#ReleaseTheSnyderCut Doesn’t Address the Real Issue

Or, why DC will never catch Marvel

By now, I’m sure you’ve gotten wind of The Snyder Cut. Long whispered about in the dark corners of Twitter and Reddit, #releasethesnydercut burst across the mainstream Internet last week, thanks to a timely batch of tweets from the Justice League cast.

The Snyder Cut is the director’s version of the over-stuffed, banal 2017 film that promises to fix all the film’s many problems. Never mind that Zach Snyder has had three swings at the DC universe now, each attempt somehow worse than the last. Snyder is basically a kid with a box of markers, scribbling pictures while making explosion sounds. His sensibilities skew more toward Transformers than Taxi Driver.

Don’t get me wrong — I like senseless action movies as much as the next guy. 300 is an epic movie, and I enjoyed his adaptation of Watchmen. But to treat the Snyder Cut like some sort of messianic piece of art is to ignore his entire filmography. And worse, it doesn’t address the root issue, systemic to the “DC Universe” (irony intended) since Christopher Nolan stepped away.

The DC story team are like five year-olds hopped up on Pixy Stix. The movies are colorful but lack internal consistency. They are loud and fast and dumb. And, most damning of all, they are boring.

And, like all five year-olds, DC’s story team has no patience — they want dessert before dinner. This results in rushed conflicts that have zero stakes, as in Batman v Superman. Deaths that lack any punch, and then are briskly undone in the following film. Team-ups that lack cohesion and chemistry.

In comparison, consider Marvel’s approach. They let their stories build-up over time, telling an interweaving saga twenty-some films in the making. They introduced characters individually, let the audience grow to care, and then introduced new elements. And when the heroes inevitably came to blows, as in Civil War, our loyalties were torn.

You can rightly take issue with the cavalier way that Marvel undoes stakes setup in previous installments (see: pretty much any Marvel movie, ever). But you can’t fault their patience. They let us anticipate, and only then do they seek to pay-off.

Ever since the first Avengers film, Marvel fans have waited for Captain America to say “Avengers Assemble”. Marvel even had the cheek to tease us with it at the end of Avengers: Age of Ultron. We had to wait seven years before he finally called the Avengers to arms. When Thor shouts a gleeful “yeah!” before charging into battle, he gives voice to everyone who had been waiting. It is an emotional moment.

That is what patience and a careful hand nets you.

By contrast, DC forced Superman and Batman into a confrontation in their universe’s second film. The only thing more comical about the altercation was its resolution.

DC’s most recent batch of films — Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and Shazam! — are marked improvements over the Snyder-helmed disasters. They focus on developing interesting characters first, so that we care when they are put into jeopardy. It’s a step in the right direction, but they still aren’t quite in the same league as the MCU. That’s okay — outside of Iron Man, most of Marvel’s early films were uneven attempts.

Given all of DC’s stumbles, Marvel has a huge head start. The MCU is kinda paused right now as it ramps down from Endgame before ratcheting up for the next galaxy-wide threat, which perhaps gives DC an opening. Can they take advantage of it?

I have my doubts. Marvel’s secret weapon has been their stability. The same actors have played the same characters for over a decade, often with the same writers and directors. Meanwhile, DC has been marked by reboots and recastings. Ben Affleck is out as Batman. We’ve had three versions of the Joker in recent history. Henry Cavill may, or may not, be done with Superman. How are audiences supposed to latch onto characters when they are constantly being reinterpreted?

I have no doubt that the Snyder Cut is better than the forgettable film that was released. But if you think it can somehow undo all the damage to the DC brand, I have some Gotham waterfront property to sell you.

Zach Snyder is not the man to fix the mess at DC. Not when he’s personally responsible for most of it. The trending hastag should be #releasethesnyder.

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