Five Comic books that became movies

In the realm of entertainment, there's a whole economic section occupied by well-beloved story lines and adventures that have their origins in comic books, particularly DC/Marvel from the 1930s all the way up to the last year. In addition, successful franchises have sprouted up who the public have a close familiarity to their comic book counterparts such as AMC's The Walking Dead, Preacher, or HBO's treatment of Watchmen or, lately, The Sandman.

In addition there's lower-tier movies that for the fans of course are known for their comic book roots: Ghostworld, Wilson, both by Daniel Clowes; Tank Girl, Judge Dredd, and others going all the way back to Jane Fonda's Barbarella.

But what about movies that have come and gone that seemed like stand-alone ideas having their origins in a screenplay somewhere? Only these movies didn't have a screenplay. They had sequential pages. Here's a selection of 5 obscure examples you may have not known were originally comics:

Road to Perdition 2002

The story's set in the 1930s gangster era. Tom Hanks is a hit man who wants to protect his son who witnesses a mob murder, the two of them hit the road down a path of redemption and revenge. Both comic and movie capture the dark bleakness of The Great Depression, with a glimmer of hope.

A History of Violence 2005

A small town diner in Indiana is attacked by robbers who rape a customer. The owner Tom Stall defends his place and kills them both, he's hailed as a hero. From far off comes a threatening man Carl Fogerty who fingers Tom as a missing hit man for the Philadelphia Mob. Carl kidnaps his son and Tom now needs to track him down and get him back -using the very means of 'violence' that he forswore from the past.

White Out 2011

US Marshall Carrie Stetko falls from grace from her superiors and is sent to an Antarctic Science Station as security. She uncovers a murder mystery involving a body and holes in the ice surrounding it. While collecting evidence, investigating the other members of the murdered scientist's expedition led by a man named Keller, she is helped by British agent Lilly Sharpe. The action ramps up as Stetko and Sharpe find out what really happened.

Polar 2019

Polar was a series of comics illustrated and written by Victor Santos, basing it off of a character from an earlier series. In Polar Black Kaiser, a hitman is forced out of retirement as an attempt is made on his life. The movie version casts 'Le Chiffre' and 'Hannibal' actor Mads Mikkelsen as Black Kaiser.

Paper Girls 2022

I almost wasn't going to include this, but I think a significant number of casual viewers of the Amazon series might not know it's based off a hit comic book series that came out a few years back.

"Four young friends' paper routes are disrupted on Hell Day 1988, when they unknowingly time travel to 2019. While searching for a way home, they come face-to-face with their adult selves and learn how to work together to save the world."

-Amazon's webpage.