Since seeing a peak in popularity with the success of X-Men in the year 2000, the superhero movie genre has defied all expectations and only continued to grow over the years through all its ups and downs. As with any film genre, it has had its fair share of outings, good and bad — and a few that are entirely unique.
Whether these unconventional superhero movies succeeded in their attempt to be unlike all the others, like in the case of The Iron Giant, or fell flat on their face like Hancock, you can't take away from them that at least they tried to do something different with a genre that typically plays out more or less the same nowadays.
10 'Howard the Duck' (1986)
Howard the Duck is certainly unlike anything else superhero cinema had seen before (or anything it has seen since, for that matter), and in its case, that's not entirely a good thing. If you like "so-bad-they're-good" movies, surely you'll be able to find something of value in this one. Otherwise, you're better off steering clear of it.
As for its uniqueness, Howard the Duck makes it clear from very early on that it's not trying to be like other superhero films of its time. It's cheesy, crude, strangely sexual, and an absolutely mind-bending experience.
9 'Hancock' (2008)
2008 was a hell of a year for superhero movies, seeing the release of genre staples like Iron Man and The Dark Knight. It was also the year when the much-less-popular Hancockcame out, and people don't remember that one nearly as fondly.
The dramedy about a powerful man whose alcoholism and clumsiness make it hard to label him a superhero mixes in some elements of fantasy flicks set in the modern world, some comedy elements that didn't land with most audience members, and one of the most ludicrous plot twists of any film in recent memory. It may not be very good, but at least it's different.
8 'Mystery Men' (1999)
In many ways, Mystery Men was way ahead of its time. The main characters are none other than three inept, average Joe heroes trying to rescue their city's superhero from a recently paroled supervillain. Wacky hijinks ensue.
The star-studded cast makes an already hilarious ensemble of characters work even better, bolstering an incredibly fun parody of the '90s style of superhero movies. The film's sense of humor is quirky and the story that it throws its characters into is delightfully silly, resulting in a comedy that's hard to not enjoy.
7 'Sky High' (2005)
Disney has tried its hand at pretty much any and all genres you can think of, and superheroes are no exception. Sky High is as much a superhero action comedy as it is a family coming-of-age, and it works equally well on both levels. It's probably one of the best live-action Disney movies that aren't remakes.
All the characters are surprisingly distinct and memorable for a modest Disney family film, and though it may not be anything particularly special or revolutionary, the story feels more than fresh and entertaining enough for what you'd expect.
6 'Super' (2010)
Nowadays, when you think of James Gunn, you probably think of superheroes. This all started in 2010 with Super, the director's second feature film and first venture into this beloved genre. This is the story of Crimson Bolt, an ordinary guy with heroic intentions but no heroic abilities.
Like you'd expect from any Gunn film, Super tries its damnedest to redefine the superhero story formula and mock it while it's at it. It's dark, graphic, full of pitch-black humor, and a change of pace that may work even better now than it did back then, in a market much more over-saturated with these kinds of films.
5 'Kick-Ass' (2010)
Super wasn't the only 2010 superhero parody about a guy trying to become a hero despite his glaring lack of skills to support him in that endeavor. According to many, Kick-Ass is the best of its kind, a hilarious satire with a thrilling story and funny violent action.
It's refreshing to see a hero that gets his butt kicked in epic fashion on repeated occasions, but Matthew Vaughn's film isn't also without its fair share of more traditional superhero action scenes for fans of the genre. Perfectly paced and with an entirely unique visual style, it's a movie with something for everyone.
4 'Chronicle' (2012)
It's not rare for the found footage framing device to feel more like a cheap gimmick than anything else, but Chronicle has one of the best and most creative uses of this device. It's smart, it's complex, and it's compelling from beginning to end.
The trifecta formed by Dane DeHaan, Alex Russell, and Michael B. Jordan near the beginning of their careers is one of the movie's greatest strengths. Sure, it's an experimental morality play with carefully constructed themes, but it never forgets to have a ton of fun with the material and let the audience join in on it, too.
3 'The Iron Giant' (1999)
Brad Bird hasn't made many films in his relatively long career, but with each new one he makes, he proves that quality is far better than quantity. The Iron Giant, the director's debut and first foray into animation, is as beloved today as it was in the late '90s—If not perhaps even more.
Parts coming-of-age, parts sci-fi family flick, parts untraditional superhero epic, The Iron Giant truly excels. Thanks to animation that's still staggeringly good all these years later, and a surprisingly complex and mature narrative about heroism and human relationships, it's the kind of film that everyone must see at least once in their lives.
2 'Logan' (2017)
Fox's X-Men franchise is, to be generous, a bit of a mixed bag. As often as it delivered masterworks of the genre like Days of Future Past, it also put out stinkers like Dark Phoenix. Much to the relief of fans, though, they can rest easy with the consolation of the most beautiful epilogue that such a huge franchise could have gotten: James Mangold's Logan.
Logan dips its toes into numerous genres, and it excels at all of them. It's an intimate and poignant character drama, one of the best Westerns set in modern times, and a superhero action film in a league of its own. It bids a beautiful farewell to Hugh Jackman's legendary portrayal of Wolverine, and set the standard for what movies of its kind should do.
1 'Unbreakable' (2000)
In the same year that the superhero movie genre saw an unprecedented boom that hasn't slowed down since, M. Night Shyamalan released one of his most universally acclaimed classics: Unbreakable, the story of a seemingly ordinary man who makes an extraordinary discovery when he survives a train crashed that killed everyone else on it.
Shyamalan tends to be a pretty divisive director, but it's hard to argue against the fact that Unbreakable is one of the smartest, most intriguing, and most unique superhero movies ever made. You won't find any other film like it out there, and in a world so full of superhero movies that feel regrettably similar, that's the best you could possibly ask for.
KEEP READING:10 Marvel Heroes Who Played the Villain In Other Films
