Since the dawn of time, long even before the internet, mankind has engaged in friendly rivalries.
Star Wars vs Star Trek. Lord of the Rings vs Harry Potter. Coke vs Pepsi. The Beatles vs The Rolling Stones. McDonald's vs Burger King.
But lately, the biggest rivalry is one that has torn families apart, turned brother against brother, and ended friendships. It's a rivalry that has been around since comic books became all the rage. I'm talking of course, about Marvel vs DC.
In arguably their most competitive year yet, both studios are releasing two movies each. Marvel is releasing Captain America: Civil War and Doctor Strange, and DC is releasing Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad.
But the two movies that are causing the most hostility between fans are Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Captain America: Civil War.
What do both movies have in common? Well, they're both superhero movies for starters. They're both part of a larger cinematic universe. And they're both about a Boy Scout dressed in blue and red and a Billionaire with a hi-tech suit clashing ideals and engaging in and all out war.
And ironically, both movies are about bitter rivalries and picking a side.
But the true war is happening online: between DC fans and Marvel fans.
However, the comparisons end at the reception both movies are receiving. Whereas Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice got panned by critics (causing even Ben Affleck some grief), Captain America: Civil War is receiving praise left and right from those who already saw it.
Jon Schnepp, comic book fan and the director of The Death of Superman Lives: What Happened?, said that the airport scene in Civil War is the single greatest action scene in any comic book movie ever!
Even though Batman v Superman has gotten panned by critics and has a depressing 30% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, it is not without its defenders. The passion fans have for DC's characters should not be denied. And these aren't people who are like "Eh, it was ok. It wasn't THAT bad." These are people who honestly think it's on par with Citizen Kane. That it's a masterpiece that's too smart for critics and audiences. And just like Man of Steel and the Nolan Batman films, if you say anything and I mean ANYTHING remotely negative about Batman v Superman online, you better prepare for some harsh comments like "You're sucking Marvel's d***k!" or "You're BIASED! This movie is AMAZING!"
It's hard to tell if these fans honestly believe Batman v Superman is amazing, or if they are just burying their heads in the dirt and denying any legitimate criticism for it just like Star Wars fans did for The Phantom Menace back in 1999.
Some fans have started making theories that Disney, which owns Marvel, is paying critics to bash anything DC and praise anything Marvel.
RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGHT...
Youtuber Grace Randolph (host of Beyond the Trailer) believes that critics have an "anti-DC agenda" and just want to see DC fail. She even got in a Twitter war with Andy Signore, the creator of Screen Junkies home of Honest Trailers. Grace Randolph is one of the few critics I've heard call Batman v Superman a masterpiece. While Signore is the opposite.
There are four words that debunk Grace's theory: The. Dark. Knight. Trilogy.
The lowest rated one is Batman Begins at 85%. The Dark Knight has an amazing 94%. And even The Dark Knight Rises, as divisive as it is, still has an 87%.
Even Superman Returns, a DC film that many fans detest, has a solid 76%.
I mean no disrespect to Grace Randolph, and I enjoy watching her videos and hearing her thoughts. But it's ridiculous to claim that everyone has some type of agenda if they disagree with you.
Critics are just regular people who are doing their job. They are not being paid by ANY studio to give a good or bad review of something. Critics for the most part are professionals. Sure, there are a few critics out there who are unprofessional, and probably don't deserve their profession (looking at you Lights Camera Jackson!). But we should never just assume that every critic has an agenda towards a certain studio or filmmaker.
Just because you love a movie everybody else hates, or hate a movie everybody else loves, it doesn't make you or them any less smart. It just means we all had a different experience watching it. You don't need to vilify anyone who disagrees with you.
How did I figure this out? Because I used to think just like the DC fans did a few years ago.
I mentioned The Phantom Menace, and how Star Wars fans lied to themselves that it was a perfect movie because they didn't want to face reality that it was disappointing. I was born in the mid 90s, and grew up in the '00s. I am part of the "Prequel era". But I truly love Star Wars. As much as I love DC and Marvel, Star Wars has always been my biggest passion. I just love the story, the characters, the world. And ever since I learned about George Lucas, and all his struggles he went through to make those movies, it made me feel inspired to become a filmmaker myself. It's been a lifelong dream of mine to meet Lucas and thank him for making my childhood awesome.
However, in 2012 I started reading these comments online from people claiming that he's a hack, and that he had nothing to do with the Original Trilogy being great, and that anyone who thinks otherwise is an idiot. I was so devastated by these comments. I had a hard time when people disagreed with me on something, especially something like Star Wars.
Just because you love a movie everybody else hates, or hate a movie everybody else loves, it doesn't make you or them any less smart. It just means we all had a different experience watching it. You don't need to vilify anyone who disagrees with you.
How did I figure this out? Because I used to think just like the DC fans did a few years ago.
I mentioned The Phantom Menace, and how Star Wars fans lied to themselves that it was a perfect movie because they didn't want to face reality that it was disappointing. I was born in the mid 90s, and grew up in the '00s. I am part of the "Prequel era". But I truly love Star Wars. As much as I love DC and Marvel, Star Wars has always been my biggest passion. I just love the story, the characters, the world. And ever since I learned about George Lucas, and all his struggles he went through to make those movies, it made me feel inspired to become a filmmaker myself. It's been a lifelong dream of mine to meet Lucas and thank him for making my childhood awesome.
However, in 2012 I started reading these comments online from people claiming that he's a hack, and that he had nothing to do with the Original Trilogy being great, and that anyone who thinks otherwise is an idiot. I was so devastated by these comments. I had a hard time when people disagreed with me on something, especially something like Star Wars.
I was even bullied in person back in 2014 for defending George Lucas. This hurt me so much that it almost killed my excitement for The Force Awakens.
So how did I get over it? Simple: I talked about it TO people. I have learned to discuss my problems in person with reaonable people rather than complain online.
I have even gotten to meet some of these "critics" at conventions. People like Scott Mantz, Mark Ellis, Kristian Harloff, Amirose Eisenbach, Miri Jedeikin, John Campea, Dennis Tzeng, JimmyO, Jon Schnepp, Holly Payne, Krisily Kennedy, Clarke Wolfe, Grae Drake, Alicia Malone, Roth Cornet, Andy Sinore, Dan Murrel, Hal Rudnick, Jeremy Jahns, and so on are some of the nicest, smartest, most awesome people I ever met! They have a passion for film that's contagious, and a knowledge that's unmatched. Even when I disagree with their opinions, I still trust them and love to listen to them when they speak about movies. They have taught me to love what I love, and respect other people for things they love.
And last year at Star Wars Celebration, I made friends with someone who is also a huge Star Wars fan. She doesn't just rant and complain about things she hates. She's smart, intelligent, and reasonable. She loves to have long discussions about things she is very passionate about. She is one of the coolest people I know! She's a great example of being a fan the right way.
Having discussions about art is not about agreeing with people all the time, or having everybody agree with you. It's about discovering what makes you YOU and learning something about your values. And you even learn about other people as well. That in my opinion is the power of art, especially film. It not only distracts us. It helps us to learn more about our world, ourselves, and each other.
And at the end of the day, it's all entertainment. It's not something to stress out about. It's meant to help us escape the real problems of the world (like Donald Drumpf possibly becoming president).
If there is anything I want you to take away from this blog post, it's to stick with your passions. Whether you're a Marvel fan, a DC fan, a Star Wars fan, etc. You should embrace the things you are passionate about. It's what makes you YOU. Do not let ANYONE tell you different.
And if you come across someone who acts like a jerk and bullies you for your opinions like I did, just ignore them and move on. Life is way too short to spend it with bitter people, let alone have fights with them online.
And don't be a jerk yourself. If you don't like it when people attack you for your passions, you shouldn't do the same. You should treat others the way you should be treated.
I love Star Wars, and I love George Lucas. I have some friends that don't share my love for either of those. But we are still good friends, and have intelligent discussions. I respect their opinion, and they respect mine. Everyone wins.
If anyone tells you that you're an idiot or you're "biased" for your own opinion on something, that only makes them even more so. They should probably go drink some of Granny's Peach Tea.
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ReplyDeleteAgree that everyone can have a different cinematic experience and see a film differently. However in regards to CW v BvS sometimes people have to accept that its not about allegiance to Marvel or DC but you have to accept that once in a while a film comes along that blows the rest of the genre out the water and on this occasion its Civil War.
ReplyDeletei heard babies are crayons
ReplyDeleteWhat's the point of noting that the RT website is owned by Warner Bros? RT don't make their own reviews, they gather the reviews from various sources.
ReplyDeleteThe people thinking there is an agenda against DC movies are not without some basis in reality. What the reviews were about DC films in the past is largely meaningless, since nobody has seriously claimed that this perceived "agenda" has been around forever. If it is real, then it is only a recent phenomenon. As recent as 2013, the year in which MoS came out. If it is true, we can assume that at least a rival studio (or to be more precise, a rival media conglomerate) has smelled financial blood an is looking to either sabotage the fledgling DCEU, or is aiming at acquiring DC's rights on the cheap. If the DCEU fails, then this will be eminently doable for Disney whose recent financial fortunes have been much better than Warner's. In fact, the possibility that the entire Time Warner corporation could be a hostile takeover target for Disney is not out of the question.
Now, this naive way of putting it: "Disney pays critics to be favorable to its own movies and negative towards Warner's" is just that, naive. If there is indeed an agenda against DC, then it would never work that way. How it can work, is that Disney may wield considerable influence over several media platforms (masquerading as "independent") and via backhanded methods and subtle hints, has some critics subtly undermine films such MoS an BvS. This is not as far-fetched as it may sound. BvS was indeed a disappointing film, but is a 28% rating on RT justified? I would definitely claim that NO! The lowest rated MCU movie is Thor 2, at 66%. The disappointing Iron Man 2 has a 72% score, The Incredible Hulk is on 67%. Other universally reviled superhero movies such as X-Men 3 and X-Men Origins: Wolverine are at 58% and 38% respectively. The mediocre reboot The Wolverine is at a scarcely believable 70%. Also, the generally atrocious POTCs 3 and 4, are again higher rated than BvS, at 45% and 33%. If this doesn't get one suspicious, then nothing will ever will.
And one last thing. If a powerful media corporation wished to influence reviews over a few (or even just one) movies, then it doesn't need to mobilize all critics, or even a large number of them. A critical mass of them can have a massive impact on tilting the balance and creating negative buzz.