Today is the day! Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is hitting theatres and its…not what everyone hoped for. At least, that’s what is being said at the time that this article is written. I want to break down what the film has dealt with up to this point and why this event, that should be celebrated by all, is turning into a finger-pointing, fanboy hating, world-wide media circus.
Let’s begin with the two obvious points here. Marvel and the Man of Steel film are two important factors leading to the BvS film. Since the technology has finally caught up, Marvel has been spitting out movies like waffles at the Waffle House. The common themes among them being their colorfulness and mounds of humor. These two things helped to make the films more acceptable for families to watch and enjoy together, even at the cost of cheesy dialogue, subpar villains (Loki excluded) and predictable endings. They also, however, gave the viewer the feeling that the comic book characters they’ve loved so much were given a faithful and fun adaptation. Still, Marvel set the standard and it’s what the general population (a.k.a. the money) loves. Enter, the Man of Steel. After the end of the historic Dark Knight Trilogy, DC didn’t want to wait to start putting their next generation of heroes on the big screen while Marvel raked in the $$$.
Superman had finally made his return to the big screen with Zack Snyder as the director and it turned out to not be the Superman we had been waiting for. This Superman was very…well…human. He used his powers for selfish reasons, he was moody and even a little negative. Hell, he didn’t even know how to fly! The atmosphere was very bland and mute and even the outfit seemed very anti-heroish. The days of the optimistic, confident, mankind loving, give hope with just a smile Superman were dead and gone. This left many feeling somewhat hollow inside and uncertain about the direction of future films and the character himself. Then the announcement came that it wasn’t a Man of Steel 2 movie on its way, but the fight every superhero fan has been salivating for since the two characters first bumped heads. Earth vs Space, Brain vs Brawn, Day vs Night, Hero vs Vigilante, Batman vs. Superman!
This amazing news was being torn apart from the beginning. Partially from haters and partially from impatient and picky fans. The casting of former Daredevil star Ben Affleck didn’t make anyone jump for joy. In fact, it was met with the same response, if not worse, than the response given to Micheal Keaton when he was cast as Batman in the 1989 film of the same name and Heath Ledger as the Joker in The Dark Knight. The irony following said casting is also the same but we will talk about that later. There’s also the casting of Gal Gadot as the Amazonian Princess herself, Wonder Woman.
On top of the news of who was playing who, there was the concern about the costumes. While the outfit for the Dark Knight was (mostly) greatly accepted, in addition to the armored suit inspired by Frank Millers’ The Dark Knight Returns story, Superman still remained in his even darker looking threads and Wonder Woman’s shiny, colorful Greek inspired armor was traded in for Snyders’ well known faded and mute color scheme. If that wasn’t enough to get people to smirk in nervousness, the trailers came out revealing not only a very premature and Abomination-like Doomsday (a character that should NOT be used as their first enemy) but constant shots of a very sinister looking Superman. It’s not a good thing when Superman is doing more brooding and scowling than Batman. Many wondered if what we saw in the trailers were going to be the best parts. Others proclaimed they had no need to see the movie as they had seen everything they needed to. Even the reveal of the Trinity together didn’t cause the kind of jaw drops and spine chills we were praying would come from seeing these three together. No, that honor went to Spider-Man.
If you think that wasn’t enough to muddy up the pool of excitement and hope fans have been swimming in, director Zach Snyder himself, and the cast of the film, have been running around like a mad men doing everything in their power to defend every action, every scene, every actor that has come under fire from the public and critics alike. This kind of reaction has worried a lot of fans who believe the film should be left alone to speak for itself but instead, Snyder is running around trying to put out as many fires as he can. Is there something he knew he messed up? Did he not take this movie seriously? Is he another director more concerned about bringing his vision to life instead of servicing the fans? Obviously something was off for him to react the way he has been.
Now the movie is being reviewed by pretty much everyone who has seen it and the response is, sadly, very mild. Many have said that Wonder Woman steals the show and Ben Afflecks Batman is one of the few things done right. Not much talk about the actual battle between the Bat and Kryptonian but is there really much to be said? I haven’t seen anyone call the movie “bad” but it’s certainly not the special, jump out of your seat, have a nerdgasm and a smile kind of event we had hoped for. Everything from the plot, CGI, and use of characters is being put front and center with very few compliments or moments of awe. Does this mean the movie is “meh”? Perhaps not. Again, everyone has been spoiled by the formula that the Marvel films have been using and that may play a large role in the negativity the film has been receiving. It’s not a movie that screams “bring the family!” but the dark and realistic tone may turn many suburban moms off (PG-13 Deadpool….Ha!). If this is the kind of response that accompanies what is supposed to the ultimate dream come true, what hope do the upcoming DC films have? Aquaman certainly hasn’t been something the fans have been waiting on, Cyborg doesn’t seem to have enough going on to hold and entire film by himself, Wonder Woman isn’t turning many heads, not much to go on for Green Lantern at this point and the Flash is an all-around bad idea with the TV show having done everything right. Are they really going to charge us to watch the same origin story, see the same villain and watch the same outcome all over again? All anyone is going to do is compare it to the show. Then again, if Spider-Man and Batman can get away with it…..
So, what now? Are you still excited to go see Batman v Superman? Will you be walking in with your fanboy shades or do you have to force yourself to watch it with a bit more caution thanks to the reviews? Does Snyder’s style have you worried about Wonder Woman and future films leading up to Justice League, even if he isn’t directing? Will the Marvel fanboys drive you insane until the reviews of Civil War are in? Let your voice be heard! As for me, I’m going to throw on my black and yellow Batman shirt, my Batman necklace, my Batman ring, eat some Batman v Superman cereal and head out to go see the movie! Have fun everybody!