Don't be a cultural morlock living in reaction against whatever is popular. They're westerns with magic, shit isn't trying to be high art.
Don't be a cultural morlock living in reaction against whatever is popular. They're westerns with magic, shit isn't trying to be high art.
Bitching about capeshit is kinda passe but there is a difference between superhero movies and westerns. One of the draws of westerns is that they could be made on the cheap. This allowed for a fair bit of experimentation and a lot of up and coming directors cut their teeth on westerns. On the other hand I don't think there's been a successful cape flick (played straight) that cost less than like 60 million bucks to make.
Lots of Beat'em'Up action movies with people in capes/using super powers. I'd have to dig around for a full list that meets the "Under $60M and counts as Successful", but consider M.Night Shamalayan's "Unbreakable". That should qualify.
Maybe it's a trick question. I guess, mid-budget and low-budget movies are their own niche and they succeed by giving the audience something they don't get with blockbusters, not by making Spiderman, but with worse effects...
I guess part of the problem is the $60M budget line.
https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/budgets/all/1001
I had to go out over a thousand movies before I could find one under $60M.
That said, as soon as I did, I found Deadpool. Also, two Superman movies and Blade 2. V for Vendetta and some of the Resident Evil movies are down here, as well.