10 Most Stunning Comic Book Movies Ever Made

10. Joker

Like it or loathe it, last year's bold reinvention of Batman's most enduring foe as a down-on-his-luck stand-up seduced by the thrall of violence proved to be a cultural flashpoint on par with conventional comic-book blockbusters. It was a billion-dollar smash thanks in no small part to Joaquin Phoenix's now career-defining performance at its maladjusted centre.

But if Todd Phillips' work had another ace up its sleeve, then it was surely Lawrence Sher's cinematography. Inspired heavily by Taxi Driver-era New York in its sense of place and time, he captures the grimy, everyday insidiousness that drowns out Arthur Fleck with aplomb - and once the latter completes his transformation, he captures his ascent into disturbing folk legend with unexpectedly sweeping power and panache.