Anghus Houvouras grades the Marvel Cinematic and DC Extended Universes…
There’s been a lot of discussion lately about fan bias towards movies from our experienced friends at Marvel Studios and Warner Bros. who have just started taking baby steps into an expanded cinematic universe. Critics, columnists, and editors find themselves in a precarious situation from rabid fans who quickly dismiss well thought out opinions on any topic by calling them a ‘Marvel Fanboy’ or a ‘DC apologist’.
It’s frustrating as fuck when you try to articulate your opinion on a topic and someone can invalidate your entire thesis by accusing you of having some sort of deep seeded resentment towards one or the other. The entire argument feels kind of pointless. There are plenty of us who enjoy some Marvel films and some DC movies. To give you some perspective, over the past year I gave both Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Ultimate Edition and Captain America: Civil War a 4 star review. I also gave a 2 and a half star review to Avengers: Age of Ultron, Ant-Man, and a 2 star review for Suicide Squad. In the comic world I’m enjoying the DC Rebirth titles more than Marvel’s Civil War II event. Though, before Rebirth I barely touched any of the steaming pile of New 52 titles.
My point is, I have no bias against Marvel or DC. My hope is always that I walk out of the theater feeling like I saw something worth the effort. What I’d like to do in this column is break down the franchises on a more molecular level. Take a look at individual aspects of the superhero franchises to see what is working, and what isn’t. This is by no means designed to be a versus scenario. I just want to take a single column to try and analyze both franchises to see what is working. For the sake of more equalized comparison, I’m going to limit DC’s output to the three connected films (Man of Steel, BvS, and Suicide Squad). I realize this shifts everything slightly to Marvel’s advantage since they have a monumental head start, but if we’re going to do this scientifically, we have to examine the interconnected cinematic universes.
CASTING
Marvel: A
You’d be hard pressed to find anyone who doesn’t apply the gold standard to Marvel for their amazing casting choices. Robert Downey Jr. was probably the biggest ‘gamble to massive payoff’ bet made in the modern era of big budget movie making. They made another bold choice with notoriously persnickity Ed Norton as Bruce Banner/The Hulk which didn’t pay off, but I like the fact that Marvel takes risks. Chris Pratt was another bold choice that paid off huge. They even did a great job filling their ranks with lesser known actors who delivered strong: Chris Hemsworth’s pitch perfect Thor. Chadwick Boseman’s hella-intense Black Panther. Paul Rudd as Ant-Man. Chris Evans as Captain America. There is rarely a choice that doesn’t feel spot on. And take a look at their upcoming projects: Brie Larson as Captain Marvel. Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange. Casting is Marvel’s strong suit.
DC: B
Even in a relatively short number of films, Warner Bros. has done an admirable job with the characters they’ve adapted to the big screen. The choice of Ben Affleck as Batman was universally scoffed at by just about everyone until they saw the finished film and realized this guy was the glue holding it all together. Henry Cavill has been a solid Superman. Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman has been mesmerizing in limited appearances and looks great in the trailer for her solo film. Suicide Squad was a casting tour de force. The amazing Viola Davis, Will Smith, Margot Robbie, Jared Leto… and even (gasp) Jai Courtney were all perfectly cast in their roles. You could argue how well that talent was used in the finished film, but you can’t say Warner Bros. hasn’t been working hard to stock these projects with legitimate talent.
DIRECTION
Marvel: B-
For the most part, Marvel movies feel extremely similar. The directors often feel more like they’re working in television than cinema, forced to carry characters over from one film to the next and stylistically keep a similar aesthetic. There’s nothing wrong with Marvel’s direction, but it’s far from inspired. It’s also a little scattershot. Some directors give us the Avengers quipping it up during life and death scenarios making the stakes seem woefully low. Others try to apply deadly seriousness to the characters. One film Tony Stark is giving up being Iron Man. The next has him in a new suit being Iron Man again as if the last film didn’t happen. Still, the movies are always proficiently assembled.
DC: C-
This is tough because the theatrical cuts of Batman v Superman and Suicide Squad look like they were cut together by someone on a nine-day 8 ball bender. The Ultimate Edition of Batman v Superman is a well put together picture even if you don’t care for the choices. Man of Steel was another film that I enjoyed though some found the choices to be murderously off key. I don’t know what you say about Suicide Squad that the earlier ‘8 ball coke bender’ didn’t cover, except maybe expanding it to say ‘An 8 ball coke bender in the fitting room of a hot topic’. They would score higher if we actually got to see the vision of the filmmaker, like with the Ultimate Edition.
VILLAINS
Marvel: D
The one hugely deficient area for all the Marvel movies has been an overabundance of one-dimensional villains who do little more than give our heroes someone to punch. Far too many Marvel movies have given us the ‘dark mirror’ approach, providing a villain that is basically a copycat version of the hero. Iron Monger, Whiplash, Red Skull, Winter Soldier, Yellowjacket, Abomination… all of them basically mirror images of the hero. Similar powers, similar origins, often directly tied to the hero. Every so often you’re gifted with a brilliant one like Tom Hiddleston’s Loki. But for the most part, the villains of the Marvel Cinematic Universe are the weak sauce of their particular brew.
DC: C-
Before I get into this point, let me say that the DC also went with the dark mirror route for Man of Steel (Zod), and for part of Batman v Superman (Doomsday aka Zod 2.0). And the villain for Suicide Squad was a cliché ridden piece of engineering with a glowy thing world ending beam of light that felt as original as a xerox copy of a cover band. However, with Jesse Eisenberg’s polarizing Lex Luthor, DC has at least given us some villains that aren’t a)intrinsically tied to the hero and b) abandon the dark mirror principle. Here’s where I give DC the edge, and this might be a stretch. After watching the Ultimate Edition of Batman v Superman, I came to the conclusion that the real villain of the film was… Batman. We are watching the living fulfillment of Harvey Dent’s “You die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain” quote. This is a cruel, impotent man who wants to kill Superman. He wants to inflict suffering and share his pain. “How many good guys are left?” he asks. But at the moment of his most heinous act, he realizes the folly of his ways and returns to the side of angels. Even without the ‘Batman as a villain’ theory, I’m still giving DC the edge for Shannon’s Zod, Robbie’s Harley Quinn, and Will Smith’s Deadshot. But neither Marvel or DC are knocking it out of the park in the villain department.
…Click below to continue on to the second page for Fun, Score/Music, Rewatchability and Future Potential…
