This morning I read this dismal Chicago Tribune review for the DC Comics movie Justice League (see link below), and this coming after last year’s badly reviewed Batman Superman. Conversely, the Marvel Comics franchise had glowing reviews and box office receipts for their recent effort Thor: Ragnarok, as well as their other 2017 releases Spider Man: Homecoming and Guardian of the Galaxy II. So why is it that the screenwriting for the Marvel team appears to be superior to the DC Comics teams?
When I attended the Austin Film Festival last year, I was fortunate to see the Marvel Comics writing panel. They seemed like a cult of very fortunate and talented fanboys (all male panel, by the way) living out their boyhood dreams of bringing their favorite superhero characters to life. With few exceptions, Marvel has also been pretty successful with their TV shows. And with the exception of the hugely successful Wonder Woman, but with poorly reviewed films like Suicide Squad and other aforementioned DC movies, one could make the argument the Marvel scriptwriters are doing a better job. Or?
What say you comic book fans?
http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/movies/sc-mov-thor-ragnarok-...
"If God is all powerful he cannot be all good and if he is all good he cannot be all powerful" This single line by Lex Luthor in Batman vs. Superman that tied its entire story together for me showed a level of writing ability I'm yet to see from any Marvel movie. I know I'm likely in the minority when I say I preferred the writing in Batman vs Superman to anything Marvel have ever cooked up. Yes, the movie went wildly off the rails during the final half-hour but I'd like to think that was because the story's main antagonist was no longer in control of nearly every character's actions as he had been prior to the climax but he still succeeded in getting rid of Superman proving the Man of Steel was not all-powerful. On paper, Lex is a great villain with plan after backup plan lined up in such a way that no matter what happened, he won. Granted, Jesse Eisnerberg's performance turned people off (though I found a lot to like about it), but there's no denying how well orchestrated his plans played out. Marvel villains tend to be a little too generic and the interactions between characters is often too lighthearted given the stakes involved. If Marvel were being honest with themselves, they would have outlined Tony Stark as the biggest threat to peace in their world. Their biggest problems all stem from Stark's "wacky" personality but rather than confront him, they usually laugh it off. Imagine what Superman & Wonder Woman would do if Bruce Wayne created a super robot in the name of world peace that went on to wreak havoc on the planet? Marvel stories play out to little or no consequence. Their heroes survive impossible odds time after time to the point it dilutes the tension in their stories all in the name of franchise building and merchandise sales. I prefer DC's flawed but risk taking approach.
Francisco: You make a good point. I wrote my own superhero comedy early this year called Harry the Hydrant. Here's the logline, which got me a script read with a Happy Writers Producer:
When a fire hydrant is struck by a lightning bolt, he transforms into a walking crime fighter who battles an alliance between a white supremacist and mob boss victimizing immigrants and minorities.
Uncle Phil - Congrats on getting a read for your Hydrant Hero script. Any chance you could let slip the identity of the producer involved? I'm interested in pitching my superhero comedy "Ultimate Man".
Fiona: So would I. Do you mean the screenplay?
Richard B: The guy who request HTH was Richard Panay. He's typically a comedy guy but you never know.
Uncle Phil - Thanks for the lead. I'll keep an eye out for him. Just out of curiosity, what is HTH's super-power?
Richard B: Harry is bullet proof, incredibly fast, shoot powerful hydraulic water bursts and since he was struck by lightning, he too can shoot mini-lightning bolts.
Phil - Seems like HTH has Ultimate Man licked in the superpower department. All Ultimate Man has is his Disk of Death, and it's seen better days. Mostly UM has to rely on his over-inflated sense of competence (as do we all).