The Problem With Superhero Films Today

Concept Art for Captain America Civil War (From grizzlybomb.com)

Divided we stand. Divided we fall.

The more characters stand, the more divided the movies get.
Quality will fall.  

f********* haikus. 

I don't have anything really special planned today, but at the end of this post I will discuss an idea for my blog. It is something that's hopefully going to add a little spice to this page so stay tuned for that. For now, I'd like to discuss something that means a lot to me. Of course, they are superhero films. Here's the thing. I enjoy Disney. I enjoy Barbie movies. But they're not my first love. My first love is Batman and Spiderman. When I was young, Batman and Spiderman has been one of my regular shows to watch especially when I'm bored. And I'm not gonna tell you which Batman and Spiderman shows they were because that's just gonna reveal how immortal I really am. Anyway, I love Superheroes. I may not read comics as much as others, but I really love Superheroes. I think they're cool, they have great stories to tell and I am a sucker for great stories. We get a lot of it, and I think this is the perfect time to talk about it, now that Captain America: Civil War is going to show in my country this week (I am so excited!). 

Having all these phases for Marvel & DC, but there's something wrong with Superhero films nowadays. For the longest time, I've been trying to pinpoint what that was. Now I have. Without further adieu, let me talk about the problem I have with superhero films today.

Before I continue, the issue has nothing to do with it being over-hyped. I think that is the laziest reason ever. However, it does have something to do with being a major trend. Let's not deny that Marvel has created great films. My particular favorites are Spiderman (the very first one starring Tobey Maguire), the X-men films, the Captain America films (yes, I liked the first one), Ironman, & Guardians of the Galaxy. They're great films, and I am impressed that Marvel was able to make individuals look pretty damn interesting before launching the Avengers. And when Avengers came out, it was a big deal because we get to see Marvel characters from separate Marvel films unite against the forces of evil. I remember when my friends and I would watch it over and over, then I would constantly reblog anything Avengers-related on Tumblr. Having an epic team-up come to life on film felt like a dream come true. But I think that's where the problem started. From then on, Marvel has raised the bar for Superhero films. It became its own genre and it's no longer the type of film you would only allow your kid to see because its fun. Superhero films are now being taken so seriously. 

Isn't that supposed to be a good thing? Yes and no. Yes, because storylines have more depth, characters become a bit more dimensional and we get to care more about them than we should have. But at the same time, it's not a good thing because the character investment they impose is a bit too much. For instance, let us go back to the Avengers. Great movie, by the way. We all love tension between Captain America and Ironman, no doubt. Now there's Civil War, which is something that we've all been waiting for the moment they laid eyes on each other. But in this case, Marvel is on the right track when it comes to us becoming invested and attached to these characters. This is because they have their own individual movies, and we know who they are. Seeing them meet just adds more to the excitement, and the movie premiering this week is supposedly the confrontation that we've all been anticipating for. Marvel has managed to intertwine good character relationships and building along with good storytelling. Captain America and Ironman had their own interesting stories and it collided beautifully with the Avengers, hence Civil War. And the story for Civil War based on trailers looks engaging AF. So good job on Marvel for that. 

But everyone mostly notices the relationship and tension between these characters, because it sells. It's what everyone talks about and not the story, which is normal I guess. Eventually, this is what future superhero filmmakers begin to notice too. And they know that tension between characters sells. Encounter of characters, sells really well. And they attempt to replicate this in their own films. Yes, I'm talking to you, The Amazing Spiderman movies. Haha, just kidding. In this case, there was just so much going on you're not even sure what the story is about anymore. As far as I know, The Amazing Spiderman films were also setting up a universe with Sinister Six, and the last film showed a lot of hints that the franchise was going to that direction. But they did a messy job on that, apparently. So yeah, let's say the concern of selling character relationships on the silverscreen has given filmmakers a wild idea to research on comics for more possibilities of bringing other superheroes together. Because well.... it earns a lot of money, of course. The thing is, these writers and directors only shove in the characters. But the story is left hanging, at least most of the time. 

Aside from The Amazing Spiderman, Batman V Superman is another example. This satisfaction for this film is just as divided as the fans who are deciding who to side with on Civil War. I understand the people who didn't get to enjoy it as much, though. They didn't enjoy it simply because they do not get what was going on. This also goes for the fanboys who were disappointed by the film, too. But I get it, guys. Unless you have a fair knowledge on the DC universe, this movie will either not make sense to you or it will just make you cry a bit (assuming you're the type who values coherence in films). Let me just give you a spoiler warning on the next things I am about to say; BvS had a lot of storylines to keep up with. There's the issue of Superman being a god-like figure and Batman hating that part of him, then there's Batman discovering that Lex Luthor has tabs on other "special people" that also includes Wonder Woman, then there's Lex Luthor also hating on the idea of Superman being a god-like figure hence his creation of Doomsday and his really vague bet on him fighting Batman (which almost did not make sense, if you think about it). But to make things a bit lighter for you, Lex Luthor is really hellbent on getting rid of Superman that he even had to involve Batman for some reason. So yeah there's a lot to keep up, because the creators of BvS really intended to make this film a debut for the Justice League, which can work as long as it maintains its focus. But it didn't really maintained its focus, there were many things going on left and right. Mostly making Superman look like a facade of some sort, and not a character. If you ask me, that was one of the few issues I had with the film itself. Aside from that, they really shoved in these major characters and forced them to have tension. Forced them to have a reason to fight and they had pretty fair reasons, but seriously their encounter felt like forcing two people who secretly like each other to say hello. This movie was so focused on Batman and Superman bringing in the big bacon called the Justice League. This made the storyline look like fragments of random potential films. For me, they can still tease the Justice League and still make it a Batman V Superman film. But the tease needs to be subtle, like very subtle. Then make the rest of the film be about Superman being a questionable hero and have Batman and Lex work together on destroying him. 

This post may almost sound like I am critiquing the film, but I'm only pointing out what would most likely happen if you focus on characters instead of a good story. The second Avengers movie sort of faltered for the same reason. It was very focused on setting up Infinity Wars, and it forgot to make Ultron a bit more interesting. I'm afraid all Superhero films are heading to that kind of formula. Put interesting characters and make them fight and cry. No one's going to care about the story. But how am I supposed to care about a character if I don't know their story? How are non-comic book fans supposed to enjoy your movies when they know nothing about Wonder Woman or Scarlet Witch? Give them a story, then move on to them mingling with everybody. Don't assume that everyone has read the comics, because another common argument from people is that the movies are for comic fans. Somehow, they're right. The movies are for comic book fans, and that's the thing; These movies are supposed to be for everyone. Movies in general, whether its about a book or a video game, are supposed to be for everyone. No one should be excluded. The most beautiful thing a Superhero film can do is make a non-reader of comics become immensely attached to an unknown character such as Deadpool. So please, writers of future comic book films I implore you. Think of a good story first before you jump to the next big step. You need to know if everyone gives a damn about DC before shoving in the Teen Titans or if they need an introductory lesson on who the Inhumans are. Comic book films are for everyone, because before they were emotionally scarring...they were freakin' fun. Something to be enjoyed for all ages, fans or not. This is something has Deadpool and The Dark Knight Trilogy has managed to do so well, and these are two films from different sides. They were still fantastic. 

So please. Create good stories, because this is where you get a chance to know the characters, test the characters, and eventually love the characters. From there, the audiences will be dying to know what they are going to do next, then that's when you do a special team-up film. Yes, I'm sure Black Panther, a new Green Lantern Corps, and a stand-alone Wonder Woman movie is very exciting. I just hope you make them pretty damn interesting. And no I have no comment for Fant4stic because I still haven't seen that film yet. 

That is it for my semi-rant. I am excited for Civil War, and I will not be talking about which side I'm on (it's Team Cap, of course). I've made another similar post of this in the past, and it is called The Problem With YA Fiction Today. Yes this is another trend in the literature world so if you'd like to read about it, simply click here. As for my big idea, I've decided to talk experiment on a fandom...monthly. By doing this, I'm going to either read a book, try a TV series, an anime, or even blindly see a random movie that has a fanbase. This can be a fandom that I'm already a part of, but mostly they will be new fandoms that I haven't tried. I will be doing this once a month, and I will make three consecutive posts about it. Yes, it will be just like what I did with my Shadowhunters Discussion. So expect something special for the month of May. It will be some sort of big event that will occur for one weekend of next month, and the many more months to come. I will discuss about, and explain why I think it's a good show or book to follow. So this will be like my fandom pick of the month. I don't have a special title for this segment yet, but I already have an idea on what fandom I'm going to focus on, I just need to see it first. So that is it, and I will see you till the next post.

Check out Previous Blog Posts!
Previously: Let's Review! Psycho-Pass 2

Also try:  The Problem With YA Fiction Today

The Shadowhunters Discussion List: The Book || The Movie || The TV Series