Alan Moore, the cult author of Watchmen and The Killing Joke, seems very reticent about the importance of DC and Marvel and their influence on youth in particular.
Criticisms of Marvel and DC are nothing new, and we’re often entitled to critiques from artists or creators, as was notably the case with director Martin Scorsese in 2019. The difference this time, though, is that the review comes from a respected comic book creator and writer: Alan Moore. In fact, the man is very critical of superheroes.
Marvel and DC in Moore’s crosshairs
Like in an interview given recently The guard, Moore literally opened his heart to talk about Marvel and DC. For him, this type of film production has the effect of simplifying adult thinking. He goes on to say:
I said around 2011 that I think if millions of adults queued up to see Batman movies, it would have serious and worrying implications for the future. Because that kind of infantilization—that desire for simpler times, for simpler realities—can very often be a precursor to fascism.
Nevertheless, the election of Donald Trump in 2016, at the height of superhero films in cinemas, was no coincidence in his opinion. Of course we’ll let you judge these kinds of statements, some don’t hesitate to point out that the man may simply be bitter.
If this kind of Marvel/DC film can effectively simplify the thinking of some, it’s certainly a bit too simplistic to see it as an open door to fascism. Isn’t a superhero movie just a way to escape our everyday routine and imagine an unattainable Manichaean ideal?
Between the Covid crisis, the war in Ukraine, inflation and global warming, one really doesn’t have to look far for the success of this type of film that tends to soothe the mind. Does a work have to wreak havoc on your brain to be a respectable work?
Note that the vision of fascinating superheroes is the main theme of the series The young.
What are your thoughts on the impact of Marvel and DC movies on our society?
