James Gunn VS Zack Snyder - The One Thing That Sets Them Apart
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Published 2023-07-18
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Written by Dodson Seitz twitter.com/BaneWruse
Hosted by Ryan Arey (twitter.com/ryanarey)
Edited by Harriet Lengel-Enright, Randolf Nombrado, Sofien Dami, and Brianna McLarty
#JamesGunn #zackSnyder #dcu
Welcome to ScreenCrush, I’m Ryan Arey. James Gunn is about to reboot the DCU, and end the Snyderverse for good. But what does that really mean? In this video, we’re going to dive very deep into these filmmakers, examine what makes them tick, and find out what actually separates these two very different approaches to DC’s cinematic universe.
Gunn’s characters embrace the lighthearted nature of comics - while still maintaining some sense of realism. This creates relatable characters who are easy to fall in love with - no matter how flawed - which fit perfectly with the MCU.
Snyder, however, made a point of differentiating himself from the MCU. While the MCU’s stories centered (mostly) around humans becoming gods - Snyder’s films were about Gods becoming human.
From the little we know of - and have seen - we can already tell that Gunn’s universe is set to be vastly different than the Snyderverse, which may be precisely what this reboot needs [clip]
And you know, one of Zack Snyder’s best received movies was his 2004 remake of dawn of the dead–whcih was wrotten by James Gunn. [clip] It’s inte∑resting to see that these two filmmakers were once so aligned with substance and style, but over the years their artistry has floated into very different directions.
So let’s talk about these two filmmakers, their careers, and how we got here!
Doug: OH, James Gunn vs Zach Snyder!
Exactly!
Doug: in a caged Deathmatch! Die millionaires, die! You have nothing to lose but your chains.
That’s enough comrade.
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As we said earlier, Snyder tried to differentiate his films from the MCU by with stories about Gods becoming human vs the other way around. - which isn't a new concept in DC comics. In fact, the idea was actually best summarized in Kill Bill Vol 2 [clip]
While Clark Kent really took a back seat in most of Snyder's stories, Cavil’s version of Superman was more than just an average citizen who stumbled into great power and thus became burdened by responsibilities - [clip]
He’s a messianic figure - who stayed hidden until humanity truly needed him, despite feeling detached from the human race. For the Snyderverse fans, this worked best in Man of Steel.
Doug: I thought you hated that movie?
Well, look, I personally didn't like Snyders's take on the character. It was a well made movie, it just wasn't a Superman film - to me, anyways - but I can conceptually understand why Synderverse fans liked this version of Superman.
Cavil’s Superman was an outsider. Someone burdened by their own strength and even shunned at an early age for helping people. That, plus killing Zod in the end, was a major departure from the “big blue boy scout” Superman has always been.
It was a controversial decision on a beloved character, but it set the foundation for the Snyder universe. [clip]
The Snyderverse dealt with intense emotional themes, and each chapter had consequences that seemingly threatened the entire world. Threats that would have otherwise required the Avengers in the MCU.
Since Snyder’s stories were exclusively told through Superman, the aspect of “gods becoming men” became the Snyderverse’s driving theme - and that's a lot harder for audiences to relate to. [clip]
It's much easier to relate to Spider-Man since he constantly fails in some of the most human ways, but it's kinda hard to relate to Superman. Like no one here watching these videos has ever been a genetic codex for an entire species. It's hard to relate to the guy who literally stares at Earth from space.
This idea of “gods becoming men” is also the most “DC” aspect of his films.
Doug: what do you mean by “the most DC”
All Comments (21)
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Do you think the DCU will be better than the DCEU?
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The thing that sets them apart? Gunn loves comics. Snyder thinks they aren’t cool enough.
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I think one very telling thing about Gunn's movies is there's a video out there of Florence Welsh, lead single of Florence and the Machine, watching GotG3 for the first time and crying when she hears her song in it. She's so touched and emotional, and you can even tell the part where Dave Batista starts dancing because she starts laughing trying to hold back tears. He makes you care about a CGI Raccoon and Tree, and that's not exactly easy.
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“Clark Kent is who I am, Superman is what I can do” -Lois and Clark Best description ever!!
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now that you mention it, i did think it was kind of weird his dad disapproved of him saving kids on a bus. i mean i get wanting to preserve your secret identity but i thought he of all people would understand doing the right thing is paramount
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I've always said Snyder is a great visual artist who works better when you hand him a script instead of a pen. The Dawn of the Dead remake, 300 and Watchmen were great, and he became involved in those after they were written. But when he got involved in the writing of Sucker Punch, the DC movies and Army of the Dead- you start to see a pattern.
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I wish Gunn gives Edgar Wright a movie with complete control but within Gunn's plan.
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Who makes better movies, Zack Snyder or James Gunn?
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Snyder makes beautiful movies, Gunn makes movies with beautiful stories.
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CHRISTOPHER REEVE'S SUPERMAN ALSO KILLED GENERAL ZOD. I can't believe how often this is overlooked by those who had a problem with Cavill's Superman killing Zod. Even THIS video overlooked that point when comparing the similarities between the Snyder and Donner films.
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Along the lines of gods vs. flawed humans, there is also the tragedy and/or inciting incident at the center of each character becoming a hero. It's very different between the core DC and Marvel characters. The DC characters often have something happen to them (often being orphaned, learning a secret about their past, or being presented with a powerful something). The Marvel characters typically have to overcome a terrible mistake they made (not stopping a criminal who kills your uncle, being a weapons manufacturer, building a gamma bomb, starting wars of choice with frost giants, etc.). The DC characters seem predestined to be heroes. The Marvel characters are almost surprised by their status as heroes, and have to continuously work at it.
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Maybe it's hard to relate to guy who stares at Earth from space but it's definitely relatable to feel like an outsider, to feel powerless, to feel shunned. The idea that Superman is unrelatable because he's powerful is extremely surface level viewing of his character.
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I have no issue with either filmmaker. Both are awesome. Snyder's films are created on a mythological scale. With legends of old living larger than life. Gunn's films are on a grounded scale, even when in space. With much humor coming from humbling relatable realities.
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I told myself I was never going to get excited for DC films anymore, but this video made me want to see these movies so bad
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Am I the only one experiencing the video and audio being totally out of sync?
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Correct me if I am wrong. But didnt Superman kill Zod and the other Kryptonians at the end of Donner's version by removing their powers and letting them fall to their deaths at the fortress of solotude? Seems to get a pass compared to Smyder
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Yo just wanted to say this was actually a real well done entertaining analysis of dc films I appreciate your efforts Ryan and team because I thoroughly enjoyed this video. Thanks again!
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Gunn's The Suicide Squad is so underrated and it is what really got me on board. When I first saw the news, I thought he was just gonna Marvel-ify that movie but boy, he did that movie a justice and what I didn't expect was that underneath all that humor, goofiness and emotions, it was a pretty dark movie!
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There was one thing that, even before Guardians 3 and if Id known nothing else about James Gunn, gave me hope that his DCU could be great. When he said that he was taking a lot of inspiration from the Justice League Animated series and JLU. As an aside, I maintain that most of the voice cast of that would've been about as good as live-action versions of the characters. Heck, Rosenbaum could still play an older version of his Wally West in live action.
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I don’t like that gunn needs to have humor embedded into all his movies. DC had always been more adult oriented, and that was great. People might think it’s just a comic book story, how serious can it be. But that is the one thing that differentiated it from Marvel. Nolan’s batman for example was sooo successful because it was serious. It was a story meant for adults, who as kids fell in love with these dc comics and now wanted to relive the stories. Snyder kept that serious. I have to admit I love the guardians of the galaxy. But it is something more childlike, goofy and well very marvel. I just think we should have the option of having these two different types of storytelling. I don’t like that gunn will ultimately transform the dc into a marvel like guardians of the galaxy. I love your videos and you have mentioned several times that you are more of a marvel fan and that’s cool. But wanting to transform dc just because people think it’s too gore or to serious. You know what, just don’t watch them. There’s marvel for you guys.
