Top 10 Best Marvel Cinematic Universe Movies

The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American shared universe franchise centered on a series of superhero films from Marvel. This franchise is one of the highest-grossing media franchises of all time and has received critical acclaim. Its success has inspired other studios to attempt to create similar shared universes.
The Top Ten
1 The Avengers

This is what inspired the cinematic universe craze. It destroyed at the box office and has changed the landscape of movies forever.

This is the one that brought everything together. The personalities clash, and the ground breaks like it never has in a film before.

This movie is seriously one of the best movies I have ever watched. The plotline is great, and the end fight scene is amazing.

2 Guardians of the Galaxy

Brilliant movie, lacked a good plot or villain (cough, Ronan, cough) but altogether a great movie with a great script and cast. Hope the second one is as good as the first one. To James Gunn, I say: Great work, keep it up!

This is the best because it's the most funny and entertaining. It might not have a great story like The Winter Soldier or a huge scope like The Avengers, but it's still my favorite.

This is the underdog: the film about characters no one had even heard of, that saved the MCU. Despite its age, the music, emotion, and humor make it one of the best.

3 Avengers: Infinity War

Thanos is such an amazing villain because he's just so hard to hate! He has an amazing background story for motivation, and him having to kill Gamora was one of the saddest things in Marvel! Except for the fact that Hawkeye wasn't with the team, every Avenger was portrayed well and given good development. Wanda having to kill Vision was also a remarkable scene to watch. This whole movie was exactly what I was hoping for: a strong storyline, good characters, and sad as hell!

This is the peak of the MCU. Thanos is a villain that you can actually feel for. *SPOILERS AHEAD* He has to kill his daughter to accomplish his goal, and when he does, despite the cliffhanger, you feel like it's a proper ending. He sits and watches the Wakandan sunset, and that, paired with the 'Thanos will return' at the end of the credits, tells you that, despite the fact Thanos is the 'bad guy', he's the main character. It's HIS story. I can't wait for Endgame to come out this week. I'm sure it will be as good as this film.

4 Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Winter Soldier was amazing. When I first watched it, I was completely starstruck. I loved the Cap-Nat-Sam team-up (I had been waiting for this forever), the twist of SHIELD actually being Hydra, and the even BIGGER twist of the Winter Soldier being Bucky. Plus, the overall plot and events of the movie all came together to make an amazing film. There was comedy, action, suspense, and just everything you want in a Marvel film without it feeling too crowded. The main thing was I wasn't bored while watching it. I was always waiting for the next part, to see what happened. 100% the best MCU movie.

Incredible movie! It deserves its spot at the top. The action scenes are incredible, especially the fight scene on the bridge between Cap and the Winter Soldier. This movie makes Captain America an even more interesting character. Black Widow is awesome as always. I also loved the introduction of Sam/Falcon. The Winter Soldier is an awesome and intimidating villain, and you really feel for Bucky when he begins to regain some of his past memories. The relationship between Steve and Bucky is so strong, and I love the way it is showcased. Definitely one of my favorite MCU movies.

5 Captain America: Civil War

In my opinion, this is the one Marvel movie franchise that has gotten better with each film. Iron Man 2 wasn't as good as the first one, the Hulk never went anywhere, and with the Thor and Avengers movies, it's kind of based on your opinion. But with this franchise, I'm going to give the first one 4 stars, The Winter Soldier 5 stars, and Civil War... 6 stars.

This movie is the best MCU movie, Marvel movie, and superhero movie in my opinion. Its strong dramatic elements, with some comedy sprinkled in just right, mixing dozens of heroes while adding some new ones, without it feeling overwhelming, is talent. Also, not having a typical villain but rather having the heroes fractured and split from within is a new look at the genre, which adds more emotion and raises the stakes for storytelling.

It's the most mature and thought-provoking movie of the MCU. Everything in it made sense, and the reason for the clash was also well-defined and understandable. Towards the end, the darker tone of the movie (and Tony's emotions) really appeals to the viewers. It's simply the best, or at least at par with The Avengers if not better.

6 Iron Man

Come on! This is a classic! Only something groundbreaking could top this, and The Avengers broke a lot of ground, so Iron Man definitely deserves the No. 2 spot.

A classic. The one that started the whole idea of a shared cinematic universe. It totally deserves the respect it gets. Robert Downey Jr. absolutely nails it as the arrogant, yet caring, Tony Stark.

My favorite because it's the highest scoring (e.g., Rotten Tomatoes: 93%) critically wise, and it's the film quite possibly responsible for The Avengers.

7 Avengers: Endgame

Endgame is, in my opinion, the best and biggest movie in the MCU. The reason is that it shows victory at a price, which is pretty rare in the superhero universe. It marks the end of a saga consisting of 20+ movies and has exceeded expectations. All the character arcs are done beautifully, and each character is given a satisfying end/part. I agree that it needs all the previous movies to see that it's a masterpiece, but it's still a great movie. I think the MCU just peaked with Avengers: Endgame, and rightfully so.

Love Marvel!

What made Endgame stand out for me is the time heist, the death of some well-known heroes (not going to name any), the entire final battle, Iron Man's funeral, the I love you 3000 line, and the Avengers assemble scene. Every part of Endgame would either be funny, depressing, or just gets you pumped up. Every part of the movie was good in its own way. By the way, Avengers: Endgame made about $2.8 billion dollars in theaters and passed Avatar!

8 Thor: Ragnarok

Where do I start with Ragnarok other than it should be higher on this list? This movie was hilarious, and at one point, I literally couldn't breathe because of how much I was laughing. However, even though it was a comedy in a lot of places, when it came to the action scenes, they were strictly action. Some say this movie was fighting itself to be either a comedy or an action movie, but I don't think that's true.

This movie balanced both perfectly, and it had a slightly new Asgardian sense of humor but still retained the unique MCU touch. Huge snaps to Taika Waititi for this one, and on hearing that they are going to direct Love and Thunder, I'm definitely excited for that movie to hit theaters.

If you're looking for a movie to make you laugh but also have awesome action scenes, check out Ragnarok! This is probably my comfort movie. It is just so colorful and humorous, while also having surprisingly heartwarming and emotional moments, such as Thor and Loki's talk in the elevator. Hela is a cool villain, and the final battle really showcases Thor's powers! Epic movie, definitely recommend.

9 Spider-Man: Homecoming

While this movie is not, in any way, better than Spider-Man 2, it is definitely one of my favorites and comes pretty close to Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 2. I was thrilled to see that we would finally see Spider-Man interact with the Avengers, and after watching Civil War, I couldn't wait to see more of Tom Holland's Peter Parker! Homecoming is definitely a great Spider-Man movie that any Spider-Man fan will enjoy, especially those who are fans of the comics more than the movies.

Although it is slightly overrated, it's still a good movie, and Tom Holland is the best actor for Spider-Man ever! The way this movie makes the character actually feel like a 15-year-old is great.

Way better than Far From Home. Holland was a phenomenal Peter Parker. He perfectly portrays how Parker's Spider-Man mask makes him a stronger, more confident person.

10 Black Panther

My boys, this movie rocked the theatres in 2018. This superhero is so boss too. Why does everyone hate the What Are Those part of the movie? This movie is one of Marvel's greatest movies, and it deserves top 3!

Probably the greatest fictional representation of African culture ever brought to the silver screen.

Okay, but let's be honest here. The plot, theme, and graphics together were AMAZING and played out perfectly.

The Contenders
11 Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

The soundtrack is a thematic masterwork, and the emotional stakes make the film. It was the first film shot in Red Weapon 8K cinematography, and the visuals, on top of telling the story, are some of the most stunning in any superhero film.

The narrative theme of found family weaves so perfectly throughout every scene that each line and shot of the film serves to comment on the true message of the picture: that there is more beauty in simple everyday love than in all the power in the universe.

Hilarious, brilliantly written, with a good story and villain. Made me cry too and laugh so hard my sides hurt.

Kurt Russell's greatest superhero movie alongside the other one he was in 12 years prior.

12 Captain America: The First Avenger

This is a really fun movie. Although not perfect, it's a film that anyone can just sit down and watch without having to Google the previous 12 movies to decipher who all of the characters actually are and have a good time.

This is probably Marvel's most underrated movie. I'd probably put this at 5 or 6, personally. I mean, it's so much better than the unbelievably forgettable Iron Man 2.

They learned a lesson with this: don't challenge a bigger movie. They may have performed well in the US but they sure disappointed in other countries.

13 Ant-Man

The movie that taught us never to underestimate any small superhero again, and made us want to buy some Ant-Man comic books. Entertaining and funny, "Ant-Man" has brought the superhero to my heart, making it one of my favorites.

I didn't think that Ant-Man would get a movie (certainly not before Spider-Man), but he's awesome!

14 Doctor Strange

The MCU's first glimpse into the realm of magic is still strong today, with amazing characters and a great plot, plus those little funny moments that we love about these movies.

The amount of times I've watched this is unhealthy. I'm watching it right now!

It's actually a Law of Attraction movie! Plus, Rachel McAdams is a babe.

15 Spider-Man: No Way Home

The MCU Spider-Man trilogy has got to be the greatest film trilogy in all of cinema history, aside from The Lord of the Rings, The Dark Knight, Kung Fu Panda, How to Train Your Dragon, and the original Star Wars trilogy.

The Rise of Skywalker except good.

This movie is just incredible! It's probably my favorite MCU movie, along with Ragnarok.

16 Avengers: Age of Ultron

I've seen bad reviews for this movie, but I seriously don't understand what makes it so bad. Some people (not to name names) say it was 'overcrowded', but I've watched this movie over six times, and I still can't find where that is true. I genuinely think this is a really good movie and I don't agree with all the hate that's out there. It was a great origin story for Wanda and Pietro, and I nearly cried when Pietro died. 'Age of Ultron' was a great movie, and I don't think there's anything else to say about it.

This is the best in the 'Avengers' series, but Ultron looks like the Terminator for some reason.

17 Thor

This is one of the most underrated movies in history.

18 Iron Man 3
19 Spider-Man: Far from Home

If Cars 2 actually was a good movie, this is exactly what you'd get.

The spider sense drone thing was awesome!

How is this below The First Avenger?

20 Iron Man 2
21 Ant-Man and the Wasp

This movie is underrated. I really like how the movie itself was the perfect lighthearted romp we needed after Infinity War, but also got creepy with Ghost. And the final twist with the snap was just plain awesome.

This movie is awesome! It's better than the original, in my opinion. This is one of my most favorite Marvel movies!

22 Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

It has everything that made the first two movies amazing, and so much more.

23 Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
24 The Incredible Hulk

This film is criminally underrated. It deserves way more praise than it gets.

I love The Incredible Hulk. Most childhood classics are Beauty and the Beast or Sleeping Beauty. This is mine! Bump it up, please.

This movie is personally one of my favorites, although it is sometimes considered not an MCU movie at all. I liked this version a lot more than Eric Bana's, and the storyline is good.

25 Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
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