8) Jonah Hex (2010)
Admittedly, Jonah Hex should have been a much better movie than it is. The original script by Crank co-creators Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor contained material worthy of a hard R-rating, but it was ultimately cut to make the film more appealing to general audiences and it suffers from it as it feels like a much cooler, edgier movie trying to break through.
Yet, despite its flaws, Jonah Hex is a stylishly captivating film and if you can accept that it was a huge missed opportunity to bring one of the best DC Comics characters ever to the big screen, it’s perfectly serviceable entertainment in its own, strange way. Never short of action and full of interesting ideas which never quite flesh out as well as they should do, it’s the very definition of a captivating misfire. There are flaws for days in Jonah Hex, but its revisionist depiction of the Old West is just plain cool, and the cast (which includes Josh Brolin, John Malkovich and Megan Fox) all play their respective parts with conviction.
While there will always be a sense of wondering what could have been surrounding Jonah Hex, it’s certainly not without its merits, nor is it worthy of its lambasted reputation either. And you have to admit: Josh Brolin, regardless of your opinion of the film, was the perfect actor to play rough and tumble bounty hunter. Should they ever decide to reboot the franchise, he’d be still be a terrific choice to play the lead. That said, the character is expected to reappear in the next season of Legends of Tomorrow, so at least we’re getting more of him down the line in some capacity.
