Tbf, the 3rd film is pretty pants, narratively. But what’s mitigates that slightly is how masterfully made it is. The fact it relied on thousands of extras and huge expensive practical props does somewhat offset the daftness of its script. Especially as the previous films had laid enough thematic and character groundwork to create a certain degree of investment in the goings on, however silly they were.
I mean, when all those thousands of people charge towards each other on Wall Street, you’re not thinking how barmy the situation that lead them there is, because the scene has enough tangible weight and dramatic tension within itself to carry you through... When a weightless CGI pixie floats around a cartoon colour graded sky to vanquish a faceless evil pixel monster, you’re naturally less invested in the scene, and more likely to question the bonkers plotting that preceded it.
What Marvel do well is balance their tensionless CGI end-battles with well established character drama. But if you have neither the personal investment, nor the cinematic heft, you’ve got little more than an empty computer game cut scene.
And saying “hey, it’s just comics”’ doesnt fly either, as even when you read comics you’re automatically adding this gravitas and poignance to the panels in your head. Just as you imagine the voices, or the unspoken thoughts, like you would with any book. When someone just puts the panels on screen with a bunch of floaty CGI, they’re not “
brining it to life” as much as they’re taking away any nuance it may have had.
BvS had one of the biggest second week drops offs
ever, for reference.