LISTS: SUPERHERO SCENES / SET PIECES - NO. 200 - 176 (SPOILER ALERT)
From RoboCop to Spider-Men, let’s kick off our new list series with some of the funnest moments from Superhero movie history…
by Nate Lemann
In honor of this year’s biggest (and maybe only) big superhero tentpole, “Deadpool & Wolverine”, we are going to begin a eight-week countdown of the top 200 scenes or set pieces from Superhero Cinema. We will look at the scenes that are either extremely memorable, inventively shot, shocking moments of humor or tragedy, or the most stirring acts of heroism. Let’s kick-off with the closing moments from one of the first, proto-Superhero movies…
SUFFICE IT TO SAY FROM HERE-ON-OUT:
* SPOILER ALERT BELOW *
200. ROBOCOP (1987) - DIR. PAUL VERHOEVEN
SCENE: "DICK, YOU'RE FIRED!"
Dick Jones' (Ronny Cox) comeuppance is such a funny and emphatic end to this wildly fun action satire. Great dialogue and pay off to some table setting in their first confrontation. When RoboCop says to call him "Murphy" right after shows the ghost in the machine is now in control.
199. DOCTOR STRANGE (2016) - DIR. SCOTT DERRICKSON
SCENE: THE ANCIENT ONE'S DEATH
This metaphysical rumination on mortality and fate is a very offbeat scene for a big superhero blockbuster but very on-brand with Dr. Strange's more idiosyncratic comic world. Derrickson's imagery is one of the highlights of the mid-stage MCU filmography.
198. THE INCREDIBLES (2004) - DIR. BRAD BIRD
SCENE: SYNDROME SHOULDN'T HAVE WORN A CAPE
This payoff to the hilarious montage from Edna (Brad Bird) earlier in the film about why capes are a no-go for her, gives villain Syndrome (Jason Lee) his well-deserved end.
197. DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE (2024) - DIR. SHAWN LEVY
SCENE: FIGHTING THE DEADPOOL CORP / JUST LIKE A PRAYER
This absolutely fun mayhem gets kicked up a notch with Madonna's "Like a Prayer" soundtracking Wolverine and Deadpool Prime decimating the Deadpool Corp in wacky, bloody fashion, culminating in a splash page-inspired final freeze frame.
196. GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY, VOL. 3 (2023) - DIR. JAMES GUNN
SCENE: THE HALLWAY FIGHT SCENE
This fun hallway fight oner allows each member of the ever-growing team to showcase their ability to fight and is soundtracked to the Beastie Boys' "No Sleep 'till Brooklyn".
195. THE FLASH (2023) - DIR. ANDY MUSCHETTI
SCENE: BARRY SAYS GOODBYE TO HIS MOM
While this flop has very little to really enjoy, Miller kills the final scene with his mother, paying off a major moment from the "Flashpoint" comics, making peace with losing her instead of spending his whole life trying to make it work. A very cathartic moment in an otherwise forgettable film.
194. THE BATMAN (2022) - DIR. MATT REEVES
SCENE: FALCONE'S CAPTURE & ARREST
The propulsive sequence to end the film's second act kicks off with Zoë Kravitz's Selina Kyle attempting to kill Carmine Falcone (a severely underrated John Turturro performance), while Batman makes his way up through the club to stop her. That said, the action takes a turn once they bring Falcone out of the club and into the light...
193. SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME (2021) - DIR. JON WATTS
SCENE: PETER FIGHTS DOC OCK ON THE BRIDGE
Having the incomparable Alfred Molina return as Doc Ock was such a joy after his legendary performance in 2004's "Spider-Man 2". Molina still has it and interacting with this more quippy version of Peter Parker is fun to witness. Just love the way he delivers, "Hello, Peter..." with such menace.
192. JOKER (2019) - DIR. TODD PHILLIPS
SCENE: JOKER IS BORN IN BATHROOM DANCE
After murdering dickhead stockbrokers who were terrifying him on his way home, Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix) hides out in a small public bathroom and slowly starts to transform through interpretive dance, a scene that transcends the comic book genre into something spiritual, no matter how nihilistic the rest of the film is. Phoenix improvised this scene and tapped into something primal and essential.
191. SUICIDE SQUAD (2016) - DIR. DAVID AYER
SCENE: TEAM INTROS
I'm a sucker for a good "Let's Meet the Team" montage and this sequence arguably is much better than how the rest of the film handles the characterization of the crew. Love the stats list for each character, really feeling like you are either reading a comic book or looking at roleplaying player cards.
190. AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR (2018) - DIR. THE RUSSO BROTHERS
SCENE: THE BATTLE OF WAKANDA
One of the many big set pieces in "Avengers: Infinity War" may get less time to shine than others in the film but is the last stand against Thanos's fearsome army and a showcase for Black Panther and his army’s capability to stand against the alien onslaught.
189. THE WOLVERINE (2013) - DIR. JAMES MANGOLD
SCENE: THE BULLET TRAIN FIGHT
This film is both better and worse than you remember (hard to believe but somehow happened). That said, the bullet train fight is just a marvelous set piece. It has the added tension that Logan is doing this fight sans healing factor.
188. DAREDEVIL (2003) - DIR. MARK STEVEN JOHNSON
SCENE: DAREDEVIL BREAKS UP OPENING PARTY
This film is very 2000s coded but this opening really properly introduces the character so well, showing his formidable senses and how fearsome goons find this Hell's Kitchen protector.
187. BATMAN (1989) - DIR. TIM BURTON
SCENE: JOKER CRASHES THE PARADE
Nicholson is absolutely iconic in this landmark film for the Superhero genre and this scene lets him improvise and craft a wacky version of the Joker that is closer to the initial concept of the character, while still having his chaotic, homicidal tendencies boiling beneath the surface.
186. THE INCREDIBLES II (2018) - DIR. BRAD BIRD
SCENE: ELASTIGIRL SAVES THE TRAIN
This follow-up to Bird’s 2004 masterpiece is a very solid superhero adventure film. The one carrying the load this time is Hunter’s Elastigirl, getting some show stopping sequences to show off her powers more than she could in the original. This scene is her big entrance as a new type of hero.
185. X-MEN: FIRST CLASS (2011) - DIR. MATTHEW VAUGHN
SCENE: X-MEN FIGHT THE HELLFIRE CLUB ON THE BEACH
Vaughn’s impressive 2011 prequel is very much a story about how Charles (James McAvoy) and Eric (Michael Fassbender) becoming friends and then adversaries. That said, the first iteration of the X-Men get to show off in this climatic battle with the Hellfire Club in Cuba, with each member getting an opportunity to show how formidable they can be.
184. DOCTOR STRANGE IN THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS (2022) - DIR. SAM RAIMI
SCENE: ZOMBIE STRANGE RISES
While both Strange films have felt like slight disappointments, they both leaned in hard to the wacky nature of the comics, with his magic getting him into more offbeat plot points than the average hero. Director Raimi steered hard into this for the Zombie Strange awakening scenes, more reminiscent of his early “Evil Dead” work than his impressive Superhero resume.
183. THE INCREDIBLES (2004) - DIR. BRAD BIRD
SCENE: MR. INCREDIBLE VS. BOMBVOYAGE / TRAIN
The fun prologue to this 2004 classic gives a day in the life of this ‘60s superhero/spy. It is capped off with a fun showdown with a wacky style ‘60s villain and a great train sequence. Just fun stuff from Brad Bird here, with a real strong grasp on tone and style.
182. VENOM (2018) - DIR. RUBEN FLEISCHER
SCENE: MOTORCYCLE CHASE
This almost Bugs Bunny style chase is a good initial showcase for the powers that Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy) now has due to his merging with the Venom symbiote. Hardy is almost a hapless passenger as the entity controls both him and the bike, leading into a final reveal of the Venom design in all its glory.
181. SHANG-CHI & THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS (2021) - DIR. DESTIN DANIEL CRETTON
SCENE: SHANG-CHI VS. THE MANDARIN (FINAL FIGHT)
This emotional final showdown between father and son (Tony Leung Chiu-wai & Simu Liu, respectively) packs one of the more powerful cathartic endings in the MCU since “Black Panther”. Getting the great Tony Leung to star was a great stroke of luck, elevating the sometime silly world with overwhelming gravitas. He makes his character’s ultimate sacrifice that much more powerful.
180. BLACK ADAM (2022) - DIR. JAUME COLLET-SERRA
SCENE: BLACK ADAM IS AWOKEN
Not much about this vanity project works, a very unwieldy story and film that is more beholden to its star than the character’s comic book persona. However, when the great Black Adam in awoken in the opening act, we are treated to the wildly violent side of this anti-hero, watching him decimate a team of mercenaries without breaking a sweat. If only the rest of this movie hummed on the same wavelength.
179. DEADPOOL (2016) - DIR. TIM MILLER
SCENE: DEADPOOL HUNTING DOWN FRANCIS MONTAGE
Aside from the show-stopping opening credits bit, the sequence where Wade refines his suit and begins dismantling Francis’s empire in a fun, murderous montage is the perfect encapsulation of the character’s funny and irreverent humor. The fourth wall breaks, the confusion of beating a woman mercenary, and the Zamboni kill is just a perfect adaptation of the meta humor of the comic book character.
178. THOR: RAGNAROK (2017) - DIR. TAIKA WATITI
SCENE: IMMIGRANT SONG / BRIDGE BATTLE
This sequence literally feels like a classic rock fever dream as Zeppelin kicks in and Thor fights an army of the dead with new found lightening powers, riding a strike down into the crowd. The shot composition just feels like the coolest album art you can imagine.
177. ZACK SNYDER'S JUSTICE LEAGUE (2021) - DIR. ZACK SNYDER
SCENE: DR. STONE'S SACRIFICE
This scene would simply not work without the amazing Joe Morton, who takes a vey little thought of character and gives his sacrifice so much gravitas and pathos that pulls you in emotionally with Cyborg’s arc, effectively setting up Cyborg’s emotional payoff in the climax.
176. SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME (2019) - DIR. JON WATTS
SCENE: MYSTERIO'S TEAM REVEALED
Jake Gyllenhaal does not get enough credit for how good he is as Mysterio in Tom Holland’s second Spider-flick. This moment where the charade fades out is such a great reveal that this bland superhero persona he was exuding was just a put-on and he is a more gleeful narcissistic sociopath (many thinking he was channeling his view of David Fincher). A great and fun villain reveal.
NEXT WEEK: No. 175-151, and one of the most violent scenes in Superhero movie history…
Any scene you don’t see or feel didn’t belong? Let us know in the comments below…
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