DISCLAIMER: This news piece will also feature an editorial response. The opinions expressed are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of the rest of the Latino-Review team]

With some filming all ready done, and principal photography on the horizon, “Batman vs Superman” director Zack Snyder has been talking about the upcoming film. In a live fan event hosted by Kevin Smith, and courtesy of Yahoo Movies, Snyder gave his take on a few things that have riled up the fanbase. On the fact that overruled Christopher Nolan- who was opposed to the idea- by having Superman kill Zod, and the possible ramifications of that, Snyder said:

“It’s a real world problem. I think the effect on Superman, it is a deeply difficult decision for him to make. It’s not a thing that he takes lightly, and you can see it affects him pretty profoundly. And maybe we’ll see the repercussions of that in the next film. How that’s affected him, making that decision… Maybe.”

Snyder also chimed in on “the rule” that “Superman Doesn’t Kill”:

“Well, what’s funny about that rule is that it exists in the movies. But it doesn’t really exist in the comic books. He’s killed Zod a couple times in the comic books.  I think that it’s a notion that has grown out of the way he’s been popularized on TV and in the movies more than the comic book mythology of Superman. Killing General Zod is a practical solution to the problem. He wouldn’t let his personal aversion to killing cost the lives of an entire planet or those little kids, that little family. So if he had said, ‘I’m just morally opposed to killing so I guess I have to let him kill those people.’ Those are the dilemmas. We set that up directly so there would be no solution other than that solution.”

That last sentence is very up for debate since many folks, myself included, didn’t think he adequately built to that moment, nor did he make it seem like Superman “had no other choice.” I’ll also add that my issue, as a lifelong Superman fan, was never with the fact that he killed Zod but rather that it just wasn’t handled well enough.

When asked about the famously catastrophic levels of destruction in Man of Steel, which seemingly would’ve claimed the lives of thousands of civilians, Snyder had this to say:

“Probably 5,000 people [(died from the Metropolis attack]. For me, that was part of it. No, there’s real consequences … Not to compare, but if you look at ‘The Avengers,’ they trash the city and nobody thinks about how many people are dying.” He also added, “There’s a sadness at the end of the movie [‘Man of Steel’]. That’s a thing that weighs on Superman.”

This is where I think Snyder is totally off-base, and flat out making things up. Where was this supposed sadness at the end of the movie? When we see Clark riding his bicycle through a totally fine looking city? When that reporter guy asks Lois and an intern out on a date? When Lois flirtatiously keeps Clark’s identity a secret? Or perhaps it was in the beaming grin on his face as the movie faded to black? Where was the sadness?

As for the comparison to “The Avengers,” it just shows how badly he’s missed the point. A) The levels of destruction depicted weren’t nearly as grandiose in “Avengers,” and B) All throughout the showdown in NY between the Chitauri and the Avengers, there is constant attention being shown towards saving civilian lives. I actually had the chance to re-watch “The Avengers” in theaters on Thursday, as part of a Marvel Marathon leading up to the release of “Thor 2,” and I paid specific attention to that. Joss Whedon was very careful and very deliberate when it came to depicting how the heroes weren’t just blindly fighting, but rather they were taking systematic approaches to try contain the size of the battle, keep the body count down, keep innocent people out of harm’s way, and we saw them being inspirational to the people they’re fighting for. There was, unfortunately, little to none of that in “Man of Steel.” Especially in the Metropolis sequence. For a half hour, we’re treated to building after building collapsing, people screaming in the streets, and all we see Superman doing about it is punching things. Oh, and he also took a moment to make a joke and kiss Lois amidst the rubble of broken bones and demolished buildings as ash floats around in the air around them.

Okay, my little rant is over. I have much more to say about this, but I’ll spare you. If anyone’s interested, I’ll try to get permission to post my original review/editorial on MOS here on LR- which I wrote for my personal blog, long before I joined the LR team. In it, I cite more examples of how Superman was depicted as callous, and offer up incredibly easy solutions that would’ve made the movie much more palatable to the other half of the very divided fan base.

Source: Yahoo! Movies UK