6. The Rocketeer
You may not know this movie was based on a comic book, but the safer bet these days is that you didn't know this was a movie OR a comic book. The Rocketeer was released by Walt Disney in 1991 to mild acclaim and poor box office before seemingly being forgotten by everyone, with the film very rarely being shown on TV or available to buy. The film tells the story of stunt pilot Cliff Secord who stumbles upon a prototype Howard Hughes jetpack before being pursued by a swathe of Nazis, mobsters and Hughes cronies. It's a fun film, capturing the look and mood of the 30's as well as the innocence of old matinee serials that the comic was based on, but is flawed by its talky nature and thumb-twiddling pacing. With that said, it has developed a bit of a cult following over recent years, and I hold it in high esteem. The actual comic The Rocketeer was based on was first published in 1982, created, written and illustrated by Dave Stevens for Pacific Comics. It has been in and out of print ever since for a variety of publishers including Dark Horse and most recently IDW, and although it has never been huge it has always been solid. Maybe the sporadic nature of its publication and comparative obscurity of the character was another reason the film didn't do so well at the box office, although according to Stevens, Disney "really tried to shoehorn it into a kiddie property so they could sell toys. All they really wanted at the end of the day, was the name" With all that said, if you're looking for a fun Sunday afternoon film you could do much worse.