12 Movies From 2016 That Were Unfairly Hated

Grim, incoherent and bat-sh*t crazy are just a few things detractors of Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice had to say about the movie. Some have even gone so far as to suggest it’s the worst superhero movie ever made. Clearly, they’re suffering from short term memory loss if they think it’s anywhere near as awful as Catwoman or Green Lantern, but its wasn’t just critics that weren’t taken with the movie. Comic book fanatic, filmmaker and Ben Affleck’s best buddy Kevin Smith called the film ‘humourless’ and even star Jeremy Irons said the movie was ‘very muddled’.

Nevertheless, it didn’t put fanboys and moviegoers en masse seeing it. Much like Suicide Squad, Batman V Superman managed to turn a massive profit in spite of scathing reviews earning over $873 million worldwide and currently ranking as 2016’s sixth highest-grossing film. There’s a disconnect between critics and audiences here and much of it seems to stem from the fact that many critics weren’t taken with Batman V Superman’s grittier, darker tone.

Yes, it might be a stark contrast to the wholesome Christopher Reeve Superman movies of yore or the gothic campiness of Tim Burton’s Batman films but it’s arguable that gritter, more complex superheroes are more suited to our grittier, more complex times. To paraphrase a previous Batman franchise, the movie might not have given critics the superheroes they wanted but it certainly gave audiences the heroes they needed.