Season of Superman: DC Top 10

With the release of ‘Superman’ just a matter of days away, it’s safe to say that I am getting excited about seeing the return of the Man of Steel. 

To celebrate the ‘Season of Superman’, I thought I would look at compiling a list of my Top 10 favourite DC live action movies. Now, as a disclaimer this includes all DC related content so that includes any DC Imprint comics that have been adapted for the big screen. 

These are also not ranked by either box office gross or critical rating - these are just my personal ranking of the Top 10 DC films. 

10. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (Ultimate Edition) (2016)

Rotten Tomatoes Critics: 28% (for theatrical cut)

IMDb: 6.4 (for theatrical cut)

Budget: $275m

Box Office: $874.363m (for theatrical cut)

I will admit that I have never seen the theatrical cut of this film. I have only seen the Ultimate Edition. I was recommended to see this version over the other and was incredibly grateful for that recommendation. This Ultimate Edition contains approximately 30 minutes more footage than the original and clocks in at approximately 3 hours in length. An epic but not the longest Snyder Cut…!

The extra 30 minutes from what I have read helps add context to the plot and overall character development and it shows. Critics have also agreed that the UE is better than the original release with some changing their opinions entirely. I never intend to watch the theatrical cut. I am just annoyed that this film was robbed of the chance of this cut hitting the big screens. 

For me, a major selling point of this film (beyond the two titular characters) is the soundtrack from Hans Zimmer and Junkie XL. One of the biggest wins that the DCEU had over the MCU in this period was the soundtracks and this is an example of that. 

9. Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021)

Rotten Tomatoes Critics: 71%

IMDb: 7.9

Budget: $70m

Box Office: $0m

If there was a film production that needed its own film adaptation of everything that went on behind the scenes and the ‘Snyder Cut’ movement that followed, this is the one! This film shouldn’t exist on so many levels but it does and what an epic it is - clocking in at 4 hours and 2 minutes - which is over double the length of the originally released ‘Justice League’ (2017). I will admit, I did have to watch it in two viewings just to be able to fit it into my day! 

This film concludes the run of films that Snyder started with ‘Man of Steel’ (2013) and others he helped produce including ‘Wonder Woman’ (2017). 

Most critics that reviewed this film agree that it is far superior to the 2017 version which released. Most directors cuts are normally a rearrangement of pre-shot material. Not this one. Filming for this cut lasted an additional couple of months. 

There are too many interesting details to not about this production and overall film than I could talk about here - perhaps a pure comparison blog in the future would be more appropriate. 

8. Man of Steel (2013)

Rotten Tomatoes Critics: 57%

IMDb: 7.1

Budget: $230m

Box Office: $670.146m

Ah, the first film of the then DCEU. DC and Warner Bros had high hopes for this cinematic universe, designed to be similar in scale for what Marvel had been doing for a few years with the MCU. If only things had gone the way they perhaps were supposed to without all the drama and chaos behind the scenes with Warner Bros and others. 

On paper this film works - written by David S. Goyer, directed by Zack Snyder and produced by Christopher Nolan (and others). This film had a deep bench of creative talent. Then add in the cast - Henry Cavill as Superman. Hans Zimmer composing the soundtrack. How could this not work? 

This film and the films that followed in the DCEU never quite managed to make it work despite the best efforts of many creatives. 

For me, I have a soft spot for this film and perhaps like it more than most. I quite like the dark tone. I think the biggest thing here that maybe other movie adaptions of well known superhero characters have done since this is not completely start at the beginning. Superman, Batman and Marvel characters like Spider-Man and The Fantastic Four are so iconic that they don’t need the third or fourth origin story - jumping straight in without the backstory might help the 2025 version. 

7. Batman (1989)

Rotten Tomatoes Critics: 77%

IMDb: 7.5

Budget: $48m

Box Office: $411.569m

This was the first superhero movie that I ever saw. So in a way, my Batman should probably be Michael Keaton but it’s not - more of that later. 

This film, the first in the original Batman film series by Warner Bros, was directed by legendary director Tim Burton and also starred Jack Nicholson as The Joker. The film was a critical and commercial success - the second highest grossing film of the year and the sixth highest grossing of all time at the point of release. 

This film was only greenlit by Warner Bros following the success of Beetlejuice- directed by Tim Burton. They considered him to be a successful enough director. 

This film did receive some complaints for being too dark and haunting and I remember being equally scared and in awe of what I was seeing. 

The legacy of this film can be seen throughout comic book movies and even prompted Warner Bros to make the acclaimed (and my favourite animated show) ‘Batman: The Animated Series’

 

6. Superman II (1980)

Rotten Tomatoes Critics: 88%

IMDb: 6.8

Budget: $54m

Box Office: $216.386m

The sequel to the legendary ‘Superman’ (1978) which features further higher on my rankings. Like a couple of DC movies on this list, the drama behind the scenes during production was almost as interesting as what was produced as a result of it. 

The original director of Superman, Richard Donner, was the director of this film up until tensions with the producers resulted in him being fired and Richard Lester. More of this can be covered later. 

For me, this film is slightly inferior to the original and part of that is down to the comedy. It’s almost slapstick at times and I feel that the visuals aren’t as good as the first. 

Audiences though very much enjoyed this film giving the film a rare ‘A+’ score and ended as the third highest grossing film of the year. 

In 2006, the Richard Donner cut made it out there to good reviews and it’s on my to watch list. 

5. Wonder Woman (2017)

Rotten Tomatoes Critics: 93%

IMDb: 7.3

Budget: $149m

Box Office: $823.971m

This film completely took me by surprise. I had heard slight comparisons to the MCU with the period take - ‘Captain America: The First Avenger’ (2011) being set in World War II and ‘Wonder Woman’ being largely set during World War I. 

Directed by Patty Jenkins, upon release this was the highest grossing film directed by a woman. 

It was slightly more lighthearted than previous DC entries  and was the second appearance of Wonder Woman in the DCEU following her appearance in ‘Batman v Superman’ (2016). 

The two leads, Gal Gadot and Chris Pine have a great chemistry on screen and I completely bought into their story. The music in particular in this film for these characters were a step up from other soundtracks. 

The action sequences were amazing and used as much practical effects as possible - even when that caused production problems such as the rig sinking into the sand during a beach battle. 

DCEU did something that the MCU had not done at this point - out a female lead superhero movie out. You can argue that this success led to ‘Captain Marvel’ (2019) when it should have been ‘Black Widow’. 

4. Superman (1978)

Rotten Tomatoes Critics: 86%

IMDb: 7.4

Budget: $55m

Box Office: $300.478m

Arguably the most important superhero movie ever made. Without this movie, we might never have got everything that followed at not just DC but also Marvel- especially the MCU. But I’m not here to talk about the MCU and Kevin Feige. 

When people of think of Superman, they will often first think of Christopher Reeve. The film, directed by Richard Donner (‘Lethal Weapon’, ‘The Goonies’) was at the time the most expensive film ever made with a budget that is equivalent to $271m in today’s money. Good job that it attracted over 120m people to watch it and ended as the second highest grossing film of the year. 

The iconic theme from the legendary John Williams can be often be hummed by people from memory - even those who haven’t seen the film it’s that iconic. Even in the trailers for the upcoming ‘Superman’ (2025) the theme can be still heard. 

This film pushed the boundaries of special effects to a whole new level and I wish that most modern movies continued to do the same without the need for CGI. 

The word ‘verisimilitude’ was frequently used by Donner. He emphasises its importance, especially with this film, to create a sense of believability and authenticity within the fantastical narrative - something others have used as a template going forwards. 

3. The Batman (2022)

Rotten Tomatoes Critics: 85%

IMDb: 7.8

Budget: $200m

Box Office: $772.319m

This was a film that I was incredibly sceptical about for several reasons. Wasn’t Ben Affleck Batman in the DCEU? Isn’t Robert Pattinson the guy from ‘Harry Potter’ and ‘Twilight’? Then I saw ‘Tenet’ (2020) with Pattinson in and I saw him in a different light. And then I saw a teaser trailer for this film in late-2020 and I was blown away by not just Pattinson but the world created by Reeves and then the music that came out from Michael Giacchino. 

Everything about this film ticks things that I love. The score - tick. The action - tick. The plot being a serial killer focus - tick. The noir aspect of the film - tick. The comics being used to adapt - tick. 

This film came out of the blue for me and one of my biggest regrets is not seeing it on the big screen. The follow up film keeps being pushed back and is currently scheduled for 2027. This time I will be seated!

2. V For Vendetta (2006)

Rotten Tomatoes Critics: 73%

IMDb: 8.1

Budget: $52m

Box Office: $134.686m

This film explains my caveat at the top of the page - I appreciate this isn’t a DC film but it’s a film based off a DC property. This film, directed by first-time director James McTeigue and features an excellent screenplay written by The Wachowskis (‘The Matrix’ franchise). 

This film is visually stunning, with the film set in a near-future London. The cast give great performances (Natalie Portman, Hugo Weaving) and the soundtrack by Dario Marianelli (‘Atonement’) is brilliant. I don’t want to give much away here as it’s something that people should look into and discover for themselves if they haven’t already. 

This film should have been released on 04 November 2005 - a day before the 400th Guy Fawkes anniversary - but was unfortunately pushed back. Perhaps this film would have made more money had it stuck to the original release as some of its edge was lost by releasing in March. 

1. The Dark Knight (2008)

Rotten Tomatoes Critics: 94%

IMDb: 9.0

Budget: $185m

Box Office: $1,009.057m

I mean what more can possibly be said about this epic from Christopher Nolan. This was the first Nolan film I saw on the big screen and it completely changed my movie going viewpoint. I could easily have put a couple of other Nolan movies on this list but decided against it. 

This movie did something that perhaps only ‘Superman’ (1978) did before it - change how people view superhero movies. This is a dark, gritty, richly themed crime epic. My big wish would have been for DCEU to have launched with Man of Steel and Christopher Nolan’s epic trilogy and use these as the basis to the Universe. Perhaps in an alternate universe somewhere, Nolan and Snyder made a cinematic universe - now that would be something. 

Everyone has a Batman - and whilst I have included several on this list, for me (despite not being the first I saw) Christian Bale is that Batman. 

The characters and the world of Gotham City felt so real but not too dissimilar to ours that it felt natural. 

Of course, this film is nowhere near as epic without the incredible and powerful performance from Heath Ledger. 

Not only is this the best DC film, it’s arguably the greatest superhero film and one of the best films of all time - IMDb audiences have this as the 3rd best movie of all time. Some achievement.