Over this past week, two trailers for hugely anticipated films were released. One of them has had the best of times, while the other has had the worst of times.
The trailer for “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” was released on its own accord on Thursday, at the Star Wars Celebration in Anaheim, California. Many fans were very excited to see it and loved the trailer after their viewing. On Friday, the trailer for “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice” was originally leaked online before the director officially released the trailer on YouTube to combat it.
After seeing this trailer though, audiences started complaining about every aspect of it. This does not bode well for “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice” as it will be the first film in the DC cinematic universe to bring together two separate characters and will essentially establish the universe for many films to come. Honestly, after watching both trailers, I definitely was more excited for “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” but I did not think the “Batman v. Superman” trailer was worthy of the many criticisms it received. The criticism makes little sense, and I feel the need to defend the superhero film before it even comes out.
Maybe it’s because “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice” is a lot darker than other superhero films. “Avengers: Age of Ultron” released its final trailer on April 6 and it includes many of the lighter moments that has made films from the Marvel cinematic universe so popular. This new trailer definitely seems dark in comparison to these films, but this makes little sense given the bigger picture of the DC cinematic universe.
The entire “Dark Knight” trilogy had few laughs, and “Man of Steel” was more of a serious take to Marvel’s blockbusters. This more serious look at superheroes is not something the “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice” is pioneering this in any way. Audiences should not be swayed negatively towards this trailer for that reason, though some probably are. Possibly, the “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” trailer impressed people so much more than its counterpart that the audiences believed “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice” to be that much worse.
To go further on this point, I feel it is necessary to look at the response the trailer of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” has received. People have loved it. The special effects look nifty. It sounds phenomenal. And there are almost no lens flares—a rarity for director J.J. Abrams.
The trailer reveals very little about the story, though maybe that is intended. This is not the teaser trailer, nor is it the final trailer, so even if not much has been revealed yet, there is time to give us, the viewers, some context. The film has been kept tightly under wraps since its inception.
On the other hand, “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice” trailer laid out the basic plot of the film right from the start. The people of Metropolis are getting tired of Superman being a God-like figure and maybe he is abusing his power too much. Batman comes on the scene to try and put Superman in check. This might be a little too much considering that this is just a teaser trailer and there are at least two more trailers to come for this film. But I do not think this is as big an issue as it seems, considering trailers just give you a little insight into the film and very rarely reveal everything the film has to offer.
I think the part for me that made me look at the “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice” trailer seem weird is the voice Batman has when he talks to Superman and the costume he is wearing at that time. It is very mechanical and electronic, almost a complete 180-degree shift from the Christian Bale variant.
I have read many comments on the Internet where people criticize this and complain about this specific point in the trailer and how it ruins the rest of the trailer, but I saw some similar moments in the “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” trailer. One such instance is that of John Boyega’s character seemingly always being out of breath. In every shot of the character seen so far, he is heavily breathing. It’s a small thing, but it always takes me out of the trailer every time I watch it, about as much as Batman’s new voice did.
However, I do not think these small things which will undoubtedly not make up the entire film should be perceived as an indicator whether the film will be good or not.
Another thing I want to comment on is that the “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice” trailer is just a teaser. It is a very early look at what the movie might be. The film is still over a year off from being released and should not be taken as the final product of the film. Some things might change, while others might be taken out. If there is something in the trailer people did not like, they need to remember that it is just the teaser. It should not have been as heavily criticized as it was.
