10. A History of Violence by John Wagner and Vince Locke
> Movie: A History of Violence (2005)
> Director: David Cronenberg
> Starring: Viggo Mortensen, Maria Bello, Ed Harris, William Hurt
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 76
> IMDb average rating: 7.4
William Hurt was nominated for an Academy Award for his role in this action-filled drama based on the well-regarded 1997 graphic novel about the costs of hiding one’s past and protecting one’s family. The film was also nominated for a Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar.
9. Le transperceneige by Jacques Lob, Benjamin Legrand, and Jean-Marc Rochette
> Movie: Snowpiercer (2013)
> Director: Bong Joon Ho
> Starring: Chris Evans, Jamie Bell, Tilda Swinton, Ed Harris
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 72
> IMDb average rating: 7.1
Based on a post-apocalyptic French graphic novel series, Oscar-winning director Bong Joon Ho’s thriller follows a train carrying the last people on earth around the a frozen globe following failed efforts to combat climate change. A TV series on TNT, debuting in 2020, was based on both the film and the original source material.
8. Scott Pilgrim by Bryan Lee O’Malley
> Movie: Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (2010)
> Director: Edgar Wright
> Starring: Michael Cera, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Kieran Culkin, Anna Kendrick
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 84
> IMDb average rating: 7.5
This cult classic tells the story of a young rock musician in Toronto who falls in love with an Amazon delivery girl, then learns that he must defeat a succession of her evil ex-boyfriends. Although it wasn’t a box office success, it was well-reviewed and won numerous film critics’ awards.
7. Never Goodnight by Coco Moodysson
> Movie: We Are the Best! (2013)
> Director: Lukas Moodysson
> Starring: Mira Barkhammar, Mira Grosin, Liv LeMoyne, Johan Liljemark
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 77
> IMDb average rating: 7.1
Swedish graphic novelist Coco Moodysson originally spun this tale of three Stockholm teenagers in the 1980s who decide to start a punk band to rival a band of teenage boys. Moodysson’s husband, Lukas Moodysson, adapted it into this “sweet, empathetic” movie (according to Rotten Tomatoes).
6. Road to Perdition by Max Allan Collins and Richard Piers Rayner
> Movie: Road to Perdition (2002)
> Director: Sam Mendes
> Starring: Tom Hanks, Paul Newman, Jude Law, Jennifer Jason Leigh
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 86
> IMDb average rating: 7.7
Blue-chip director Sam Mendes (“American Beauty,” “1917”, “Skyfall”, “Spectre”) directed this adaptation of a powerful graphic novel about a betrayed gangster during the Great Depression and his quest for revenge. Screen legend Paul Newman was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his role, which proved to be his last big-screen appearance.
