As a DC Comics Fan, These Are the 8 Movies I Rewatch the Most

I’ve been a lifelong comic book fan, reading everything from indie horror comics to superhero crossovers, but my earliest memories were of the DC Comics superheroes. The first comics I owned featured Superman and Batman, and when the 1989 Batman hit theaters, it was impossible for me not to turn anything into a cape and run around the house. To be clear, I was a child then, although I pass no judgment towards our large cosplay community.

So, although my tastes have changed over the years, I always end up returning to the DC characters and the movies they have starred in. The following DC Comics-based movies are the ones I pull off the shelf the most, never disappointing me with a rewatch. Each one is filled with enough superhero action that my eyes will drift over to the freshly folded towels and briefly consider what I would look like in a cape.

8

‘Watchmen’ (2009)

I was skeptical that Alan Moore’s graphic novel could be turned into a film, but I was happily proven wrong with Watchmen. The Zack Snyder-directed movie faithfully adapts the story of a vigilante team who are possibly the targets of a mysterious killer who wants them dead. Sure, the film comes in at two hours and forty-two minutes, but if you fast-forward through all the slow-motion scenes, it probably trims about twenty minutes off.

Snyder’s moody visual style may not have landed for me with the wider scope of DC projects, but it’s pitch-perfect for a story like Watchmen. Jackie Earle Haley is an inspired choice for the character of Rorschach, and even though I would never have connected the two, I think anyone will have a hard time doing the part better in the future. Throughout the film, there’s an underlying feeling of dread like you’re watching a comic book horror movie, and that’s incredibly appealing to me within the superhero genre.

7

‘Superman’ (2025)

David Corenswet in 'Superman' — David Corenswet in ‘Superman’

Fan anticipation was high for what a James Gunn-directed Superman would look like, and I think it lived up to the hype. The first theatrical entry in the DCU introduced David Corenswet in the role of Superman as he faced off against his arch nemesis Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult). Joining Superman in the good fight was the Justice Gang, consisting of Guy Gardner (Nathan Fillion), Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced), and standout Mister Terrific (Edi Gathegi).

Superman was a little bit poppier than what I expected, but after I had time to adjust to the world Gunn created, I liked it more and more. I appreciate that we skipped over what would have been a lengthy introduction of Superman as a character, so that the audience instead is hit from all angles by new and colorful information. In that sense, Superman is the most accurate recreation of reading a comic book for the first time, because you rarely start with issue one, but by the last page, you can’t wait to learn more about everything you just saw.

6

‘Wonder Woman’ (2017)

Wonder Woman, played by Gal Gadot, blocks a projectile with her bracer in Wonder Woman. — Wonder Woman, played by Gal Gadot, blocks a projectile with her bracer in *Wonder Woman*.

If the quality of Wonder Woman had carried to the other DC films of its era, there wouldn’t have been a need for a reboot. Starring Gal Gadot in the title role, Wonder Woman went back to tell the story of the hero’s first adventure. Stepping into the tumultuous time of World War I, the Amazonian accompanies soldier Steve Trevor (Chris Pine) to prevent a deadly weapon from killing legions of soldiers.

The choice to introduce Wonder Woman during World War I was a smart move, because if you have a timeless character, throw them in eras we don’t typically get to see as an audience. I was excited that they were going to continue the trend with Wonder Woman 1984, and… that was a movie that happened. Wonder Woman boasts all the tropes of a classic romantic adventure movie thanks to fantastic chemistry between Gadot and Pine, and even if that third act fizzles out a little, the ride to get there is highly enjoyable.

5

‘The Batman’ (2022)

Robert Pattinson as Batman looks down at something in the rain in The Batman.

Now we’re heading into the Batman section of the list. There have been so many fantastic interpretations of the Dark Knight, and I think The Batman nails the essence of the character. The Matt Reeves-directed film follows Batman (Robert Pattinson) in his early days as a vigilante in Gotham City. While his focus has largely been on organized crime, Batman faces a more sinister foe in the calculating and deadly Riddler (Paul Dano).

I deeply love noir detective stories, and I appreciate that The Batman takes the character of Batman back to his roots. Many of the earlier Batman movies tend to give the villains more screentime, and Batman is also there, but with The Batman, he is the star of the show. We’re watching his journey to discover his new villains’ MO, the connections within the organized crime syndicate of Gotham, and pieces of his past that may upset his already fragile worldview. The comic-book version of Batman, who knows everything about everything, is great to read, but for a movie where a character needs an arc, a Batman still learning the ropes works best.

4

‘The Dark Knight’ (2008)

Heath Ledger as the Joker taking over a party with his henchmen in The Dark Knight.

A near-perfect “real world” interpretation of the Batman mythos, The Dark Knight is an easy choice for a rewatch. The film opens on a more experienced Batman (Christian Bale), whose reputation has inspired misguided copycat do-gooders and villains with a flair for the theatrics. Although Batman has criminals watching their backs, the underworld gets a little braver knowing the new chaotic mastermind, the Joker (Heath Ledger), has turned Gotham’s hero into his personal pet project.

Admittedly I’m a little harder on this movie than others, but that’s only because I like traditional aspects of the character, like the Batcave and a Batmobile that doesn’t look like a tank (can we agree a simple car makes more sense for “a grounded” film?), and I feel these ideas were considered too silly to make the final cut. That aside, it’s impossible to dispute that The Dark Knight is one of the greatest comic book movies ever made, filled with stunning set pieces such as the opening Joker heist. Bale is the one actor who managed to play both Bruce and Batman with equal success, and Ledger, wearing the facepaint of the Joker, and Aaron Eckhart as the doomed Harvey Dent were flawless interpretations of the classic villains.

3

‘Batman: Mask of the Phantasm’ (1993)

Batman holding his cape out in the Batman Mask of the Phantasm poster.

Batman: The Animated Series set an impossibly high bar for storytelling, and the sentiment extends to the sole theatrical outing for the show. In Batman: Mask of the Phantasm, a new ghostly figure known as the Phantasm begins targeting key mob figures with lethal precision. Whether the Phantasm is a friend or foe to Batman remains unclear, but their deadly methods mean the caped crusader can’t let them continue terrorizing the scum of Gotham.

Considering BTAS had such a strong fanbase, it’s still surprising to me that Batman: Mask of the Phantasm did so poorly at the box office. The movie accomplished the near-impossible, which was introducing a new villain for Batman to feud with when there’s an endless list of qualified characters to star as the antagonist. Batman: Mask of the Phantasm perfectly displays the sadness and tragic sense of duty Batman is weighed down with, and shows that if things had gone slightly differently, Bruce had a second chance at living a happy life.

2

‘The Suicide Squad’ (2021)

Harley Quinn screaming while flores explode behind her in The Suicide Squad. — the-suicide-squad-harley-quinn-social

Before James Gunn was given the keys to DC’s future, he was allowed a test drive with the soft reboot of The Suicide Squad. When a new regime overthrows the foreign nation of Corto Maltese, Amanda Waller (Octavia Spencer) sends in her team of supervillains known as the Suicide Squad to clean up an old mess. Rick Flag Jr. (Joel Kinnaman) returns to keep the eclectic group in line, but the chaotic battlefield has more than a few surprises that will make his duties virtually impossible.

The Suicide Squad is everything I hoped the first Suicide Squad movie would be. Which is not to say that I needed it to be a laugh-riot, but a sense of dark levity goes a long way to sell the idea of villains working under duress for a cause they have no investment in. Gunn once again took obscure characters like Peacemaker (John Cena) and made them fan-favorites, while giving Margot Robbie strong material to work with in her enjoyable performance as Harley Quinn.

1

‘Batman Returns’ (1992)

Michael Keaton as Bruce Wayne standing in front of the Bat signal in Batman Returns. — Michael Keaton as Bruce Wayne standing in front of the Bat signal in Batman Returns

And as per usual, all roads lead back to Batman Returns. The second and final bat-collaboration between Tim Burton and Michael Keaton sees a Joker-free Gotham plagued with two new villains. Danny De Vito throws on some prosthetic flippers for a decidedly darker version of the Penguin, while Michelle Pfeiffer sews herself into a black leather outfit to play Batman’s complicated love interest/enemy, Catwoman.

I think everything I love about this movie is why Warner Bros. wanted to switch directors for the third film. I love that Batman Returns is unapologetically dark, introducing a plot about killing the firstborn children of Gotham while happy meal boxes are being printed to market it. Normally, I’m a bit of a purist about keeping the characters true to the comic books, but I love the Burtonfied version of Penguin, who is a sewer-dwelling quasi-monster who can turn feral at any moment. Batman Returns is fun, stylistically confident, and theatrically absurd at just the right moments for an endlessly rewatchable experience.