It's a good time to be a comic book movie fan, isn't it? Well, not so much - in the past decade there have been quite a few disappointing superhero movies, coming from both DC and Marvel. Here they are, in all their clumsiness!
And the newest entry is…
The Fantastic Four reboot disappointed on so many levels that we don’t know where to start. So we’ll just leave it here. It might just be the last on this list, as the most disappointing superhero movie of the last decade…
Elektra (2005)
Basically a spin-off of Daredevil (with Jennifer Garner reprising her role), it is no wonder that this movie is more than disappointing.
The actress had no script to work on (the script was penned by the same man who ran Daredevil into the ground), the plot was inexistent, was utterly sexist, and had a rating which didn't do justice at all (PG-13).
Hopefully, the Daredevil Netflix series will do her justice.
On the next page, how not to end a trilogy!
X-Men: Last Stand (2006)
After a more than successful X2, the X-Men series changed directors, with Brett Ratner at the helm - of course it was disappointing. And not just because it butchered one of the best (if not the best) X-Men story lines, but also because it was lifeless.
Sure, the major theme of the Mutant Universe was present. However, it was suffocated by the explosions and mindless action, whose sole purpose was just to bring another heap of money.
On the next page, how not to end a trilogy: part two!
Spider-Man 3 (2007)
Spider-Man 3 was supposed to be the highlight of Sam Raimi's trilogy, especially because it featured Venom as a villain. It was, instead, an utter disappointment, rewriting the franchise's canon, being overburdened with subplots, and featuring way too many villains.
There was no time for character development at all, with Venom ending up to be a caricature of the awesome comic books' character.
Oh, and Peter Parker was an emo.
On the next page, how to trigger a reboot!
Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007)
And this is why we didn't mention the first Fantastic Four film, which appeared 2 years earlier: Rise of the Silver Surfer wasn't just disappointing. It ran the franchise into the ground, just to be picked up 8 years later by the same studio (and, we might add, things aren't looking too good for the reboot).
How can we put it? It was a simple-minded movie, for simple-minded people (on a budget of $130 million, it made just $290 million worldwide). It featured Galactus, one of the most powerful beings in all the Marvel comic book universe.
But they made him a big cloud, which swallowed/engulfed the planet ONE CITY AT A TIME. That's not cool, Fox, not cool at all.
On the next page, a movie you don’t even remember to have been made!
The Spirit (2008)
Written and directed by Frank Miller, The Spirit was a major bomb. It wasn't just disappointing, it actually made the studio lose money, with just $39 million worldwide.
Sure enough, the visuals were stunning. However, one cannot make a movie just with them. One also needs layered characters, a comprehensible plot, as well as lines which would make a character memorable.
But, yes - The Spirit had an awesome visual style!
On the next page – don’t blame it on the Internet!
X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009)
You cannot blame the failure of X-Men Origins: Wolverine just on the fact that it was leaked way before the actual special effects were made. It destroyed Deadpool as a character, it presented a Wolverine's genesis that we already knew from the movies, it was filled with clichés and unworthy subplots, and so on.
Thankfully, Wolverine made a comeback and next year we'll see the release of Deadpool - the future looks bright for the moment.
On the next page – you don’t remember this movie!
Jonah Hex (2010)
Why did they make this movie? Because the age of comic book movies already arrived and the studio wanted to milk the cow even with its second/third/last tier characters. Was Jonah Hex disappointing?
Sure it was - just like The Spirit, nobody even remembers that this movie was actually made.
On the next page: how to end a franchise as soon as it begins!
Green Lantern (2011)
After he failed as Deadpool, Ryan Reynolds made a comeback (or at least intended to) as Green Lantern.
The studio pulled a Rise of the Silver Surfer and transformed a classic villain into a giant space cloud, who also attacked Earth one city at a time.
The movie bombed so hard (it barely made its budget back), that DC and Warner Bros have scheduled their Green Lantern reboot in 2020, as the last movie of the current phase.
Good job, Ryan Reynolds and company!
On the next page – sending a character back to hell!
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance (2012)
Just like with the Fantastic Four, Ghost rider: Spirit of Vengeance was even more atrocious than its first part, released in 2007.
Nicolas Cage was never meant to play a superhero, especially at this age. Do we need to say why it was disappointing?
Well, we can't - we didn't manage to see it whole.
On the next page… Well, it may have been disappointing, but it made the fans happy!
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)
This movie was the one that convinced Sony to deal with Marvel - so it isn't so disappointing after all. If it didn't suck so bad, Sony would have kept making superhero movies (all by itself).
And to think that we were looking forward for that Aunt May film, which would have seen this less than secondary character becoming a super-spy.
On the next page, how to wipe your butt with comics!
The most disappointing comic book movie of the decade is"¦
It isn't Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, just like it isn't Man of Steel (which, at least, stayed true to the comics as much as possible).
Instead, the most disappointing movie of this decade is Iron Man 3. As the Screen Junkies said, Iron Man 3 didn't just disregard the comics - it wiped its butt with them. How can you turn Iron Man's greatest foe into a punchline?
It's easy - just watch Marvel Studios getting all inspired and creative with its own, already established, characters.
Pepper Potts saves the day - "˜nuff said.
Next, the unworthy mentions!
The Unworthy Mentions
