Everyone knows how much of a gamble it was in 2008, when Marvel Studios was banking on the first Iron Man film and planned out individual films to lead up to 2012's The Avengers. Now we've seen how that's all turned out and Warner Bros. and DC Comics have been trying their best to find ways to match that success for their own properties. There's been tons of rumors of them making a Justice League film and they've done a solid job with Christopher Nolan's entries in the Batman series, but now they must do something more. With Man of Steel comes their golden opportunity for them to shine and begin to create something that matches the success of Marvel Studios and differentiate them enough to give comic book fans and movie goers something to really grasp onto.
Realism - Granted, Christopher Nolan began this in his Dark Knight trilogy and is also producing Man of Steel, but one of the elements that will make people latch onto Man of Steel and any other future films coming from DC and Warner will be a touch of realism. Films are very much a fantasy, but if the material one sees upon the screen can resonate with people on a realistic level, its much easier to suspend our disbelief and fully embrace this and any future films that the company has going for them. Marvel has taken the route of making big, loud and fun blockbuster films for their franchises and DC and Warner needs to do the exact opposite.
Casting - Once we saw that people like Henry Cavill, Michael Shannon, Amy Adams and many more brilliant casting choices, it was obvious that DC and Warner Bros. truly wanted to raise the stakes and present something incredible. That's not to put down anything that Marvel has put out at all, but many of these people are Oscar Nominees and an unlikely group of people to star in a comic book, genre film. If they can continue bringing this level of talent to each of their films, slowly leading to a Justice League film, they'll be in a really nice spot.
Talent - With people like Christopher Nolan, David S. Goyer and Zack Snyder at the helm, Man of Steel is looking like one of the best movies of the summer. While he's hit some some snags, with Watchmen not doing as well as hoped and critics and fans kind of dumping all over Sucker Punch, it can still be said that Zack Snyder has some rock solid talent in him. Nolan of course is Warner's golden goose at the moment, with his Batman films and Inception being one of the biggest movies of 2010. David S. Goyer has an incredible track record with screenwriting, with films like Dark City and Blade, that it makes total sense to have him lead these films, on the writing front. It also helps that Goyer is a huge comic book fanatic and has even written some really great stuff, like JSA with Geoff Johns (Green Lantern) and Starman with James Robinson, that he's a great person to have onboard.
While there's certainly more things that can go into whether or not DC and Warner will be able to make a success, beginning with Man of Steel, we'll just see what happens after this weekend. Reviews have already started coming and there's already word that Goyer is writing a Justice League movie already, but only time and various factors will determine whether or not DC and Warner Bros. can stop that mighty juggernaut that is Marvel Studios.
