Goddamn is this a good time to be a geek. There’s amazing superhero fare on big screens and small these days, and while we might complain when film folks get it wrong, they’re also getting a hell of a lot right and it’s awesome. But comics have been getting turned into films for a long while now and there’s some really great ones might not even have heard of. Some are older, some are relatively unknown, some have been overlooked or mis-sold at box office and deserve another look.

11. Battle Royale (2000)

Oh, Hunger Games. You may be a global box office success but you’ll never be as cool as Battle Royale, despite being almost exactly the same story. Leaner and quicker paced than the manga it’s based on, this film succeeds in building up a tension that Lawrence’s franchise never could, simply because there’s no obvious hero to root for and there is unexpected violence almost from the get-go. If you’ve seen the film but never read the manga, trust me you really should: everyone is given detailed and fascinating backstories, making you root for them all the more and really feel it when they end up dead. Highly recommended, this one – both on screen and on the page.

10. The Rocketeer (1991)

This is proper matinee idol, Saturday afternoons at the Picturehouse fare. Both the film and the comics it’s based on are great fun, guaranteed to give you warm fuzzy nostalgia for an era you never actually lived through. A simple tale of boy loves girl, boy finds rocket-fuelled jetpack, boy fights Nazis… Timothy Dalton didn’t get to be this unctuously villainous again until Hot Fuzz and Jennifer Connolly is just gorgeous. This is one of my personal favorites.

9. Josie and the Pussycats (2001)

This is one of those films you might have overlooked, or written of entirely as fuzzy chickflick nonsense. Well it’s not: it’s cute and fun. What makes this a great little film is how knowingly it pokes fun at manufactured pop bands, overexcited teenage girls and ultimately, itself. There’s some familiar faces in here: Rosario Dawson who’s now in Daredevil, Alan Cumming who ended up as Nightcrawler, Seth Green and Donald Faison and the always game Parker Posey. If for no other reason, look this film up for its opening song, ‘Backdoor Lover’… here, I’ll make it easy for you:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwFx9uxBNt0

8. Danger: Diabolik (1968)

Ok, some of you are going to raise your eyebrows at this one but I don’t even care. You thought Adam West was camp? Consider Connery’s Bond to be a gadget-happy nymphomaniac? Kid, you ain’t seen nothing. This guy robs a bank just so he can strew the cash across his circular revolving bed – in his underground goddamn lair – and shag his missus on it. It is bonkers. Loveably, ridiculously bonkers, and so Sixties it’s almost painful. Treat your eyeballs. Troll your James Bond-loving mates. I don’t care, just watch it.

7. Ghost World (2001)

A love letter to social misfits everywhere, this is baby Scarlett Johansson and Thora Birch playing teenagers trying to find their places in the world. I don’t know of any other film that captures female relationships as accurately and sweetly as this does, or what it feels like to be a nerdy collector and the translation from page to screen only enhances the characters Daniel Clowes created. Bonus trivia: the artwork from Enid’s sketchbooks was done by Robert Crumb’s daughter.

6. American Splendor (2003)

The first time I watched this film, I didn’t think it was all that special until maybe 40 minutes in. At which point, the 4th wall is smashed to smithereens and you get introduced to the real people these actors are portraying. After that, you can’t help but admire how spot on Paul Giamatti and co managed to get their performances and how brave it is for Harvey Pekar and his inner circle to let themselves be depicted so honestly and without artifice. If you enjoy this and Ghost World (both directed by Terry Zwigoff), be sure to also check out his biopic of Robert Crumb.

5. Tintin (2011)

Yes, I know this was a box office smash. Yes, I know that it was made by two of the biggest directors out there. But you’d forgotten about it, hadn’t you? And you shouldn’t have, because it is a damn near perfect translation of Hergé’s comics and a really enjoyable film. Everyone sounds like they should, everything looks as it should – it’s almost uncanny. The plot is wonderfully paced and the worldbuilding is just right. Film lovers get so giddy about oners, and this contains an absolute doozy: a long take that could only be achieved in an animated film, designed almost like a Goldberg machine. Plus, if you haven’t read the comics for a while (or at all), pick one up for comparison, and you’ll see what I mean about this being a note-perfect adaptation.

4. Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993)

You can argue all you want about whether Bale is a better Batman than Keaton, how good a job Affleck did or if Adam West is too camp. There’s only one Batman for me, and that’s Kevin Conroy. So many films about that moody dude but this one is still the best. That’s right, you heard me – the best. It balances all the different components of what makes Batman great – his physical prowess, combat skills, detective’s instincts, his drive to avenge his parents, how he relates to those around him – whilst showing you with real emotional punch just what makes Batman Batman. Maybe it’s because so many of us first met Batman through Bruce Timm’s beautifully nuanced cartoon series. Maybe it’s that he seems somehow more real and alive when he’s drawn. Or maybe it’s just damn good storytelling. Whichever reason it is, this is the best Batman film made thus far for my money. I love it.

3. 30 Days of Night (2007)

When was the last time you watched a vampire movie where they actually seemed threatening? I mean hell, even Blade’s bloodsuckers felt more like annoying posers than actual menace (apart from Blade 2, that Bros dude was damn cool). The idea is simple: forget about just waiting for daylight to turn up because you’re in Alaska, it’s winter and you ain’t seeing sunlight for a month, buddy. Tense, aggressive, compelling. Play it at the Twihards in your life and show them what vampires should be like.

2. Road to Perdition (2002)

This films feels a little Coen Brothers to me, but in the best way. Teastained and weary, no one gets to be heroic or feel safe. You make your own choices and you pay your own prices. Tom Hanks reminds you here that he can really bloody act when he puts his mind to it, Paul Newman is achingly good as always and you know what? I think I prefer Jude Law in this film above all his others. It’s artful and melancholic but without being dull as balls. Just a strong, solid film and a strong, solid comic – a must-watch/read for anyone who loves crime and noir stories.

1. Dredd (2012)

What, did you think I was going to forget this one? The most underappreciated comic film of all time? Get away with yourself. My god, have you ever known people to actively campaign for a sequel before this film? No. Film school always taught me ‘show, don’t tell’, and this film is a perfect example of explaining en route, being efficient in exposition and character information, telling you just enough to keep you tethered to what’s onscreen but also wanting more.

It’s a simple muscular plot for a simple, muscular character. Slow motion gets so overused in action movies normally, but here, it’s damn near another character in the film.

Urban is perfect and clearly understands who he’s playing, Anderson is a great human anchor for him and their dynamic is great. It’s fun when it’s shooty and it’s fun when it’s quiet, which is not something you can say to a lot of other comic movies, is it? Yes, it came out a few months after a film with the same plot structure. Yes, no one in the marketing team bothered to tell potential viewers that it was separate to, and better than Stallone’s version. Don’t ever let mismanagement of release dates and marketing campaigns tell you how good a film is. It makes my blood boil to read how little chance we have of revisiting this universe, or how Ryan Reynolds had to battle to ensure Deadpool wouldn’t suffer a similar fate.

This is our generation’s Fight Club – overlooked by critics, mis-marketed to a confused public, but ultimately, a goddamn masterpiece.

So, what did you think – any of these going on your watchlist? Any favourites that you’re glad to see other people appreciating? Tell us below!