whether you're a fan or you're looking
to get acquainted with zack snyder's
movies here's where to start and which
releases you might want to avoid
here's visionary director zack snyder's
films ranked from worst to best
sucker punch follows a young woman
placed in a mental institution by her
stepfather who copes with her
imprisonment by slipping into fantasy
worlds that may or may not actually be
real
sucker punch was the first film snyder
directed with an original concept and it
looks like he learned his lesson to
never do that again
critics had many issues with the film
including its over-sexualized female
characters and convoluted mess of a plot
veteran film critic richard roper summed
up the feelings of many of his peers
calling it
an indecipherable hypocritical mess that
proves you can fill a movie with
scantily clad women with big guns and it
can still bore one to tears
sucker punch has often been unfavorably
compared to christopher nolan's
inception which arrived in theaters a
year prior
they're both sci-fi thrillers that tell
stories involving realities within
realities
you mustn't be afraid to dream a little
bigger darling
perhaps snyder shouldn't have followed
this advice while inception went on to
become a huge hit that left a lasting
impression
sucker punch ranks as some of snyder's
least satisfying work
batman vs superman dawn of justice was
the first superhero team up for the dc
eu
but it hardly matched the success of the
biggest comics crossover at that point
the mcu's first avengers movie from
2012. in addition to bringing back man
of steel star henry cavill is superman
dawn of justice
introduced ben affleck as bruce wayne
aka batman and gal gadot is diana prince
aka wonder woman
on paper it was an answer to dc fans
prayers and seemed poised to be one of
2016's biggest films
unfortunately the movie just didn't live
up to its hype he was absolutely dragged
by critics who were put off by its
scattered story among other things
christy putchko of cbr wrote to call it
ridden with plot holes would be a
disservice to plot holes
these are plot caverns what are some of
these holes you ask
well how about this why can't superman
always be there to save lois in a matter
of seconds but not his mother
how did lex luthor know how to create
doomsday why did superman call his
mother by her name when battling it out
with batman
why did you say that dad
martha why did you say that name
please stop you get the point and if
you've seen dawn of justice you could
probably add half a dozen of your own
in addition to the plot issues those who
reviewed the film agreed that the movie
was oversaturated and stuffed with 45
minutes of unnecessary extra content
the film still did decently at the box
office bringing in over 873 million
dollars worldwide although moviegoers
appreciated it more than
critics based on the guardians of gohul
book series
2010's legends of the guardians the owls
of gewool mark zack snyder's first
and to date last stab at directing an
animated feature when it came to the
voice cast he got himself off to a
pretty good start helen mirren jeffrey
rush jim sturgis hugo weaving and sam
neil
all lent their voices to the film which
was praised for the work of its cast in
addition to its stunning visuals
betsy sharkey of the los angeles times
wrote the animation itself is
startlingly beautiful
as is the ancient owl world it imagines
the battles are complex and a true
snyder tradition heavy on the action
while many critics agreed that the owls
of gahool is easy on the eyes they still
had some issues with the film
chiefly that the story was a little too
dark and unsettling for the children at
whom it seemed intended to entertain
zack snyder's first foray into what
would become the dceu
came with 2013's man of steel which also
debuted henry cavill as superman
it marked the long-awaited return of the
superman franchise after a long time
away
but absence didn't make critics hearts
too much fonder they were divided on the
film
some argued that caval's portrayal of
the classic character lacked emotional
depth
while others said that clark kent and
lois lane love story was dull and
unconvincing
most reviews in the movie made sure to
note that it was a decent albeit deeply
flawed effort
a classic case of a film that might have
been great with a few important changes
christopher orr of the atlantic wrote
there's plenty to like in snyder's
hectic rowdy film
but by the time we reach the bludgeoning
excesses of the last half hour it's hard
to shake the sense that this was an
opportunity at least partially missed
zack snyder's second directing credit
came with 2006's 300 an adaptation of
frank miller's graphic novel of the same
name
a fantasized telling of the battle of
thermopylae 300 is a visual masterpiece
and that goes beyond gerard butler's abs
critics were generally kind to 300 with
many praising snyder's eye for a
dazzling scene in butler's performance
as king leonidas
some on the other hand like roger ebert
of the chicago sun times thought the
adaptation was just a macho action movie
with no layers
as he put it 300 has one dimensional
caricatures who talk like professional
wrestlers plugging their next feud
the movie wasn't taken too seriously
which is appropriate since 300 was never
intended to be an accurate retelling of
history
some critics got this and accepted 300
for what it was
this is sparta paul arndt of the bbc
for example argued that taken on its own
terms as greek myth meets looney tunes
it's kind of a masterpiece
the movie made a killing in the
worldwide box office bringing in over
456 million dollars worldwide and set
the tone for the type of hyper-stylized
spectacle snyder would gravitate toward
in the years to come
zack snyder's 2009 watchman adaptation
based on the classic dc comics limited
series from the 80s boasts a stellar
cast who plays a retired group of
superheroes who re-emerge after the
mysterious death of one of their own
another visual masterpiece from snyder
watchmen prompted praise from critics
impressed by the director's ability to
capture the striking aesthetic of the
watchmen comics and bring it to the
screen
matthew roso's salon wrote after the
movie's premiere when given a great
story and told that his job is to simply
adapt it snyder more than rises to the
occasion
keith pipps of the av club added
watchmen deserves credit for staying
true to the character's plot
up to a point and look of the original
material while still generating his own
kind of energy
even though that energy sometimes feels
misapplied and overcranked
although there was plenty of praise for
watchmen it wasn't universal
as would be the case more than once in
snyder's career while critics respected
his faithfulness to the source material
on a visual level
many felt he was unable to capture the
essence of the story as kalimftab wrote
for the national
the failure of this very faithful
adaptation highlights the fact that to
capture the spirit of a comic book a
film must do more than bring a
collection of still frames to life
zack snyder got off to a fast start with
his directorial debut 2004's dawn of the
dead
a remake of the classic 1978 george a
romero film of the same name about a
group of survivors trying to outlast the
zombie apocalypse
on rotten tomatoes dawn of the dead is
the first certified fresh entry in
snyder's filmography
an honor not normally afforded your
average zombie horror movie
when there is no more room in hell
the dead we'll walk the earth
remaking a much loved classic is also a
risk especially when it's the director's
first time behind the camera for a
feature-length film
snyder pulled it off but as would be the
case so often later in his career
even critics who found favor with the
film also found flaws
derek malcolm of the guardian wrote this
one has more pyrotechnical gore better
acting slicker direction but very few
moments when it is scary at all
mick lasalle of the san francisco
chronicle called it silly
witty and good nature not scary so much
as icky and not horrifying or horrible
but consistently amusing
it took a long time and a whole bunch of
fan outcry to make it happen but
according to critics zack snyder's
justice league was a triumph worth the
wait
the overall consensus is that snyder's
justice league is everything the
theatrical cut of justice league is not
perhaps the only case of a film markedly
improving after having its run time
expanded to four hours
the difference here according to the
majority of reviews is that even if the
end result is still a little messy the
added room gives snyder a chance to
truly bring his vision to life
robbie colin of the telegraph sum this
up writing in a genre increasingly
hidebound by formula it stands as a
monument to exceptionalism that itself
feels exceptional
of course any four hour superhero film
is going to be a target for some critics
and zack snyder's justice league is no
exception
although the majority called it a marked
improvement over the original plenty of
reviews focused on the flaws
hannah woodhead of little white lies
spoke from many of her peers when she
proclaimed the film over long and
miserable
adding that it quote signifies nothing
other than the potential of fandom to
influence top level creative decision
making
still this is a movie snyder made for
the fans as much as he made it for
himself and on both fronts the consensus
is that it delivers
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