Film & TV

The top three Superhero Films that aren’t Marvel

Our regular film column

Okay guys, seriously now, Disney is starting to scare me. Now that they own ESPN, ABC, Lucas films, Pixar AND Marvel the ludicrous amount of money they make could, theoretically (and I’m not saying this is a definite), fund a pretty decent world domination effort. I’m just saying. The only way to stop this is to not give their bloated superhero film franchise any more money. Here are some alternatives:

Watchmen (2009)

Based on the graphic novel of the same name by eccentric genius Alan Moore, Watchmen demonstrates that Zac Snyder is at least somewhat capable of making a decent superhero film, despite what his most recent offering might suggest. Despite condemnation from Moore himself (unsurprising, he hates all adaptions of his books) Watchmen actually manages to hold up. It’s not perfect – or as clever as the book – but its surprising faithfulness to the source material and gorgeous aesthetics make it a fitting complement.

Hellboy (2004)

Guillermo del Toro’s Hellboy was my unchallenged favourite film in primary school. It’s not your typical superhero film, but its unique ‘del Toro’ nature is what makes it stand out. Today, I consider both the original and its sequel two of the most underrated cult classics of all time. I promise this isn’t just nostalgia speaking… Ok maybe it is a bit.

The Dark Knight (2008)

I don’t know why, but it feels a bit weird putting this film on the list. Everybody raves about it so much that a lot of people are bored of hearing about it. On the other hand, including it makes my job easier because I don’t need to do any convincing. The Dark Knight is one of the best films ever. Go watch it again.

From Issue 1633

6th May 2016

Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents

Explore the edition

Read more

Imperial defeats Sheffield in University Challenge

News

Imperial defeats Sheffield in University Challenge

Imperial College London’s University Challenge team has progressed into the semi-finals after narrowly beating the University of Sheffield 160-120.   Sheffield took a strong lead, but Imperial managed an impressive comeback thanks to the efforts of team captain Oscar O’Flanagan.  “Imperial, that kimchi keeps bringing you luck,” quipped host

By Mohammad Majlisi
Braiding Sweetgrass

Books

Braiding Sweetgrass

Braiding Sweetgrass is a beautiful collection of stories that, broadly, follow the life of the author, Robin Wall Kimmerer (a botanist and professor of environmental biology who is of Native American descent), and her evolving understanding of the relationship between scientific and indigenous ways of knowing, along with the implications

By David Loughlin