The recently released Suicide Squad is met with same derision from critics as Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice was — they still performed well at the box-office. The fans of DC universe concede that both these movies are “not perfect” but they are nevertheless way better than Marvel’s Thor: The Dark World, which was surprisingly given a pass by fans and critics.
So, is it fair to say that DC movies are judged with a different yardstick compared to Marvel?
Let’s pause for a moment and reflect on the performance of Suicide Squad and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice: both opened to a massive opening but saw huge drop in the second week (more than 70% drop in revenue). Is it because of bad word of mouth? Were these movies really bad? Or there was an element of bias involved? Perhaps, it was a sum of all these factors.
First let’s make one point clear; though not setting cash register ringing, both these movies from DC universe made good money at the box-office. Batman V Superman garnered more than $870 million during its theatrical run while Suicide Squad is all set to breach $700million mark. So they are making money but falling short of standards set by Marvel films.
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Below-par content
So why is that? The first reason is the below-par content. There is no denying the fact that both—Batman V Superman and Suicide Squad — are marred by poor direction, muddy plot and thinly-written characters. A joke is going around the internet that the trailers of these movies are more fun than the actual films. Apart from that awesome face-off between Dark Knight and Man of Steel there is not much in Batman v Superman that stays with you long after the final credits roll. The same issue plagues David Ayer’s Suicide Squad. A critic rightly said "DC Comics tries something different with Suicide Squad, an all-star collection of crime fighting villains—and the result is anything but super." It won’t be unfair to say that DC Universe is struggling to deliver good content. And we are not even talking about the utterly forgettable Green Lantern (2011)—which was a huge flop.
Another reason why some fans (not considering critics) are not happy with the outcome of DC movies is because they have something drastically better to compare it to— The Avengers, Captain America: Civil War. Even the hardcore fans of DC will acknowledge that Marvel’s Captain America: Civil War boast of a thrilling plot, amazing characterization and not to forget the exciting showdown between Team Captain America and Team Iron Man. It’s no surprise that film earned more than $1billion in revenues.
Some say that it’s unfair to draw comparison between The Avengers/Captain America: Civil War and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice/Sucide Squad. Remember, Captain America: Civil War is a culmination of more than half a dozen films —Thor, Captain America, Iron Man, Iron Man 2, Hulk, The Incredible Hulk, The Avengers, Avengers: Age of Ultron —whereas Batman V Superman is a sequel to Man of Steel and Suicide Squad is a stand-alone movie. Marvel has already cemented its position unlike DC which is still in the process of finding its foothold.
Nevertheless, it can be said without any inhibition that the Marvel movies have till now offered better content than DC. Yes, Thor: The Dark World was a disappointment, but it was an aberration in an otherwise enviable cinamtaic universe. We all loved Iron Man trilogy, Guardians of the Galaxy, Thor, Captain America movies, and mostly recently Ant-Man.
Are people harsher on DC than Marvel? We'd say so, but it’s only because the audience is pampered by some really nice offerings from Marvel. And when DC fails to match expectations, the audience criticism is justified.