From Stills To Thrills

     I can't claim to be much of a graphic novel/comic book expert. I loved Watchmen, have read some of my dad's old Adventures of Tin-Tin and used to flip through my brothers' Spiderman issues, but that's about it. Most of what I know stems from my appreciation of adaptations. And while I spent countless Saturday mornings ruining my eyes with cartoons like the X-Men series and Batman: The Animated Series, the versions I have spent the most time — and sadly, money — on are movies. Call them comic books or call them graphic novels, but it is their film iterations that I'd rather talk about.
     Side note: I can't claim to know much about foreign language comics either. I love the manga-based Oldboy, a seriously demented revenge flick directed by Park Chan-wook. I really enjoyed Persepolis as well. There's a lot more out there, but that's about all I've seen.
     As far as English-language comic book movies go, I usually categorize them in four ways. Though these rules aren't foolproof, it's a good system to use in a pinch.
First, there's the aesthetically faithful, mindlessly fun adaptation, à la Sin City, 300, Hellboy, Wanted or Tank Girl. Then you've got your one really important superdude flicks. They're usually pretty fun, although often not as artsy as the first bunch: Superman, Iron Man, Spiderman, Blade, The Incredible Hulk and Conan the Barbarian.
     Next, you've got your "real serious" comic book movie, which includes Watchmen, Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, The Crow and X-Men. Unlike template superpower flicks, they have a little more gravitas and usually have darker source material. These ones even get nominated for awards — and they aren't made in someone's basement.
     Finally, there is the "wait-that's-from-a-comic?" movie. This includes the bleak Paul Giamatti indie American Splendor, Ghost World's tale of '90s hipster angst, Viggo Mortenson's reluctantly returning to his hidden thug past in A History of Violence, and Tom Hanks as a morally ambiguous gangster on the run in Road to Perdition. Let it never be said comics aren't diverse!
     There is sort of an unofficial fifth category too, I suppose: the BAD ones. You know them. There are plenty, but a few prime examples are Catwoman (with Halle Berry — so sad), the laughably stupid Sean Connery career-killer The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, the offensively boring Elektra (or its originator, Daredevil), the utter disappointment that is Wolverine and style-over-substance train wreck The Spirit.
      Most of these films are from the last two decades — and for good reason. Comic book movies are experiencing something of a renaissance. Not only are they more visually sophisticated as filmmaking technology advances, but their storytelling is becoming increasingly engaging. Their pervasiveness is undoubtedly helped by having a built-in audience, making even the worst ones fairly profitable. With upcoming projects like the ever-expanding Avengers series, another Batman from Christopher Nolan, meta-comic Kick-Ass, and anti-hero pictures like Priest and Jonah Hex, comic books movies aren't going anywhere in 2010. I, for one, could not be happier.