300
We have seen a whole host of graphic novels adapted for the big screen in recent years; so many of them have made fantastic films.
And we see two released this week Kick Ass 2 and 2 Guns are the films not to miss this weekend.
So we take a look at some of the graphic novel movies that you absolutely have to have in your film collection.
- 300 (2007)
It was back in 2007 when Gerard Butler roared out 'THIS IS SPARTA!' for the first time as Frank Miller and Lynn Varley's graphic novel got the big screen makeover.
Zack Snyder was in the director's chair for the film, he also had hand in penning the screenplay.
This was one of the most visually stunning films of the year as Snyder filmed mainly with a super-imposition chroma key technique; this helped to recapture the images from the novel.
Never has death and war been captured so beautifully, it really was an incredibly aesthetically pleasing movie as it just looked wonderful.
Gerard Butler took on the central role of King Leonidas, a man who leads 300 Spartans to repel the colossal forces of the Persian Empire.
If you like your blood, guts gore and action then this really is the movie all that, as Snyder capture all that from start to finish; you really will love every minute of it.
- Sin City (2005)
It was eight years ago when I sat in the cinema excited to see Sin City as Frank Miller's graphic novel was adapted for the big screen.
Eight years on we are still waiting for the second film to hit the big screen; the movie is expected to drop in 2014.
Great characters, violence at every turn and visually stunning, what more can you ask for from a movie?
Robert Rodriguez was in the director's chair and this was a fantastic adaptation of a much loved novel.
The movie followed an ageing prostitute, a disfigured serial killer, a gang of prostitutes and a man on the hunt for who killed his one time love, as all of the stories overlap and are intertwined.
Like the graphic novel the film was shot in black and white, except for a few dashes of colour; on the big screen it just look magnificent.
Sin City: A Dame to Kill For will be released next year, and it is already one of the most anticipated films.
- Watchmen (2009)
After the success of 300 Zack Snyder returned to the graphic novel adaptation in 2009 with Watchmen: which was written by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons.
Watchman was a huge project to undertake because this is an epic piece of writing from Moore and Gibbons.
Set in an alternate 1985 vigilante Rorschach is called back into action when a colleague is murdered.
As he reconnects with his former crime-fighting legion, a disbanded group of retired superheroes, only one of whom has true powers, Rorschach glimpses a wide-ranging and disturbing conspiracy with links to their shared past and catastrophic consequences for the future.
And by staying true to the source material Snyder does pull this and makes a really engaging movie.
There are interesting characters and intrigue at every turn - not to mention the film just looks magnificent; they have clearly got to great lengths to recapture some of the images of the novel.
- Kick Ass (2010)
It was director Matthew Vaughn that brought Kick Ass to the big screen for the first time back in 2010.
The movie was based on the graphic novel of the same name by Mark Millar and J John Romita, Jr. and saw Vaughn team up with Jane Goldman to pen the screenplay.
The movie follows Dave Lizewski, an unnoticed high school student and comic book fan, who decides to become a super-hero, even though he has no powers, training or meaningful reason to do so; he becomes Kick Ass.
This is a movie that blends great action sequences with a lot of laughs. Not to mention the film lacks all of the gimmicky special effects that we seen in so many blockbuster films; this makes the movie a blast of fresh air.
The movie is dripping in black humour as it pokes fun at the comic book movie genre and the expectations we have come to have of those movies.
There are some great performances from Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Chloe Moretz - this was the movie that made both of them - as well as most established stars such as Nicholas Cage and Mark Strong.
- A History of Violence (2005)
David Cronenberg is one of the most exciting directors working in Hollywood and he teamed up with Viggo Mortensen for the first time with A History of Violence.
The movie was a big screen adaptation of the 1997 graphic novel of the same name by John Wagner and Vince Locke; Josh Olson penned the screenplay.
Tom Stall becomes a local hero when he kills two men who the restaurant that he owns.
While he is praised for what he did, his action drag up the past and put his family in danger.
Cronenberg really does seem to bring the best out of Mortensen as he delivers a fantastic performance as a man of two sides; the family man and someone with a dark and violent streak.
The movie opened to critical acclaim when it was released and also competed for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival.
- Road To Perdition (2002)
Road To Perdition celebrated its tenth anniversary last year, and remains one of the best gangster movies.
The film saw Sam Mendes in the director's chair as he brought Max Allan Collins' graphic novel to life.
The movie stars Tom Hanks as a hitman, whose young son discovers what he does for a living.
Father and Son have to go on the run from the man he works for as the rest of the family is murdered.
One of the things that was so fantastic about the movie was the way that is looked as Mendes and his cinematography really did bring 1920's America to life.
Of course it is an era that has been covered a thousand time before but they really did make it their own - the film's framing and composition is just beautiful.
Hanks, Paul Newman, Daniel Craig, Jude Law and Tyler Hoechlin all deliver fantastic performances in what is a wonderful movie.
Kick Ass 2 is released 14th August & 2 Guns is released 16th August.
Tagged in Kick Ass