8 Reasons Why Fans And Critics Can’t Agree On Superhero Films

A big recent shift in the superhero genre is the complete dominance of the cinematic universe. And it's great, giving us a entirely new type of franchise.

However, all the considerations that come with it can very easily hurt a film on a fundamental level. If you are happy with parademons, you're probably going to be totally fine with a sequence that comes out of nowhere, isn't coherently explained and has minimal impact on the plot because it's serving the next raft of sequels. But for those reasons you're overlooking, someone looking at the film objectively won't. It's not about being a fan of the material, it's about finding it suitable in the film itself.

If a movie is about set-up of sequels to the detriment of the movie at hand (Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice, The Amazing Spider-Man 1&2) it's going to be a weaker movie, no two ways about it. So when it gets poorly reviewed as a movie, is it all that surprising? Captain America: Civil War is incredibly self-focused - there's lots of references to previous adventures and a handful of nods to the future, but for the most part the film is locked on itself - and that's part of why it was so well received; you could consume it by itself.

I personally want a bit of both sides in my superhero flicks. It's always good to see a movie to have reverence for where it's come from and understand where it fits in the bigger, expanding picture, but on a basic level you need a solid, standalone film.

UPDATE: Because the debate is ongoing, I wrote a short update that furthered some of the ideas raised in this article.

Why do you think we're seeing the fan-critic divide? Share your thoughts down in the comments.