The Problem with DC Movies

It's a universally acknowledged fact that Marvel movies are better than their DC counterparts. You could probably ask anyone which they would rather watch, and they would pick Marvel. Even the DC TV shows are more popular than their movie counterparts. I have some theories on why that is, which I thought I'd talk about today. I think these things could also be useful to us writers, as it gives some pointers on not what to do with your stories.

And a quick note before we begin, I'm not really talking about every DC movie ever. Everyone knows that the Dark Knight trilogy is great, and same with the Christopher Reeves Superman movies. This post will mostly be looking at the DCEU side of movies.

Too dark

First off, I think DC movies are too dark. Not only literally, with dark color schemes and lighting, but in content. These heroes face one world ending catastrophe after another and barely crack a joke or a smile. Sure, they try, but I always feel like their attempts fall flat. They just take themselves too seriously.

Look at the Justice League movie, for an example. I can't even remember one funny part from that movie. All I remember is some villain no one has heard of doing something with boxes that was going to end the world, I guess? Their few attempts at humor mostly had me rolling my eyes. Sure, DC comics are naturally more dark, but it doesn't work so well on the big screen.

Compare that with Marvel, who always seem to know when to add a carefully placed joke or gag. The world is ending and their heroes are still keeping things light. They know things are bad, but being all dark and broody about it won't help anything.

Too powerful

This is the thing that I really believe sinks DC's battleship. All their heroes are too powerful. They've got this awesome superpowers that make them invincible and unkillable. Which instantly takes away any concern I might have had for their well-being. Even Batman, the most vulnerable of them all, doesn't seem to have an issue taking punches. (Unless it's the Christian Bale Batman.)

Superman is invincible. So is Wonder Woman and Aquaman. Batman has his suit and gadgets to protect him. Flash is too fast to get hurt. Cyborg could probably just be rebuilt if anything were to happen to them. None of them have flaws or weakness that make me worry if they'll survive. Once you make your characters this powerful, then there's no reason for me to care when they face terrible odds, because I know they'll come out unscathed on the other side.

Marvel heroes, on the other hand, are human. Every fight gets harder for them, mentally and physically. Each time I'm terrified that something is going to happen to them, even if they have two more movies to go. Even the extra powerful ones like Cap and Thor have been shown to have limits. And don't even get started on the normal people, like Tony, Natasha, and Clint.

Too impersonal

Most DC movies have lots of big, world-ending stakes. But frankly, I don't care most of the time. And I think that's because the heroes don't have enough personal stakes in the fights. they're saving the world because it's their job, not because they have something personal to save or protect.

The one that did the best at personal stakes was Aquaman. Sure, there was still the big battles we expect from superhero movies. But Arthur had more personal reasons for fighting the bad guy than just "because he's bad". I think the half-brother relationship in that movie really helped elevate its conflict to another level.

The stakes in Marvel movies are often highly personal. Tony fights against terrorist, who often target those he loves. Cap fights for freedom, because he believes in it and if he didn't, then he wouldn't be Cap. When Batman vs Superman came out, I was like "Let them fight". I didn't care who won. But when Civil War came out, I was terrified that my heroes would hurt each other.

Too much going on

In Batman v Superman, there was a lot of set-up going on for future DCEU movies. And honestly, I've forgotten most of it. Their movies try to do too much at once, whether it's set-up, plot development, or villains. They bring in stuff that seems completely unnecessary and leaves us scratching our heads.

I didn't watch all of Suicide Squad, but my siblings said it was like 80% set-up for the actual plot in the last third of the movie. Batman v Superman had that whole Flash time-traveling scene that you probably forgot about that was set-up for Justice League and wasn't really important. And they haven't even shown when that happened yet. There's just too much going on at once to handle.

Marvel has been setting up their big movies for years, carefully developing most of the heroes on their own and getting us completely attached to them. Like my sister and I were joking the other day, no matter bad the last Marvel movie was, it was probably better than the latest DC movie. DC is trying to set up a cinematic universe way too fast in order to keep up with Marvel, who's been working on the same thing for twice as long.

There's my thoughts. What are your thoughts on this topic? Which DC movie is your favorite so far? Tell me in the comments.

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