20 Graphic Novels That Were Made Into Really Good Movies

Source: Courtesy of New Line Cinema

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.

Source: Courtesy of RADiUS-TWC

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.

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

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.

Source: Courtesy of Magnolia Pictures

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).

Source: Courtesy of DreamWorks Distribution

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.