Parallels between Daredevil (2003) and Batman v Superman (2016)

[Silver Nemesis]

Let's get the obvious ones out of the way – they're both Ben Affleck superhero movies, both received PG-13 theatrical releases before getting R-rated directors' cuts on DVD, and the directors of both films were primarily influenced by the works of Frank Miller.

I personally feel the theatrical cut of Daredevil is extremely mediocre. The R-rated director's cut, on the other hand, is a perfectly solid superhero film. If you haven't seen it yet, it's well worth checking out. It's not a patch on the Netflix show, but it's a vast improvement over the theatrical cut. And while I've yet to see the R-rated edition of BvS, I've heard it's similarly improved thanks to its extended running time.

But when I say parallels, I'm thinking more along the lines of character arcs. At the start of both films, we find Affleck's hero in a very dark, lonely place. He has a confidante who disapproves of his behaviour but nevertheless offers him spiritual/emotional support (Father Everett/Alfred). He's abandoned his classic moral code from the comics in favour of killing criminals (this is a lot more problematic for Matt than it is for Bruce, because unlike Batman Daredevil does not have a history of intentionally killing bad guys in the source material). Both characters rediscover their humanity through a strained relationship with another hero (Elektra/Superman) who ultimately gets killed (in both films the hero's resurrection is implied but not explicitly shown). Affleck's character fights this other hero at some point in the film, and the battle concludes with one of them lying injured while the other stands poised to deliver the killing blow. However in both films the triumphant hero mercifully relents upon realising they have been manipulated by a wealthy mastermind (Kingpin/Luthor). This same mastermind then unleashes a secondary villain upon the two heroes (Bullseye/Doomsday) who stabs one of them (Elektra/Superman) to death.

Affleck's character in both films is a man who's lost his way. The sacrifice of another hero helps him reorient his life and find renewed purpose. The pivotal test in both films comes when Affleck's hero stands over a defeated foe whose life he has vowed to take. But in both films he shows mercy and spares their life. It now looks as though Batman may have resumed his no kill policy in the DCEU, just as Daredevil did at the end of the movie.

So what does everyone else think? Do these parallels exist, or am I seeing patterns that aren't there? And if there are similarities between the two character arcs, could that redemptive quality be what attracted Affleck to the roles in the first place?

[The Laughing Fish]

I find it ironic that in both superhero films where Ben Affleck stars as a troubled and deeply flawed vigilante who redeems himself in the end gets sh*t on by critics for "a lack of character development".

I never understood the hatred of the 2003 Daredevil film. It's not perfect, but there is an arc for Murdock to shed his lethal ways to spite Kingpin and starts to believe in justice. Say whatever you want about Elektra being rushed and killed off and the pop rock songs, but that ending alone makes that film watchable for me. You feel even sorry for Murdock when that kid was crying in fear down the hallway when he was interrogating a crook: "I'm not the bad guy, kid".

But I reckon the redemption arc for Batfleck in BvS works better. Not only what he experienced in Metropolis was traumatising, this is a man who is afraid of a new reality of other beings in the universe that could threaten the planet, much like everyone else who is skeptical of Superman.

The film spells it out for you to understand this Batman has experienced tragedy and failure throughout his whole life, even going far to have Bruce himself telling Alfred "Twenty years in Gotham, Alfred. We've seen what promises are worth. How many good guys are left? How many stayed that way?". We can infer he's experienced a lot of good people turning to the dark side, he might be referring to Harvey Dent/Two-Face, Catwoman, or even Kirk Langstrom becoming Man-Bat (if the filmmakers want to use him as a villain in the future, it could show how Man-Bat used to be fight alongside Batman for a brief period like in the comics, until tragic circumstances made Man-Bat lose his humanity). And of course Robin was murdered by the Joker, which had been covered countless times by now. In fact, Batman might've already had an encounter with Jason Todd as the Red Hood before BvS takes place, for all we know. If Affleck wants to direct a Batman film, be it as a prequel or simply a new film with flashbacks, the options to explore on this plotline are rich.

This Batman acknowledges how cynical and violent the world is, and becomes paranoid of a superhuman being with all that power who can potentially turn against humanity. As a result, he stops believing in ideals, in fact he even begins to regard himself a criminal to Alfred during their conversation with over the branding (which that line if I remember was borrowed from Dark Knight Returns). The Knightmare scene explores Batman's deepest fears of Superman going rogue could become reality.

And yet, Batman's paranoia was broken by the time we get to the Martha scene. I was never against the idea of the scene, my only criticism was maybe the pacing between the end of the fight with Superman to suddenly joining forces with him. But I've always liked how in that moment, Batman realised he was so distracted about Superman being a threat that he nearly became everything he fought against. For the first time, he stopped looking at Superman as a cold-hearted alien who brings death and destruction wherever he goes. He saw Superman's pleas to save his mother and humanity and realised that his hate blinded to the fact he nearly became the unknown killer who took his family away. Which makes his promise to save Martha Kent even more symbolic; he was powerless to stop his mother as a child, but now he can do something to save another mother and become the hero with a sense of purpose again.

Finally, Superman's heroic sacrifice inspires Batman to carry on his legacy by looking to form the Justice League. And it's Batman trying to atone for his own sins. He understands that for all the doubt and hatred aimed at Superman, Clark still gave his life to protect humanity from doom, and didn't let a cynical world taint at all. For all the paranoia and fear of what Batman believed Superman would become, he realises it was himself who became corrupted, hence he says to Diana, "I failed him in life. I won't fail him in death".

This is quite possibly the richest character arc for Batman in live action to date, in my opinion.

[thecolorsblend]

All of those are good catches. Honestly, the Daredevil Netflix show has washed so much of the movie out of my memory that I never even considered the number of similarities between it and BVS. Great points!

[riddler]

I have the blu ray of Daredevil which is of course the directors cut (I don't believe the theatrical version is even being redistributed). It is excellent and really reaffirms Afflecks casting. There's a deleted subplot in which Matt Murdock defends a lowlife drug addict for murder because he believes he's innocent. It turns out the Kingpin set it up. Affleck showcases his skills here quite a bit.

The obvious is that both characters are orphaned at a young age with 3 of the 4 parents being murdered and the young boy being at the scene. Both Thomas Wayne and Jack Murdock resist corruption, both are killed by common thugs.

Both characters remain urban legends for the most part. They have elderly mentors as sounding boards (Alfred and the pastor). Both fight against rich people in power (Lex Luthor and the kingpin)