And so we reach number one on the countdown, a choice that is sure to divide opinion. Well, okay, maybe not so much divide opinion, but we may find one or two readers out there who agree with us that Mark Steven Johnson's Daredevil is the most underrated film of the new millennium. Maybe. Hopefully. Picture the scene. It is 2003, and the comic book movie has made a comeback in a big way with the runaway success of X-Men in 2000 and Spider-Man in 2002. Fox decides to bring us a movie version of The Man Without Fear. Darker in tone than Spider-Man, Daredevil actually stayed fairly faithful to the classic Frank Miller comics of the 1970's that it was heavily influenced by, and featured enough violence and threat to secure a 15 certificate in the UK. Sadly, it is now considered by nearly the whole population to be a stinker, an example of Ben Affleck at his worst and a confused mess of a movie. We take umbrage with this, as Fox cut Johnson's movie to ribbons, removing material left and right that made some sections not make any sense at all. If you want to see something closer to the directors intentions, watch the Directors Cut that was released in 2004, which added 30 minutes of cut material back into the film. It's really good. Somehow, over the years, the talent involved in the film have even disowned it, which we find sad. Ben Affleck was recently quoted as saying he has regrets about making the film, and generally seems to see it as a bad experience. We think Daredevil doesn't deserve to be thrown under the bus though, not by a long shot. What say you, faithful readers? Have we forgotten any other underrated blockbusters? Or have our choices simply brought our dodgy taste in movies into the harsh light of day? Sound off in the comments section below!
