Marvel Ranking Pt. 2 — The Better Half
When Marvel wants to, it can make REALLY good movies.
After watching (almost) all of the Marvel movies, I decided to rank them. This is the the top-half of the ranking. The bottom-half of the chart is here. Notably, the ranking is missing The Incredible Hulk, Captain Marvel, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Spider-Man: No Way Home and the Eternals.
That being said, these are the top 9 movies that Marvel has ever made. Have a cookie for these classics, Marvel. You’ve earned it.
Genuinely Good:
9. Thor (2011)
Especially compared to the other films that Marvel released during this era, Thor is a gem. The acting and casting is phenomenal. Nearly every joke lands.
I can even forgive that the movie brings back the “Oh-no!-I-landed-in-the-real-world-and-need-to-learn-how-to-fit-in” trope because the filmmakers execute it well.
Its just a joy to watch.
8. Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
Just like Thor, Guardians of the Galaxy is a phenomenal introduction to the unlikely crew of extraterrestrial superheroes.
Unlike Thor and almost every other movie in the franchise, Guardians of the Galaxy has a distinctive “groovy” feel. Never getting caught up in its underlying drama, its a lighthearted and hilarious watch. Even though not every joke lands, its originality and ingenuity compensates for it.
From the dynamic fight scenes to the engrossing, witty interactions between the colorful cast of characters, its nothing like your average Marvel movie.
It is better.
7. Black Widow (2021)
Since the first movie she’s appeared in, Black Widow has been wronged by Marvel.
Oversexualized. Forgotten by the writers. Merely a piece of tape to patch plot holes.
Even in her dying day, Black Widow was thrown off a cliff (quite literally!) and never mentioned again.
For that reason, its hard to judge this film.
From the perspective of the MCU and its overarching narrative, Black Widow stinks. The MCU has never given Black Widow a motive, at least, not until she needed an actual character arc to make her death important in Avengers: Endgame. For years, fans have patiently waited for Black Widow’s story to be revealed. Now, over a decade later, Black Widow finally has a backstory. There is only one problem: She’s dead.
There are no stakes. There is no possibility that anything will go wrong. There is no possibility that anything will change. Nothing in this movie matters. Even if its release date was shifted before Avengers: Endgame, there would be some emotional impact.
From the story-telling perspective, Black Widow should be the lowest-ranked movie on this list. Every other movie has some semblance of meaning behind its existence, even if they aren’t always executed perfectly.
Through its apathy, Marvel has sent a clear message to its fans: “I know many of you are woke feminists who actually care about Black Widow. I guess I’ll throw you a bone.”
But that’s not the fault of the filmmakers and the people involved in this movie alone. For the first time, Black Widow is actually interesting. For a character with a personality equivalent to a lump of coal, the filmmakers and actors create “something” from “nothing.” That, by itself, is notable.
The film understands that its useless, in terms of narrative relevance. Its cliched plot line is simple, and does not take itself too seriously. Just an hour of lighthearted and funny shenanigans.
6. Black Panther (2018)
Oops. Wrong type.
I thought I had a vendetta against “serious” superheroes. Turns out I just needed to watch Black Panther.
The polar opposite of Guardians of the Galaxy, Black Panther is everything that Captain America wanted to be and, shockingly enough, even more. Even without mentioning its diversity and political subtext, Marvel has succeeded in making a compelling, but serious, superhero. Despite strictly adhering to the Marvel Formula™, everything about the movie screams “creative liberties.” The acting dynamic between the characters is organic and believable. The scenery and design is gorgeously breathtaking. And to top it all off, the filmmakers obviously did their research.
Aside from its cliched plot, there’s not one aspect of the film that is not tuned all the way to 101%.
5. Infinity War (2018)
Being the first Marvel movie I ever watched and the culmination of every prior movie in the franchise, it covers pretty significant stuff. But it also executes it well.
There are references to past movies, but Avengers: Infinity War is not made out of ONLY references to past movies. The graphics and special effects have been taken to new heights. The actors put their full talent on display. Unexpected, thrilling, and fun, Avengers: Infinity War is surely among the Marvel greats.
There is one thing that I didn’t like, though: With the variety of characters from a variety of different movies, there is little time to develop the relationships with each one. The film could have focused on a few characters, as it did in Captain America: Civil War. (For as much as I didn’t like the movie, I have to give them credit for focusing the plot on the relationship between Tony Stark and Steve Rogers, instead of all of the Avengers and their personal motivations.)
Best:
4. Doctor Strange (2016)
Where do you even begin when you’re talking about Doctor Strange?
It’s definitely a Marvel movie, but it doesn’t feel like it’s a Marvel movie. It loosely follows the Marvel Formula™, but it makes its own entirely. The soundtrack and sound design is among the best in the franchise. Benedict Cumberbatch is a great choice for role of Doctor Strange. The visuals are phenomenal, only surpassed by Spider-Man: Far From Home.
Although it feels a little too disconnected from the main plotline, I really don’t care. Its incredible in so many different ways. The ending is among the most memorable in the entire franchise. The time stone makes its first appearance, perfectly tethering on the edge of “powerful” and “over-powered.”
But you can’t talk about Doctor Strange without its allegations of white-washing the “Chosen One,” an all-mighty Tibetan monk. Swinton, the actress behind the role, explains her casting was actively anti-racist, trying to dispel the stereotypes of “this kind of Fu Manchu, ancient man sitting on top of a mountain called The Ancient One. They made this decision to not perpetuate those racial stereotypes.” Afterwards, the Marvel Studios President, Kevin Feige, denounced the casting as a “mistake.”
After all, just because an Asian actor takes on a role that is meant for an Asian actor, like a Tibetan monk, does not mean that their character must fall into the offensive stereotypes and caricatures typically associated with it.
Still, credit is due: Tilda Swinton does a fantastic job with her role.
3. Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)
I love it.
I love the acting, which already puts it ahead of most Marvel films. I love the premise. I love the way that the narrative is carried forward, after Iron-Man’s death in Avengers: Endgame. I love the stellar soundtrack by Michael Giacchino. I love how we focus on Spider-Man and his feelings, instead of trying to get to the next plot point. (Again, better than I can say for the majority of Marvel’s movies.)
If I had to choose one thing that I love above all else, its the visuals. Out of every Marvel movie, this one takes the cake for the best special effects and set design. Watching it in movies theatres for the first time was a surreal experience.
There is one thing, though: The plot-twist villain.
Its definitely unexpected that the random guy from the beginning of the franchise who had two seconds of screen-time would end up being the “big bad” of the next couple movies. But “unexpected” is not always “good.” Mysterio was brought to life, but his origin story could use some work.
I haven’t watched Spider-Man: No Way Home yet, so maybe my opinions about Mysterio will change.
2. Spider-Man: Homecoming (2016)
A.K.A. The best origin film ever created by Marvel Studios.
A.K.A. The anti-Marvel film.
This is one of the few films in the franchise that throws the Marvel Formula™ in the garbage and does it own thing.
And thank goodness for that.
Witty, fun, light-hearted, but also serious, tense, and high-stakes when it needs to be. (That just goes to show that high-profile alien adventures don’t always equal “high stakes adventure.” This one takes place in a regular New York high school.)
And the villain is the best in the entire franchise. The perfect blend of “memorable” and “relatable,” Michael Keaton is absolutely terrifying as Vulture. Again, the most high-stakes scene in the entire Marvel franchise takes place in a car. It is objectively the best scene in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Tom Holland is a great casting for Spider-Man. He actually humanizes the character, bringing him to life. There is more focus around developing Spider-Man, rather than capturing the next plot point. The audience grows to love Spider-Man and Peter Parker as we watch him mature throughout the movie.
And on top of it all, it never gets old. I will watch it again and again, shamelessly.
But there is one film that does, somehow, top it…
1. Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
If Black Panther turned everything up to 101%, then Thor: Ragnarok tuned everything to 200%.
Its vibrant take on a classic superhero is refreshing. From the first minutes, the film assures you: Trust me, this isn’t like anything you’ve seen before.
The prior Thor movies always flirted with the idea of comedy, but this one takes the bold move to embrace it. This complete shift works well in context of the overarching narrative and the film itself, not to mention Chris Hemsworth executes a perfect 180 of his role. No longer the over-dramatized, Shakespearean prince, Thor is witty, hilarious, and impossible to hate. Not enough credit is given to the filmmakers for completely re-writing Thor, but remaining faithful to hid origins.
But Hemsworth isn’t the only natural comedic talent. Mark Ruffalo as Hulk and Jeff Goldblum as the Grandmaster and Tom Hiddleston as Loki and Tessa Thomas as Valkyrie and Karl Urban as the Executioner and even Cate Blanchett as Hela are great at delivering comedic gag after comedic gag. This film really shouldn’t work, especially under the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but it somehow does an incredible job.
The set design and costumes are inspired. Somewhere between Guardians of the Galaxy and your Dad’s old sci-fi films, the artistic style is eye-candy.
The films in the “Best” category are relatively recent. As the list of new Marvel movies leaves fans in anticipation, I am hopeful that the studio will create a new generation of classics for their viewers to enjoy.
