4 Things The DCEU Is Doing Right (And 6 It's Doing Wrong)

The DC Extended Universe has faced a mint of flak over the years . Thanks to the ham - fisted world - building , tonal inconsistencies , and unnecessary cameos crammed into each other ’s films , the critics have brand this franchise a shambles . But it ’s not a full mess – there ’s been good things , too .

PREVIOUSLY:10 Storylines In Justice League Canon We’d Like To See In The DCEU

Some might even say the DCEU is unjustly maligned and that there ’s a lot they ’re getting right . The franchise is about halfway between shamelessly imitating the Marvel Cinematic Universe and break off on its own and figuring out what it should be . So , here are 4 Things The DCEU Is Doing Right ( And 6 It ’s Doing Wrong ) .

WRONG: BATMAN AND SUPERMAN ARE MURDERERS

Superman does n’t kill . He does not pour down . That ’s one of his thing . He has a red-faced mantle , he ’s from the planet Krypton , and he does n’t kill people . So , it was a major treachery of the character when Zack Snyder decide to have him murder General Zod at the closing ofMan of Steel . Is he mad ? And then he went and made Batman a murderer inBatman v Superman , too . Batman ’s a fiddling different .

He ’s killed before in the funnies , but only under extreme circumstance . In the DCEU , he habituate gun and kill multitude like it ’s totally normal and it ’s just not characteristic of him . We get that he ’s supposed to be a bitterer , moody , more violent Batman than we ’ve seen before , but there ’s other way to show it .

RIGHT: CASTING

Most of the criticism recruit at the DCEU is get at thing hold out on behind the scene : focus , compose etc . The actor seldom get any flak , because the franchise has been cast well . Jason Momoa move around Aquaman from a laughing bloodline into an undersea warriorwho fills more seats with his first movie than Batman did with his last movie . Gal Gadot empower cleaning woman across the world and managed to overshadow Batman and Superman in a picture calledBatman v Superman .

Ezra Miller does a great job of playing his Barry Allen both faithfully and freestanding from Grant Gustin ’s idiot box version . Margot Robbie savedSuicide Squadfrom being altogether intolerable with her intoxicating turn as Harley Quinn . Ben Affleck ’s Batman was spotty , buthe ’s out now .

WRONG: VILLAINS

Some hoi polloi say the MCU has a “ villain problem , ” but it ’s nothing compared to the DCEU . Does anyone in reality recall anything about Doomsday or Steppenwolf or Zod or Enchantress other than their cosmopolitan terribleness ? Even the Lex Luthor and Joker of the DCEU are forgettable .

Jesse Eisenberg plays Luthor as a rent - off of Heath Ledger ’s Joker and Jared Leto bet the Joker as a consecutive - up psycho when he should be a cold-blooded , calculating , intelligent psychotic . When you ’ve screwed up DC ’s two most iconic baddie , your DC movie - verse has a villain problem .

WRONG: HUMOR

With the exception of a few fish - out - of - water gags inWonder Woman , the humor in the DCEU has always fallen flat . Batman v Supermanwas criticise for being humorless , but no humor is safe than bad humor . Warner Bros. seek to cram as many jokes intoJustice Leagueas they could – includingAquaman ’s creepy , out - of - character objectification of Wonder Woman – and it just smacked of despair .

The movie turned Batman ’s serious-mindedness into the butt of every joke , just like inThe LEGO Movie , and characterise the Flash as a hyperactive nerd whose every line was a meta denotation to the other Italian sandwich . Humor will always have a shoes in superhero movies ( unless they ’re unfeigned cinematic masterpiece like Christopher Nolan ’s Batman moving picture , although this is the DCEU , so be serious ) , but it has to be , y’know , funny .

RIGHT: SOLO MOVIES

Wonder WomanandAquamanare the DCEU ’s biggest hits for one childlike grounds : they fall out the singular visual modality of a slap-up music director . marvel Womanis the vision of Patty Jenkins , a World War I tale that indue women and has second of both mood and gravitas , whileAquamanis the imagination of James Wan , an escapist capriole ( or “ escaper ” ) that ’s set in a well - round off fantasy reality a laStar Warsand does n’t take itself too seriously .

These moving picture do n’t sense like they were designed by citizens committee , and as a result , they have a consistent tonicity , they put to work well as standalone pieces , and they ’re just good motion picture .

WRONG: SETTING UP FUTURE MOVIES

One of the main problems with shared cinematic universes is that they can stop their movies bushed to set up a next installments . The plot of the movie will be flowing squeamish and swimmingly , and then there ’ll be a totally irrelevant , out - of - the - blue conniption that sets up a next film .

The MCU has sort of figured this out by recover a elbow room to make their setups necessary to each movie ’s plot – like Doctor Strange ’s cameo inThor : Ragnarok , which was worked into the storey to get Thor from full stop A ( needing to regain his father Odin ) to designate B ( find him ) . The DCEU does these scene terribly – they just shoehorn them in wherever .

RIGHT: HENRY CAVILL’S SUPERMAN TRILOGY

Batman v Supermanis seen as theIron Man 2of the DCEU ( the one that set up a universe instead of telling a story ) andJustice Leagueis seen as a arrant quite a little . But those film do succeed at one thing : completing the Superman trilogy that began withMan of Steel . That movie told his origin account and introduced that he can make mistakes . ThenBvSsaw him face repercussions for those mistakes and make the ultimate sacrifice for them , and like most second persona of trilogies , it terminate on a drop-off - hanger .

Justice Leaguecompleted his journey as he was reborn and achieved redemption in the oculus of the public . A mess of the DCEU is all over the place as a result of Warner Bros. winging it , but the part electric arc of Henry Cavill ’s Superman seems carefully considered and it ’s one of the only things in the franchise that pay off .

WRONG: TONE

The flavour of DCEU movies is all over the place . Do they want to be manic and lingua - in - cheek ? sober and serious ? They seem to be shooting and spell each scene based on that day ’s climate – there ’s no consistency whatsoever . The quality of MCU movies is painstakingly established by each director and it pays off in nigger .

Batman volt Supermanhas the slick , dark , sheeny ocular trend and previous , caustic Batman of Frank Miller’sThe Dark Knight Returns , but it miss the substance , so it ’s bragging , gorgeous , expensive – and empty . Tone applies to the story and graphic symbol of a motion picture as well , not just how it looks .

RIGHT: PRODUCTION DESIGN

The DCEU picture look exactly how DC Comics fans would need their favorite graphic symbol and their worlds to be portrayed on the bragging screen . Gotham City is gorgeously brought to life with the perfect noir - ish blend of glitz and sombreness . James Wan ’s world - edifice inAquamanwas spectacular , and as a resolution , Atlantis is as fully realise a cinematic populace as Wakanda or Knowhere – maybe even more so .

The same croak for Themyscira . AndWonder Woman ’s World War I chronological sequence are as brilliantly rendered as any actual warfare film . Plus , chronological sequence likeBvS ’ Knightmare scenemight be written , steer , and edited all wrong , but they look spectacular .

WRONG: STICKING TO ZACK SNYDER’S STYLE

The Zack Snyder dash of filmmaking set the business firm manner for the DCEU withMan of Steel , Batman v Superman , andhalf ofJustice League , and it ’s just terrible . The action chronological succession are full of tops slow motion , the redaction is more like that of a euphony video than a movie , and the color - grading is really , really dark and downhearted and concentrated .

Not all of Snyder ’s movies are dreadful , but this vogue works well for weirder , more unknown moving picture like300andWatchmenthan the mainstream superhero news report of the DCEU . Despite the say he commence as executive producer , Warner Bros. should set off from the style Snyder install and start making these thing look and finger more like actual movies do .