16 Best Superhero Movies of All Time, Ranked for Filmmakers

Guillermo Del Toro has shown that his best films depend on him to stretch his creative legs and this superhero film is no exception. It’s at the beginning of our superhero movie list due to a lot of really strong competition within the superhero movie genre.

Casting superheroes isn’t as much of a layup as one might think, but Gal Gadot is sort of perfect for the role, and athletic enough that the stunt sequences all seem very natural and believable. The main reason this film isn’t higher on the list is the lackluster villain and final battle scene. 

I love David Thewlis. He’s a great actor, but you need to cast someone with some serious mobility to facilitate a great final battle scene, otherwise, you’ll be stuck using a CG villain for your climax.

The great things about The Crow is the overall theme of the film, and how it discusses society’s relationship with chaos, evil, and darkness. One might even say this superhero film was ahead of its time, and laid the groundwork for many of the subsequent dark superhero movies.

Also, Dwight Schrute's "desert island" pick.

There are also some really strong emotional moments in the film, most of which involve T’Challa’s relationship with his father, as well as the final battle scene between Black Panther and Killmonger.

Now, the bar was set pretty high from this first film, and the following movies weren't able to live up to the expectations, but the original Spider-Man movie was a great success which is why it lands on our ranked list of the best superhero movies of all time.

The ending of Iron Man was also a surprising moment that sets this movie apart. Where so many other superhero movies rely on drama caused by secret identities, this film heads in the opposite direction. As far as Marvel superhero movies and origin stories go, Iron Man was able to build a rock solid template that tops the box office again and again.

Wesley Snipes is also a transformative actor who brought a unique quality to this role. Blade is a twisted expression of darkness and how often the person best suited to fight evil has some in their own blood. I wouldn't begrudge someone who felt the tone of the film was a bit too hokey, but there is enough self-awareness that it plays. 

The fourth wall breaks in this superhero film add an extra layer as well, and the overall filmmaking is actually much more creative and innovative than your run-of-the-mill superhero movie. As far as funny superhero movies go, I think this one takes the cake. Mmmm... coconut!

Logan is gritty, violent, emotional, and taxing in all the ways you don’t expect when heading to the cinema for the superhero genre, but that may be due to the fact that comic book fans are more complicated than many Hollywood producers are able to realize. The general population enjoys the majesty of a generic superhero story, but true fans of the genre love to see their favorite characters in complicated stories.

Great Superhero Movies

7. Doctor Strange (2016)

Doctor Strange is one of the most visually stunning mixtures of computer-generated images with live-action, but the connection of the visuals to the concept is what makes this such a great superhero movie.

While Doctor Strange owes much of its tonal success to Iron Man, the sound design, filmmaking, and a fantastically clever ending raise the stakes of this film from a fun movie to a complete head trip. I've read many reviews that took issue with the Marvel formula used for this origin story, but the things that make this film unique add up to push Doctor Strange into the top 10 superhero movies ever. 

The other things that made this movie so fun to watch were the plainclothes costumes and the soundtrack. You get to have this fun juxtaposition of 1970’s fashion and music all throughout. Bryan Singer has ruffled a few feathers recently and he is notoriously difficult to work with, but he is a really talented director and he was able to construct one of the best comic book movies to date with a really big cast. 

Gene Hackman’s charisma made Lex Luthor likable, and this set the tone for many movie villains to come. This is the sort of special sauce that will give you one of the top superhero movies of all time. Unfortunately, we have yet to see many more likable villains in the genre… yet.

There are elements of horror, espionage, adventure, and the most important aspect of any Batman movie — detective work. Batman Begins is the origin story so many other superhero movies wish they could be.

Avengers: Infinity War is hands down the best of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and was a happy rebound from a few duds in the Avengers franchise that couldn’t seem to make their massive budgets work.