Zoom: Academy for Superheroes (2006)
School for Superheroes
Family-friendly superhero film that places more focus on slapstick than superheroics and contains an embarrassing return to the screen for Chevy Chase
Invisibility
Invisibility is the ability or property of a person or object of not being able to be seen. There have been quite a body of works dealing with various invisible men (and women). The progenitor of these, although not the first work dealing with invisibility, was H.G. Wells’ novel The Invisible Man (1897). This was filmed as Universal’s classic The Invisible Man (1933), which led to a series of sequels, and has been variously remade over the years.
In the Wells novel and some of the films, the Invisible Man is driven mad as a side-effect of the formula he takes and is portrayed as a villain. Later films make the invisible man a hero or government agent. Other works about invisibility are played as comedies or children’s films, even works of erotica. There are also several superheroes with the power of invisibility.
Usually the invisibility process is created by taking a formula. In fantasy, there are a number of occasions where invisibility is created by magic rings and cloaks, or is a property of some magical creatures.
One form of invisibility is the cloaking device employed in the various Star Trek series, while it is also a property of some aliens.
Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)
Comic-Book Superheroine
The much-anticipated sequel to the Gal Gadot starring Wonder Woman is a highly divided success, partly due to an inane plot centred around a magic wishing stone
The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm (1962)
Brothers Grimm Anthology/Biopic
Anthology of Brothers Grimm stories from George Pal where the brothers are wound in as characters. The film’s effectiveness is killed by Pal pitching everything down at a mawkish and simple-minded level
Wonder Woman (2009)
Animation/DC Comics Superheroine
Fine animated version of the DC Comics superheroine that gets the character just right and tells the story in a way that eclipses all previous filmed versions
The Unseen (2016)
Man Slowly Starts to Become Invisible
Modestly effective effort about a man whose body is slowly fading away and becoming invisible. A film carried by some fine effects sequences, this derives its frisson from the gradual revelation of what is happening but loses it when the mundane subplots take over in the second half
Tooth Fairy (2010)
Tough Guy Becomes a Tooth Fairy
From the top wrestling superstar in the world in the early 00s to movie action hero to being dressed in a pink tutu with fairy wings, it is hard to believe that Dwayne Johnson’s box-office star would have ever recovered from this family film embarrassment that sees him cast as a fairy
Thunder Force (2021)
Superhero Comedy
Melissa McCarthy, along with Octavia Spencer as her best friend, is a comic screw-up who obtain superpowers
The Thief of Baghdad (1961)
Arabian Nights Adventure
Dull remake of the classic Arabian Nights film that casts Steve Reeves and tries to make it into a Hercules peplum adventure
The Return of Chandu (1934)
Serial/Mystical Superhero
A serial based on Chandu the Magician, a popular radio superhero who wielded magical and mystical powers. Featuring Bela Lugosi in the title role
Taking Earth (2017)
Alien Invasion
Alien invasion film made by industry outsiders from South Africa. The plot is like a much better version of I Am Number Four but played out on a much more ambitious scale where the novice filmmakers do sensational things in the visual effects department on a minuscule budget
Star Trek: Insurrection (1998)
Intergalactic Adventures
Third of the Star Trek: The Next Generation films has Jonathan Frakes back in the director’s seat where he again plays to his strengths with great visual effects scenes but the story feels like a filler episode
The Spiderwick Chronicles (2008)
Secret World of Magical Creatures
Film version of a popular series of children’s books that has a good deal of fun bringing to life a secret world of trolls and goblins
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)
Animation/Comic-Book Superhero
The animated Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse proved an unexpected success. This sequel builds on that ups the artistic quality of the original to something quite extraordinary
Special (2006)
Man Believes He is a Superhero
Before the likes of Defendor, Kick-Ass and Super, there was this, one of the best comedies about superheroes with no powers. The film loves screwing with its audience and comes with a series of mind-bending flips between drug hallucination and subjective view of the superpowers in action
Sound of Horror (1965)
Invisible Monster
There have been great films about unseen threats before (Cat People, The Haunting) but in this case the idea of an invisible monster is just the excuse for a cheap film to avoid any special effects. It has been a long time since I have seen a film so mind-numbingly boring and dull
Sky Sharks (2020)
Nazi Zombies on Flying Sharks
This has been conceived as the ultimate modern exploitation film featuring Nazi zombie piloting flying sharks. Think Iron Sky by way of Sharknado. The results are highly entertaining
Siegfried (1924)
Epic Heroic Legend
The first of a two-part silent Fritz Lang film based on the Teutonic legend. Lang directs with an epic visual majesty that rivals today’s Lord of the Rings films
The Shadow (1940)
Masked Superhero/Serial
A serial adaptation of the popular radio superhero, which gets the look of the character perfect but drops all his mystical powers
Robotapocalypse (2021)
The Machine Revolution
Rather entertaining film from The Asylum about the machine revolution that overspills with madcap technological invention
The Return of the King (1980)
J.R.R. Tolkien Adaptation/Animation/Epic Fantasy
Way back before Peter Jackson, there was another whole era of Tolkien adaptations, including this animated adaptation of the third book, which is a peculiar oddity if nothing else
Renaissance (2006)
Animation/Futuristic Film Noir
Dazzling French animated Cyberpunk film shot in the performance capture animated process and then rendered in striking two-tone black-and-white
Prey (2022)
Native Americans Hunted by Alien Sportsman
The seventh film in the Predator franchise. This received some of the best reviews of any film in the series and comes with the unique idea of pitting Native Americans up against a Predator
Predators (2010)
Action/Humans Hunted by Alien Sportsmen
Despite being hamstrung with Adrien Brody in Action Hero mode, this is a hard-edged film that goes some way to rescue the Predator franchise from its novelty crossovers with Alien(s)
Predator: Killer of Killers (2025)
Predator Animation Anthology
The Predator series continues. Dan Trachtenberg, the director of Prey, makes an animated offering that tells three stories of encounters between human and Predator in different eras of history
Predator 2 (1990)
Action/Humans Hunted by Alien Sportsman
Predator was one of the better Alien/Aliens copies of the 1980s. This sequel does little more than serve the same up all over again bar the substitution of a near-future L.A. for the jungle but manages to generate a reasonably intensive ride out of the action
The Predator (2018)
Alien Huntsman Comes to Earth
Shane Black, a writer-director with a reasonable cult following, makes the sixth Predator film (he also appeared as an actor in the original). Black shakes the series up, introduces a number of new ideas and makes an okay entry
Predator (1987)
Action/Humans Hunted by Alien Sportsman
This takes the previous year’s big hit of Aliens and fuses it with The Most Dangerous Game, swapping that story’s bored aristocratic hunter for an alien hunting Arnold Schwarzenegger and a team of soldiers in the jungles of South America
The Philadelphia Experiment (2012)
Time Travel Experiment Amok
This Syfy Channel production can’t seem to decide if it is a sequel or a remake of the 1984 film. Michael Paré turn up in both versions but goes from being the hero to a menacing heavy. The original had its moments but this is generic and routine in all ways
The Philadelphia Experiment (1984)
Time Travel Experiment Amok
Based on a non-fiction, fringe science book that makes claims that the US Navy conducted experiments that turned a ship invisible during WWII, this spins the idea out into a modest time travel story
Pete’s Dragon (2016)
Boy and Invisible Dragon/Disney Remake
Another Disney remake that hardly resemble its source – the original was light slapstick with a big cartoon dragon, this is a sober wild child story where the dragon is now an endangered species
Pete’s Dragon (1977)
Boy and Invisible Dragon/Disney Film
Disney live-action film about a boy and his dragon where the dragon is represented by animation
Paul (2011)
Science-Fiction Fans Encounter an Alien Comedy
Hilarious Simon Pegg-written homage to science-fiction fandom and alien visitor cinema. imagine Starman recast with two science-fiction fans and tv’s sarcastically wisecracking ALF (voiced by Seth Rogen)
Now You See Him, Now You Don’t (1972)
Invisible Teen/Disney Comedy
The second of Disney’s Dexter Reilly films with Kurt Russell as a teen genius who invents an invisibility formula
Mystery Men (1999)
Bumbling Superheroes Comedy
A superhero parody about a group of reject superheroes with useless powers. Despite moments of amusement, this fails to quite come off
My Favorite Martian (1999)
Alien Visitor Comedy/TV Series Remake
The big screen remake of the 1960s sitcom about a wacky alien visitor. However, this all of the original’s amusements promptly gets buried under frenetic slapstick and cheap CGI gags
Münchausen (1943)
World's Greatest Liar's Adventures
Fascinating, epically sized versions of the adventures of Baron Münchausen produced by the Nazis
Mother of Tears: The Third Mother (2007)
Italian Occult Horror
After 27 years, Dario Argento finally rounds out his Three Mothers trilogy begun way back with Suspiria but the underwhelming results give all evidence of his having lost his mojo
Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion’s Revenge (2020)
Animation/Interdimensional Combat/Videogame Adaptation
An animated film revival of the Mortal Kombat videogame franchise. This does a quite reasonable reworking of the basics, while leaving you blown away with the ultra-violent excesses of the action
Mortal Kombat (1995)
Interdimensional Combat/Videogame Adaptation
This film adaptation of the videogame is a lot of fun. The plot is a rehash of Enter the Dragon but the film offers up wall-to-wall action and exotic creatures. A directorial debut for Paul W.S. Anderson
Monster Mash (2024)
Classic Monster Bash
The Asylum conduct a monster bash – a crossover between the Famous Monsters – and actually do a modest and quite enjoyable job that pays affectionate homage to the characters
Mister Superinvisible (1970)
Invisibility Comedy
Antonio Margheriti, better known for his Gothic horror and giallo films, makes an invisible man comedy
Mr India (1987)
Bollywood Invisible Superhero Comedy
A Bollywood film about an invisible superhero, this is sparing on effects but should be seen for the lunatic entertainment value it offers, including several surreal song and dance numbers and much frenetic slapstick
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children (2016)
Secret Home for "Gifted" Youths
Tim Burton used to be the great hope of fantastic cinema but his efforts since 2000 have been greeted with general disappointment. This Young Adult adaptation plays out like a fantasy version of the X-Men
Mayflower II (2020)
Christians Launch a Space Mission
An hilariously bad film in which Christians launch a space mission to flee a Bible-censoring dystopia on Earth
Matchless (1967)
Spy Film/Invisibility Ring
One of the numerous spy films of the 1960s, featuring Patrick O’Neal who goes into action with a magic invisibility ring
The Man Who Wasn’t There (1983)
Invisible Man
Cheap and feeble-minded invisible man comedy that was made as part of the short-lived early 80s 3D fad. The first starring role from Steve Guttenberg
Mad Monster Party? (1967)
Famous Monster Bash/Stop-Motion Animation
Absolutely delightful stop-motion animated homage to the Universal Famous Monsters, which places tongue perfectly in cheek
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
Epic Fantasy Adventure
Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings saga truly gains its feet here, expanding out onto an epic scale where he has fused special effects and story into a singular vision
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
Epic Fantasy Adventure
The weakest of Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings films. This is the most variant from the source material and the one where Jackson allows his tendency to visual effects bloat to take over
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
Epic Fantasy Adventure
Peter Jackson wowed the world with this first part of his adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s trilogy. This is epic filmmaking and one that shows Jackson in full command of his craft
The Lord of the Rings (1978)
Epic Fantasy/Animation
Way back before Peter Jackson, Ralph Bakshi made this not uninteresting animated adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien. The film was not a success and Bakshi failed to return to complete the second part of the story
Legion of Super-Heroes (2023)
Animation/Comic-Book Superheroes
Another of the DC Original Animated Movies. This deals with both the Legion of Super-Heroes and Supergirl, bringing them together in a mutual adventure
Left Behind: World at War (2005)
Christian Anti-Christ Film
The third of the Left Behind films with Kirk Cameron facing the Biblical End of the World and the Antichrist. This travels well down into bad movie territory
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003)
Teamup of Characters from Victorian Fiction/Graphic Novel Adaptation
The much hated adaptation of the Alan Moore graphic novels. It is undeniable fun watching the crossover between various fictional Victorian characters, while the production design is amazing
The Invisibles (2024)
Man Fades Away
This has an intriguingly original concept where milquetoast Tim Blake Nelson wakes up to find he has faded away and become invisible to other people – and then finds a secret world of other similar Invisibles
The Invisible Woman (1940)
Universal Invisible Man Sequel
Third entry in Universal’s Invisible Man series. Though less recognised, The Invisible Man series had a level of creativity higher than Universal’s other monster series. This one plays everything for broad comedy
Invisible Strangler (1984)
Astral Killer
A painfully bad film about a jailed killer who uses astral projection powers to become invisible and leave his cell to take revenge on those who convicted him
The Invisible Monster (1950)
Serial/Invisible Villain
A twelve chapter serial about the hunt for The Phantom, a criminal who operates with the use of a ray that can render him invisible
Invisible Mom (1995)
Invisible Housewife
B-budget director Fred Olen Ray makes an invisibility comedy with impoverished effects. Olen Ray’s usual parade of bimbos and cynical one-liners is kept under restraint and this made as a children’s film
The Invisible Man’s Revenge (1944)
Universal Invisible Man Sequel
The fourth and last of Universal’s Invisible Man sequels (aside from their outing with Abbott and Costello). Like the preceding ones, this is likeably good humoured and with decent effects for the era
The Invisible Maniac (1990)
Invisible Man
Low-budget invisible man film that makes a beeline for the squalid – the invisible man is a nerd scientist and invisibility becomes an opportunity for him to wander into girl’s locker rooms, kill bullies and the like
The Invisible Man Returns (1940)
Universal Invisible Man Sequel
The second of Universal’s Invisible Man films with Vincent Price inheriting the title role. Not quite as sublimely droll as James Whale’s original, this still has some amusing comic moment and good effects
The Invisible Man Appears (1949)
Japanese Invisible Man Film
An obscure and little-seen but fascinating Japanese copy of The Invisible Man films wherein a scientist becomes an invisible man after taking his formula. Let down by weak effects.
The Invisible Man (2020)
Invisible Stalker
Blumhouse deliver an invisible man, although one that has nothing to do with H.G. Wells or the previous invisible man films. Indeed, this feels like an invisible man film that doesn’t even want to be about an invisible man at all.
The Invisible Man (1984)
Invisible Man/H.G. Wells Adaptation
A version of the H.G. Wells novel conducted as a mini-series of six half-hour episodes from the BBC. This is the most faithful adaptation of the book so far
The Invisible Man (1933)
Invisible Man/H.G. Wells Adaptation
Universal’s adaptation of the H.G. Wells novel that becomes a droll masterpiece in the hands of James Whale and with effects that still hold up today. Followed by a series of sequels
The Invisible Kid (1988)
Invisible Teen Comedy
An inane invisibility film that plays out as no more than a crude 1980s teen makeout comedy with the addition of invisibility gags
Invisible Invaders (1959)
Alien Invaders Possess the Dead
A B budget 1950s alien invasion film that cuts cost by having the invasion represented by stock footage and the resurrected dead in a series of images that prefigure Night of the Living Dead
The Invisible Boy (1957)
Robbie the Robot Film
A spinoff designed to feature Robbie the Robot, the scene-stealer from Forbidden Planet. Here Robbie has been sent back in time to the present where he is befriended by a young boy
Invisible Agent (1942)
Invisible Spy
In the fourth entry in Universal’s series of Invisible Man films, particularly in the effects department. here, made just after Pearl Harbor, The Invisible Man now becomes a spy fighting Nazi and Japanese villains
Incredibles 2 (2018)
Pixar Animation/Superhero Spoof
Pixar’s venture into sequels has resulted in works playing off past successes that are lesser than their originals. This came with much anticipation but it too must be counted as another disappointment
The Incredibles (2004)
Pixar Animation/Superhero Spoof
Big hit for Pixar and director Brad Bird, a witty spoof of the superhero film that shows a superhero family trying to deal with everyday life. Enormously good-natured fun all around
Hotel Transylvania: Transformania (2022)
Animation/Famous Monsters Comedy
Minus Adam Sandler this time, the Hotel Transylvania series trots out a fourth entry. Here, in some search for novelty on what has gone before, the monsters are turned back into humans
Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (2018)
Animation/Famous Monsters Comedy
I’m not a fan of the Hotel Transylvania films and their reduction of the Famous Monsters to slapstick yocks. This is exactly the same as the preceding films, no better, no worse and with only minute plotting difference
Hotel Transylvania 2 (2015)
Animation/Famous Monsters Comedy
I had little enthusiasm for this, I tend to like my classic monsters serious rather than defanged – these Hotel Transylvania films are so watered down, Dracula doesn’t even get to drink blood
Hotel Transylvania (2012)
Animation/Hotel for Famous Monsters
A variant on the much more charming Mad Monster Party?, an animated film featuring cute cuddly versions of the Famous Monsters (Dracula, Frankenstein’s monster, wolfman etc) with Adam Sandler voicing Dracula
Hollow Man II (2006)
Invisible Maniac
Utterly generic sequel to Paul Verhoeven’s invisible man film Hollow Man. This one has been so cheaply made that it even recycles its effects from the first film
Hollow Man (2000)
Invisible Maniac
Paul Verhoeven uses CGI effects to revamp the invisible man film with amazing results. On the other hand, Verhoeven’s penchant for sex and violence overkill quickly emerges with distasteful results
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)
Epic Fantasy Adventure
The Hobbit became Peter Jackson’s equivalent of the Star Wars prequels and this is the weakest work he has produced under the J.R.R. Tolkien banner. Five picaresque chapters of the book are extruded into bloated set-pieces
The Hobbit (1977)
Epic Fantasy Adventure/Animation
Generally overlooked animated adaptation of the J.R.R. Tolkien book made for tv by Rankin-Bass. This keeps to the text very faithfully – more so than Peter Jackson – and is only let down by some limited animation
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
Epic Fantasy Adventure
Peter Jackson returns to J.R.R. Tolkien and epic-sized adventure in the first of his Hobbit films. The visual sweep is there but the film feels over-extruded and over-burdened by its own self-importance.
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014)
Epic Fantasy Adventure
After two bloated and over-padded Hobbit films, Peter Jackson finally gets it together and produces what everyone was expecting him to deliver, even if it means dragging one battle scene out to last an entire film
The Heroic Trio (1993)
Hong Kong Superheroines
Enormously entertaining and hilariously tongue-in-cheek Hong Kong action film featuring three popular actresses as superheroines who go into action in a series of wildly over-the-top moves
Hearts and Armour (1983)
Chivalry and Sorcery
Italian-made entry in the early 80s fantasy fad, a sometimes well made, sometimes sprawling Mediaeval saga about love between opposing sides of the conflict
Guardians (2017)
Russian Superhero Film
A Russian attempt to create their own equivalent of an Avengers film. The results emerge surprisingly better than you expect and with some standout effects
Griff the Invisible (2010)
Man Believes He is a Superhero
An Australian entry in the spate of superheroes with no powers films a la the likes of Kick-Ass, Defendor and Super. This plays out as a quirky but never particularly funny romantic comedy
Goosebumps (2015)
Horror Writer's Creations Unleashed
A film based on the hugely popular children’s horror series. The film creates a story where the creatures from all the books are unleashed. This is fun to watch, yet what we ultimately have is easy, undemanding horror for family audiences
G.I. Joe: The Rise of the Cobra (2009)
Futuristic Military Action Team
Stephen Sommers make a film based on the popular action toy line. Barring one exhilarating sequence in the middle, this consists of lots of sound and CGI fury amounting to very little at all
Genocidal Organ (2017)
Anime/The Manipulation of Language to Create Genocide
An extraordinary anime adapted from Project Itoh, a conceptually challenging work concerning a villain who can manipulate language to drive populations to genocide
Freaks (2018)
Psychic Powers
Not to be confused with Tod Browning’s shock classic, this starts with a mind-bending quality that leaves you wondering WTF is going on, before logically and ingeniously unfolding as a psychic powers film
Fear the Invisible Man (2023)
The Invisible Man Adaptation
A modest and quite good low-budget adaptation of H.G. Wells’ The Invisible Man, which adheres more faithfully to the Wells novel than the recent high-profile film
Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007)
Comic-Book Superheroes
The 2005 Fantastic Four was an amiable entry among the Marvel Comics adaptations of the 2000s. This sequel substitutes lowbrow comedy and renders the great character of the Silver Surfer as a CGI cartoon
Fantastic Four (2015)
Comic-Book Superheroes
Despite all the hate this received, I am maybe the only person out there that liked it. It is three-quarters of a good film that strips the Four of costumes and tells a character-driven story about people dealing with powers
Fantastic Four (2005)
Comic-Book Superheroes
One of the big hits among the spate of Marvel Comics adaptations in the 2000s. This has a very mixed reputation but brings the comic-book team to life in a reasonable effort
The Fantastic Four (1994)
Comic-Book Superheroes
The film version of the comic-book that was made by Roger Corman intended to never be released. This has a reputation as a bad movie and is extremely impoverished adaptation but is more authentic to the comic-book than other big-budget films
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016)
Harry Potter Spinoff
Spinoff from the Harry Potter films – unlike those, written directly for the screen and feels more like it belongs there. The US locations open the story up, while the magic creatures and new ensemble cast prove a delight
The Fantastic 4: First Steps (2025)
Comic-Book Superheroes
After several other film incarnations that went nowhere, The Fantastic Four make their first appearance in The MCU. The film creates a wonderful retro world of 1960s futurism based on their original comic-books for them to inhabit
The Erotic Misadventures of the Invisible Man (2003)
Erotica with an Invisible Man
Most classic monsters have undergone an adult movie interpretation at some point – here it is the turn of The Invisible Man
Erik the Viking (1989)
Norse Myth Comedy-Adventure
Terry Jones of Monty Python fame makes a comedy with Tim Robbins as a non-violent Viking on a quest to bring about Ragnarok. A film that seems to think it is funnier than it ends up being
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (2023)
Sword and Sorcery
A new film based on the role-playing game. The first film several years ago is poorly regarded. This is an attempt to reboot a film series but suffers badly from being handed to two comedy directors and their flip treatment