12 Underrated Superhero Movies That Deserve A Second Viewing
There are no critics harsher than comic book fans.
When it comes to the superhero genre, audiences can be rather particular about what they expect from their big screen comic books. Whether it's a fascination with "gritty" pictures born out of The Dark Knight or a preference for lighter, funnier flicks after The Avengers, audiences usually prefer superhero films that follow the particular trend of the time, unfortunately ignoring any releases that don't conform to what's currently popular with fans.
Which is a shame, because there shouldn't only be one accepted way to create these movies, and honestly, there have been plenty of films in the genre that have been wrongly overlooked because they decided to do something different. Be it experimental R-rated features or just weird sequels, there are so many superhero films out there that sadly didn't resonate with audiences as much as they should have.
It's a tragedy, because if you leave your expectations at the door then you'd realise that these underrated pictures are some of the most enjoyable entries in the entire genre. While you might have already written them off in the past, these amazing superhero flicks deserve to be recognised along the likes of other fan favourites - or at the very least deserve another viewing so you can tell me how wrong I am.
12. Iron Man 2
Marvel's first misstep, everything from the forced MCU connections to the urban legends of Mickey Rourke's villainous Whiplash being gutted of his character in the editing room seems to explain why Iron Man 2 didn't exactly connect with fans as much as the coveted original.
But in between all that mess there's still so much to like in this superhero epic. Anchored by Downey Jr's brilliant performance as always, this sequel, more than the first film, really allowed the actor to spread his wings in the role. Covering Tony Stark's downward spiral into alcoholism, Iron Man 2 began to delve wholeheartedly into the fractured psyche of the genius billionaire playboy philanthropist, showing a vulnerable side of the character that was only hinted at in the previous movie.
More than that though, there's just a lot of fun to be had in the sequel. From Iron Man eating doughnuts with Nick Fury to Stark singing karaoke drunk out of his mind, the now-classic Marvel humour really began to flourish from this film onwards.
Plus if that wasn't enough, Iron Man 2 introduced fan favourites Black Widow and War Machine (properly, not the half-hearted Terrance Howard version) into the franchise, and you can't hate it for that, can you?