Highlights
- X-Men Origins: Wolverine and Spider-Man 3 are polarizing Marvel movies due to deviations from source material and negative reception.
- Thor: Love and Thunder and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness face criticism for excessive comedy and reliance on fan service.
- Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania struggles with convoluted plots and is impacted by real-life controversies surrounding an actor.
Not every comic book movie is going to win over the masses, and there have been more than a handful of Marvel movies over the years that have been and gone, whilst claiming loyal fans and avid haters alike. The most polarizing Marvel movies are interesting to look back on, as some audiences love them, whereas others loathe them completely.
To be polarizing, is to be somewhat controversial, where disagreements often arise on whether it’s good or bad. Considering the superhero fatigue of recent years, it’s no surprise that there has been more than one Marvel movie that has entered this realm of negativity battling positivity.
6 X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009)
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 38% | Audience Score: 58%
- Release Date: 29 April 2009
- Directed by: Gavin Hood
X-Men Origins: Wolverine showcases a strange time in the Marvel universe, where creative freedom was stretching a bit too far from the source material. The movie elected to tell the origins of the famed X-Men member, Wolverine, and seems him join the Weapon X program, bonding his skeleton with an indestructible metal as he goes on the warpath against former friends turned betrayers.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine has a few scenes that might be considered polarizing, and the most notable is the depiction of Deadpool, who is a far cry from the source material that it’s downright disrespectful. Dodgy CGI and a handful of cheesy moments aid this negativity, but it’s entertaining enough to warrant a rewatch, especially with Hugh Jackman holding the claws.
5 Spider-Man 3 (2007)
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 63% | Audience Score: 51%
- Release Date: 4 May 2007
- Directed by: Sam Raimi
Spider-Man 3 continues the adventures of New York’s one and only Spider-Man. As things look up for Peter Parker, he has his world threatened once more when an alien black goo brings out the worst in him, and his former best friend attempts to take his life and his relationship with Mary Jane. Despite some hatred for the movie, Spider-Man 3 is still great fun where everyone brings their all.
Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy remains the best live-action Spider-Man stories, even with 3 versions of the character put to screen over the past 20 years. Yet, the unexpected finale of Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man was met with underwhelming reception from audiences and critics alike due to its intentional cringe-worthy turn of an evil Peter Parker, and the stack of villains that didn’t get the sizeable screen time they deserved.
4 Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 63% | Audience Score: 76%
- Release Date: 8 July 2022
- Directed by: Taika Waititi
Thor returns for his fourth solo outing in the MCU, providing his biggest threat yet: meeting an ex-girlfriend. That aside, Thor also has to help New Asgard save the child Asgardians from the sinister Gorr, who claims himself as the God Butcher, all whilst he deals with the heartache of Jane Foster and the reforged Mjolnir.
The problems with Thor: Love and Thunder come from the reliance on wacky comedy and improv. Chris Hemsworth is great as Thor, but audiences have become frustrated with the necessity for unnecessary humor when the character deserves a more serious bout. Thor: Love and Thunder focuses too heavily on comedic themes that make Thor a joke rather than a god, but some might enjoy how it doesn’t take itself too seriously.
3 Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 73% | Audience Score: 85%
- Release Date: 5 May 2022
- Directed by: Sam Raimi
The Multiverse opens a pathway to infinite stories and familiar faces, thus leading Doctor Strange barreling through different universes in an attempt to save American Chavez from the sinister clutches of the Scarlet Witch, who seeks to absorb this power for her own fairytale. The premise is that some already see issues with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
The movie itself could be an interesting horror depiction of the dark corners of the multiverse, but instead, it relies too heavily on old faces and fan service, showcasing the potential of the Multiverse for bringing in the classics rather than the weird. That aside, some newer audiences might take issues with veteran and iconic director Sam Raimi, who injects much of his iconic DNA into the movie to make it feel less like the standard MCU product.
2 Venom (2018)
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 30% | Audience Score: 80%
- Release Date: 3 October 2018
- Directed by: Ruben Fleischer
Separating itself from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Venom depicts journalist Eddie Brock as he attempts to take down the corrupt CEO of the Life Foundation, Carlton Drake. During his investigation, Eddie is bonded to an alien symbiote known as Venom, which gives him extraordinary powers with a twisted and intoxicating ego. It’s strange to see Venom appear without the origins coming from Spider-Man.
The first Venom movie is a tad heavy on exposition and lacks the necessary bite that a monster like Venom needs for an R-rating. Whilst some might argue that Venom is a tad messy and learns the wrong lessons from comic book movies, others might just enjoy sitting back with some popcorn and enjoying the action comedy duo of Eddie and Venom.
1 Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania (2023)
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 46% | Audience Score: 82%
- Release Date: 17 February 2023
- Directed by: Peyton Reed
In a post-Avengers Endgame world, Scott Lang and Hope van Dyne continue their microscopic adventures as Ant-Man and the Wasp. Yet, with the universe threatening Mad Titan gone, a new Avengers-level threat must emerge, and within the Quantum Realm, they discover that threat with Kang the Conqueror awaiting them in an effort to escape to the world above.
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania suffers from its reliance on the weird, and makes unnecessary convoluted plots for payoffs that take little risks. Whilst Johnathan Majors gives a thrilling performance of Kang, real-life controversies surrounding the actor have now tainted the role, leaving Quantumania in a strange place within the MCU.
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