, once and for all, proves that good things come to those who wait :-)

By far the absolute best Batman movie and also the best comic book movie ever made thus far (a place shared with Spiderman 2). I can't wait for "The Dark Knight", which I'm pretty sure will be just as good, if not better. My outmost respect goes to Christopher Nolan, for making a Hollywood product that finally gets all the things right.

This, along with Batman Begins and X-Men 2, is probably as good as a comic book movie can get. It has everything: a great villain, wonderful story, emotional depth and breathtaking action. For me, it is so good that it ranks among the 30 best movies of all time!

The soul reason why I excused the Wakowski brothers for Matrix 2 and 3 :-)

Visually stunning and 2 hours of solid entertainment. Lacks a bit in story and dialogue, but then again its meant to be visual candy :-) Best movie of 2007 so far

Bryan Singer is a truly outstanding director. Not only did he gift us great comic-book flicks like X-Men 1 and 2, but with this film he also breathed new life into the whole Superman saga. Even though it's draggy at times, especially in some of its romantic scenes, there is a lot to love about this film. Besides having one of the coolest intros ever, it also includes a terrific cast and action scenes that are nothing short of thrilling and well-made. I can't wait to see what awaits us in "The Man of Steel", the sequel that is set for next year.

Now this is what I call a comic book flick with class! Not only was it very entertaining, but it brought something to this genre that we surely don't get too often as movie-goers: namely something as rare as an intelligent script, with a plot that cares more about developing its characters, than it does about the action. It's so rare in fact, that I'd more likely call this a well-forged drama-thriller, rather than your typical comic book movie.

With it's tongue-in-cheek attitude, brilliant writing, awesome special effects and even better cast, I'd like to thank Jon Favreau (who by the way does a fun cameo in the film as one of Tony Stark's body guards) for giving us a movie that combines great action and drama, while making me care about it's characters, despite the fact that I haven't read as much as a single page of the source material.

The only thing that weighed the movie down a bit for me was its slow-natured pacing, as it did tend to drag at times. It also felt a bit overly long, but I suppose it's something I can live with. Another thing I wasn't all too excited about was the main villian, which wasn't that interesting of a character to me, even though he was brilliantly played by Jeff Bridges. In fact, I'd say the whole cast was nothing short of excellent. Especially Robert Downey Jr, who carried the movie well on his shoulders, with a sense of dignity and coolness that few actors ever manage to come close to.

All in all, a great comic book flick that left me pleased and wishing for more. And that's probably a wish I'm gonna get granted in the future, as things were obviously left open for a sequel :-)

Update: After seeing it for the second time, I liked it even better than when I saw it the cinema, and therefore moved by rating up a notch, from 3½ to 4 stars, which I can now confidently say that it truly deserves.

About four years ago, I had the great pleasure of meeting Ron Perlman (a.k.a. Hellboy) at a movie convention in Sweden. I distincly recall a small chat I had with him about how much we both we looked forward to Hellboy 2 (this was back when the first movie had just come out, and the second movie was only at the idea stage), and I could tell by the way he talked about it that he's had a lot of fun with his character. And I can see why, because not only is Del Toro a great visionary director, but with Hellboy 2 he has created something quite out of the ordinary. For this is something as rare as a sequel that far exceeds the original, and one that, with its great action, agreeable sense of fun and amazing creature designs, amounted to one of the true highlights of the year. So whatever you do, be sure not to miss it!