Super Hero Stupor

With the success of Watchmen and Marvel's Iron Man seemingly single handedly bolstering the cinema economy last year newbies to the genre or to life in general, may be well unaware of some of the more oddball super hero flicks.

This article will list (in no particular order) movies based on super heros that you may never have heard of, or thought of as a super hero film in any way.

Super hero films have been around for some time, the oldest one I can come up with at the top of my head is the cult classic Batman, written all the way back in 1966. It stared TV's Adam West and Burt Ward as Batman and Robin, respectively. The movie was borne from the serialized show from the 1960s, and featured the same campy, quirky, comic-stylized cinematography. Its laughable today, though in retrospect, I'd put it above 1997's Batman and Robin. (And I'd wager a guess that its also worse than the original movie with that title that was released in 1949.)

In fact, a look at a list of super hero films on Wikipedia has a title released as early as 1941. I'm pretty sure, though, if I scoured through many silent films I would probably find one or two super hero-like films.

The idea of paranormal powers and magic has been around since the dawn of civilization, and by exploring these themes we often find true humanity behind the characters that exist in these worlds.

Super heros have leaped from the pages of comic books and news paper prints to grace the screen on numerous occasions throughout the history of cinema. The recent trend of finally developing the characters and selling them as "real" people instead of creating a script written to show off cool special effects and super powers is in many ways, not quite new, either.

The films I'll cover can range in both quality and quirkiness. I'm an avid movie buff, and love nothing more than to go to Blockbuster at least once or twice a year to find some interesting "B" movies to take home.

Therefore, I cannot with good conscious try to list any of these films in a "top ten" list because I am the kind of person who really, really, really tries hard to see the best in even the worst of movies. In fact, there's only one movie I wish I had never seen because it was so poor. (More on that in another article..)

I would be very remiss in not pointing out this obvious "alternative" super hero movie. I'll be honest, though. For some illogical reason, as well written and pulled off Donnie Darko is, I hate its rampant popularity. I don't know why.

If you've never seen it, I highly recommend it. Its more of a 80s-laden mind screw than anything to do as a super hero; the main character never dons a cape or saves the day by leaping buildings in a single bound.

In fact, his destiny is very much an interesting tragedy. Some of you who have seen the film might argue that lumping it in the genre of super hero film is a long stretch. But the whole point of this article is to explore what it is to expand the genre and harden it against cliche` pit falls.

Reguardless of how you feel about the inclusion of this movie in this list, those of you who think the main character lacked super powers obviously was not paying attention to the movie. No normal human could drive an axe into a bronze statue or see wormholes.

Featuring Patrick Swayze and Drew Barrymore I feel some-what lifted this notable title and helped get it out of obscurity and into the cult lime light. However, the plot twists and turns and the overall great acting by the whole cast lends it well deserved credibility.

Panned by critics, and a box office flop, I'm saddened by the lack of attention given to this oft-forgotten super hero film.

Its a post apocalyptic world, a comet has crashed and has dried up the world's water supply. (see: exact opposite of Water World) As corny as this premise is, for it is one of the most over used ones in tinseltown, the movie has a very comic-book quality to it.

Tank Girl is played by the always frisky Lori Petty, who is captured in the beginning of the film by an organization that dominates the control of the water supply. And to do that, you need artillery. And people to man, fix, and design such things. Turns out Lori Petty knows how to use a tank. Some-what.

The acting, in general, is fantastic. The costumes are awesome. The action is intense. And Ice-T is a giant super soldier kangaroo. You can't go wrong.

Speaking of 80s nostalgia via Donnie Darko, here's a real 80s movie for you.

Before The Fast and the Furious and all its knock offs and sequels there was The Wraith. In one of Charlie Sheen's earliest roles he plays your average 80s teen who lives in a small town where the most fun thing to do is to race your car on largely unpopulated areas.

Unfortuantely, one gang of gearheads decides they like his car and challenge him to a race. The winner gets the loser's car. They fight hard and dirty, and poor Charlie ends up in a casket. But not for long.

He returns as The Wraith, wielding a shotgun (what?) and wearing something that looks like a gothic space suit. And if thats not enough to get the ladies, there's also his car. Its a bad ass looking vehicle, capable of amazing speeds (and flying off as light, apparently) with Toyota Prius manueverability.

In due time, the small town that was once ravaged by evil grease monkeys is ridden of their troubles by Charlie Sheen one race at a time. Its a guilty pleasure, for sure, and the acting is a bit on the weak side. The premise, too, is rather quirky.

But you know what? Its just as well written as The Fast and the Furious. Which is to say, not. But come on....a cool car and a shotgun weilding back from the dead super hero? Its worth a watch at least once.

If you're a fan of manga or anime, you may have heard about The Guyver. If not, you're missing out. But much like the need to diverge away from the original content to truly enjoy Super Mario Brothers: The Movie you really need to take a look at Guyver 2 as not a fan of the initial mangas and 80s series and view it moreso as an Americanized adaption to an interesting concept.

Like The Wraith this movie is a mix of good and bad. The rampant use of monster suits helps us recall a time before CGI. And unlike the first live-action Guyver movie, its actually written rather decently even if the acting can fall short at times.

Staring David Hayter as the Guyver we find our hero at the opening scene of the film destroying the viability of a mafia-backed plan to package cocaine in the form of plastic dolls. After melting them down, you'd have your product again. Ingenious.

The character behind Guyver, Sean Barker, is not content with his new found role of super hero in many ways. He's wracked with visions of alien space ships and watching a local news story he hears of a monster attack on a local redneck and also is shown an archelogical dig whereupon he recognizes some of the symbols he's been seeing in his dreams.

Convenient? Yes. But lets step back for a moment and look at the merits that makes this movie a decent success. Number one, David Hayter. While I'll admit this is not quite his finest role, he gets fanboy points for voicing Snake in Metal Gear Solid. Still not impressed? He co-wrote the first two X-Men movies, but didn't opt in for the third one which depending on who you talk to quickly spiraled the series down into massive sucktitude.

The Guyver Unit is an alien device that is meant to enhance the person wearing it in innumerable ways. In the first live action film, Sean Barker is attacked by thugs while trying to fix his bike and accidentally falls on the Guyver Unit (convenient, again!) and is transformed into an armor wearing super hero with strength, agility, a chest gun, and two sabers that protrude from his elbows.

He goes on to find that a mysterious corporation by the name of Chronos is the one who originally found the unit, and he quickly finds out that the Chronos Corporation is little more than a front for genetically modified humans and aliens alike. Seemingly regular people turn into a variety of monsters called Zoanoids, who are bent on world domination. In the end, Chronos falls. So we're told.

The plot of Guyver 2 is to help Sean figure out what his role should be in the world now that he has been embedded with an alien technology. He's been fighting crime, sure, but he never asked for this life. He has lost his definition of what it is to be human, and wants ultimately to answer the purpose of his dilemma.

While I mentioned the slightly sub par acting at times, overall the movie is well done even for being overly trite. The magic of the special effects and makeup worn by the actors is really something to behold, for now that we have passed into the era of CGI the art and design of such creature features has been muted.

If you are to get into Guyver, I do so recommend picking up the second movie. Seeing the first movie isn't exactly necessary to enjoy the plot, because a lot of background information makes its way into the script at times. Still, if you're really jonesing to see the first one (with Mark Hamill as a detective!) you have been warned. Its funny, with rather good special effects again, but the acting and plot is severely lacking.

Like the recent adaption of The Spirit, Sin City, and yes, The Phantom, Dick Tracy is a hero unlike many have ever seen in today's age. Its centered around a detective with the name Dick Tracy. (Redundant enough?) This movie is visually stunning, with rich comic-like colors and an all star cast featuring Warren Beaty, Al Pacino, and Dustin Hoffman.

The acting is as good as to be expected, although the character development is on the weak side overall. However, all the visual flair can often makeup for this issue. I mean, dude has a wrist phone. Harkening back to the days of all-whiteness and 1930s/40s technology this film is a good movie for the youngins, as it was created by Disney.

Another 80s flick again makes the list. While the Toxic Avenger is indeed a mutant super hero of sorts, the film series is a B movie cult classic in its own right.

Melvin Ferd is your average nerd, working as a janitor in a gym. At one point the jocky young men and women decide that Ferd is such a dork, its really everyone's duty to pick on him the best they can. Culminating into getting him into a pink tutu and kissing everyones favorite sock puppet animal, he's eventually chased so drastically that he jumps from a second story window of the health club and lands in a vat of toxic waste.

And thus, The Toxic Aveneger is shortly thereafter born. This film is undeniably campy, with at times sophmoric humor and over-the-top violence 80s style (think, Friday the 13th, etc.). But you can't help falling in love with the plight of Toxie, who soon discovers his propensity for ridding the world of evil doers, and ultimately finds true passion and companionship with a blind woman.

Violence abound, there's a very big scene in the movie with Toxie smashing a head. The effects department, working with little money, employed a decent amount of thinking to create this scene. Its one of the hallmarks of the film.

In short, if you enjoy a good B-movie, you'll enjoy this one. Its truly an american icon, celebrating violence and punishment, while mixing in a dash of romance. Its references to other archetypes span a wide range, and sometimes I just can't help but to see this movie in some weird way as a modern day Frakenstein adaption. Except there was no Doctor to create the monster.

The acting is cheesy, often over the top, and it doesn't pretend to be serious at all. Done poorly, this type of movie would have no redeeming value. But taking everything into scope, and realizing that this was a film made on a shoe string budget, its a captivating watch.

Besides...neither Jason nor Freddie had a cartoon!

I'll be honest....I gush about the three Ginger Snaps movies every chance I get, so the inclusion of this title in this list may be a bit misguided. Its essentially a werewolf movie starring two hot Canadians, and is a thinly guised (yet ultimately well done!) attempt at discussing drug use and self harm.

But there is a comic book angle. Yes there is.

In the first Ginger Snaps, the main character of this movie, Bridget, has a sister who is bitten by a werewolf on her first day of womanhood (Ginger). Slowly, Ginger's growing animalish tendancies become too viscious to be contained or covered up.

The sequel, however, involves not Ginger directly (though the character does reprise her role as sister during short bursts of apparently halucinatory visions of Bridget's own mind.) but her sister, who is now living on her own in a cheap motel and reading all she can about lycanthropy.

Bridget keeps track of her seemingly inevitable spiral into becoming a large wolf-like creature with a taste for human flesh by cutting herself and seeing how long it takes to heal.

In the first film, a plant called monkshood is discovered and though it proves not to be an outright cure, it does slow the change of person to werewolf. As the victim of the werewolf bite uses this antidote, however, they need to "dose" more often and with higher levels.Bridget at one point over doses, fearing the worst, as her sister returns to tell her that "he is coming." Who is he? He would be a male lycanthope who has major blue balls.

During her over dose, a library worker visits Bridget to deliver books that she had earlier been denied check out for overdo late fees. The guy, enamored with the beauty of Bridget, looks up her address and decides to deliver the books she wanted to her personally in a bid to get to know her.

When he realizes she's injected something into herself and she's not doing well, he tries to get her into his car to drive her to a hospital. Unfortuantely, Ginger's earlier prophetic cameo appears to be true for he shows up and turns the poor library boy into yub yub chibbits. Bridget escapes his grasp while fleeing the gruesome scene, but ultimately collapses from her earlier monkshood overdose.

She awakens in a clinic ran by the state, and funded partly by housing intensive care patients. She's been labeled as a drug addict and she is expected to follow along with the program to help her become a well adjusted young lady who needs not any substance to live a normal life.

As you may imagine, being deprived of the only substance known to slow the turn into werewolf Bridget is in a race against time to either escape or find a way to get monkshood delivered to her. Ultimately she chooses the first idea, finally escaping with the help of "Ghost," a maladjusted miscreant who reads comic books more avidly than a 12 year old Ray Bradbury.

Ghost realizes what Bridget is, and once she understands that Bridget is no threat to her (yet..) she helps her escape just as HE shows up, yet again. (I have a feeling being a werewolf would suck, because if your sense of smell is that good, you'd have to stay away from New Jersey or New York City.)

Ultimately, the movie has a surprise ending. And that one surprise ending is the ultimate tie in to the comic book super hero world. If you've never seen a Ginger Snaps film, I recommend the film that was also shot during this production entitled Ginger Snaps Back. Its a prequel of sorts, but is in my opinion the most well written of the series.

Either way, all three of these films are ground breaking adaptions of a tired werewolf genre.

And wouldn't it be cool to be a werewolf superhero?

These seven films have their own merits to them in the world of super hero movies. While not as often as flashy, or filled with consumer branding, they have a unique spin on what it is to exist in a cartoon, comic book reality to some degree.

I tried to include movies that as I have personally seen them, are at the very least good enough to rent once. These movies are in some way cult classics, and cannot be denied their heritage. Without writers, fx masters, and directors helming these movies, we may never have gotten to see The Dark Knight. Every movie has its issues, as nothing is perfect. And even with some points being dinged off for being "cliche`" in ideas, the visually stunning way some of these flicks are done in can't be denied.

Every good idea has a downside. But sometimes, just sometimes, when a super hero flick is penned either in homage or purely inadvertently, it defies the conventionality of Marvel or DC. While I am by no means bashing any super hero movie, I believe there is something in all these titles modern day producers can take to the bank and help elevate future works.