[Make sure to check Part I of Movie to Comic Adaptations I if you haven’t already.]
When I worked on finding five more possible adaptations for part II of Movie to Comic Adaptations, I learned one important thing. There are a lot of adaptations out there. Comic publishers such as Dark Horse or Wildstorm have published comic adaptations of films ranging from The Lost Boys to Big Trouble in Little China. And why not? When done right, comic adaptations of our favorite films, shows, video games, and books can be awesome. Plus, on the cold pragmatic side, adapted works already have a built in audience who are dying to get more out of their favorite films.
As stated before, this is in no way a definitive top ten or even my own favorite top ten. They’re more ideas and possibilities than anything else. Also, in case anyone noticed, they all have been action, science-fiction, or horror films. This is not to say that other genres such as comedy, romance, or drama can’t be adapted. However, I’ve always felt that comics are more of a visual medium, and thus go hand in hand with the more visual oriented genres in film. Also, science-fiction, action, and horror genres tend to be built into a larger universe and leave further possibilities for stories, while most other genres’ universes only contain a handful of characters and are complete stories in and of themselves. Anyway, here are five more films that would make kickass comics.
Equilibrium
OK, I get it. The film was a box-office flop and it’s basically The Matrix meets 1984. But still, it seems like the film has a cult following and the story isn’t half-bad. Plus, on the visual side, it could be an artist’s dream. A drab but stylistic world set in the future with a certain uniformity to it all. Plus, who doesn’t like gun kata? It might not do well as a sequel (the film itself had a pretty complete ending), but it could be a cool prequel following John Preston. Or perhaps a side-quel featuring a new Grammaton Cleric or outlaw.
Wyatt Earp/Tombstone
Although a comic publisher wouldn’t have to adapt the films to make a Wyatt Earp biography, using either of the films’ styles or actors certainly couldn’t hurt. While the films did cover a lot of Wyatt Earp’s adventures, they didn’t go over all of it, such as his adventures in California. Plus, the films did skim through the Earp Vendetta Ride fairly quickly.
Blankman
For those of you who missed out on the nineties or didn’t catch it on Comedy Central, Blankman was a superhero comedy staring Damon Wayans (back when the Wayan Brothers were doing stuff that was funny). Unlike most of the other films on the list, Blankman would do very well as a story (or better yet, series) set after the events of the first film. Urban new jack swing nineties, offbeat action and comedy, and a unique superhero using inventive household gadgets makes this film a perfect fit for the comics.
Hardboiled
John Woo’s stylistic action films would make a great fit for comic books, especially his 1992 masterpiece Hardboiled. Now, don’t get me wrong, there are other possible John Woo films out there such as A Better Tomorrow or The Killer. But Hardboiled is probably the best fit. The sultry jazz soundtrack, modern noire, dark stylistic cinematography, and non-stop akimbo action would make a perfect translation for comic books. And what better story would there be for it, than to follow Inspector “Tequila” Yuen’s adventures between Hardboiled and Stranglehold (video game).
The Matrix
The Matrix did successfully get adapted into comics with The Matrix Comics with guest writers such as Neil Gaiman. However, was that short series of comics enough for us die-hard Matrix fans out there? Hell no. The Matrix could make for a great series, with the shelf life of Aliens or Predator. The difference between The Matrix and many other cyberpunk works, is that the series has a variety of possible stories. It’s not just about operatives kicking ass inside the Matrix. It also has ships and crew mates fighting machines, Zion, and people still plugged into the Matrix who have stumbled upon glitches. Plus, The Matrix contains many different genres and philosophies, so different issues could stress on different key influences. Just watch The Animatrix and you’ll see what I mean. Besides, I’ve always wanted to see The Matrix not when it was simulating 1999, but back when it was simulating 1931. Tommy gun operatives versus fedora wearing agents. Just sayin’.
Well, that’s all folks. Perhaps in the future I’ll pick another ten films, but for now it’s back to reviewing films, with next week featuring X-Men: First Class. Speaking of which, I accidentally said it was this week that the film would come out in theaters back with Part I of Movie to Comic Adaptations. It’s my biggest error to date (no pun intended) and I apologize for that. Anyways, I hope you had as much fun reading this list as I had making it, and I hope to see you next Monday.
Andrew Hudson
ahudson@comicattack.net
@Hudsonian
It’s funny you should add Blankman on your list because it’s the first movie I thought of when I saw Pt 1 of this last week. I also thought of Meteor Man as well since it fits in that era.
Wyatt Earp and Tombstone would be great if given the right treatment. It would be good to see Westerns make a comeback outside of The Lone Ranger and Jonah Hex comics.
Was I the only person who didn’t think Equilibrium wasn’t all that good? I borrowed TOO heavily from the Matrix when the Matrix was still relevant and I think that hurt the story. I couldn’t get into it because the action sequences, wardrobe, and the mood of the story were just way too Matrixy.
The Matrix and Tombstone were both great flicks, and should be good comics as well. Think about it, the leg work is already there, so you just need a good artist and a-wayyy we go. 😀