The Narrative Paradigm promotes the belief that humans are storytellers and that values, emotions, and aesthetic considerations ground our beliefs and behaviors. In other words, we are more persuaded by a good story than a good argument.
The idea that people are essentially storytellers has been adopted by many different disciplines including history, biology, anthropology, sociology, philosophy, psychology, and theology. It is easier for us to remember, accept, and stay engaged to information if it we consider it interesting or entertaining, rather than just technically informative.
From humankind's earliest known history, stories have been the formal means of exchanging information. Stories were the method of passing on family traditions, education, and relaying warnings or news. Stories are the one of the most common methods of presenting advertising, generating publicity, and building public relations messages. It is no coincidence that sensational media is the most popular; information that creates an emotional response tends to attract the largest audiences. This is reason for the success of tabloid media and why even the most serious newscasts are presented as infotainment or feature entertainment segments.
The most popular forms of storytelling throughout the ages seem to revolve around adventure and heroism. People enjoyed hearing tales from lands beyond their own or the journeys of hunters and warriors from their own tribes or villages. Tales of encounters with dangerous of magical creatures or the escapades of powerful heroes from myth were very popular. Heroic storytelling continues to be popular today in the form of movies, television, novels, comics, animation, and manga.
Unfortunately, all heroic storytelling is not the same where movies are concerned.
Some projects are very successful...
...while others, not so much.
So why is it that some superhero properties or heroic projects do so well and others do not? Sometime it is one element done wrong, but more often than not it is a combination of elements that can cause an audience to disconnect from a heroic property. Most superhero movies and other projects are based upon characters from properties audiences are already familiar with. While these characters are popular in their current form, the stories involving these characters do not always translate well to other types of media. Changing the characters and stories for a different form of media is where the first failure can occur.
There is a tendency for filmmakers to take characters from comic books and similar media for granted. Most comic books feature larger-than-life characters with amazing powers and abilities. For these stories to work, writers must help the readers suspend their disbelief by using these heroes in settings and scenarios that the reader can relate to. What would the reader do or consider in a similar situation or would it be reasonable for the character to act a certain way given the circumstances. Note: The same standard of suspension of disbelief applies to movies, TV shows, and games as well.
The problem is many filmmakers do not understand the source material for many superhero properties well enough to translate it into another form of media, nor do they seek the aid of people well versed in the lore of the characters; comic book writers or film professionals who know the characters. The result is filmmakers who change the characters to fit within standard film making criteria; much of what made the character interesting or popular is stripped from the character and reinterpreted by the filmmaker.
It has already been proven in comics, on the big screen, in animation, and on television that audiences are willing to accept their favorite characters in unusual or unfamiliar settings. In virtually every case, what made the character who he or she is was largely left unchanged unless the circumstances of the world forced them to deviate from what they normally would be. A perfect example of this would be Elseworlds stories from DC comics.
In Superman: Red Son, Baby Kal-El's ship did not crash in Kansas. His ship landed in the Soviet Union. This Superman had many of the same values when it came to serving the people, but he was mainly taught to follow the philosophies of Stalin, support the common worker, and communism. Superman wanted what was best for the world, but the circumstances of his arrival on Earth in this tale caused him to deviate in his methods.
In Superman the Darkside, baby Kal-El's ship landed on Apokolips. Superman was raised to believe he was the son of Darkseid and that his role was to destroy Darkseid's enemies. A chance encounter with Lois Lane and several familiar characters after one of Darkseid's missions forces Superman to question his actions and if he is actually fighting for the right side.
In Justice League: The Nail, Jonathan and Martha Kent were driving down a country road, ran over a nail, and had to stop to fix a flat tire. As a result, they missed their opportunity to find a certain ship with a baby inside. Because of the flat tire, there is no Superman to ease the hearts and minds of humanity about the presence of super-humans and no iconic presence to inspire other heroes to follow his example. The result is anti-hero sentiment, an alien conspiracy, and a powerful superhuman unwilling to involve himself in human affairs when the world faces its darkest hour, and he is needed the most.
What is the point of these examples; that a character can be changed to fit a setting if the changes are logical to the framework presented. For example: a Vampire Superman is likely to struggle with his bloodlust and eventually feed upon his enemies, realize it will never be enough, and seek to have himself destroyed, if he does not commit suicide, to spare the lives of the innocent. For all intents and purposes, he would be the same Superman he always was, but being a vampire and having the needs of one would force him to make difficult choices if he wanted to maintain his mission. The circumstances have changed, but the motivations of the character stay largely intact. Filmmakers often underestimate what audiences are willing to accept.
Of course comic book, video game, and animation fans would like to see their favorite heroes and storylines brought to life on the big screen, but they would be just as happy seeing their favorite heroes in different stories and settings. They realize it would be difficult to force several issues or a game's worth of material into an 80-150 minute movie. They are comfortable with changes provided the changes make sense and the filmmakers try to stay true to the characters. Choosing to change characters to fit a narrow vision or because the filmmakers are unwilling to study the characters can result in projects like these:
In all of the above examples, fundamental elements of the characters, their motivations, their history, and their settings have been changed. The result were projects and characters that comic book and movies fans could not relate to. The same care when writing stories in comics or other projects applies to movies, and filmmakers need to consider this when seeking to make adaptations from comics and other source material.
...but wait, is sticking completely to the nature of characters and canon a good idea? Not always.
As mentioned previously, you cannot always adapt stories designed for multiple issues of a comic or several hours of story and gameplay from a video game into a 80-150 minute movie. In addition, audiences may have difficulty relating to certain themes and characters from these sources. No movie illustrates this point more than this one:
On the surface, Zack Snyder and company did everything right when they filmed and released Watchmen to audiences. It stayed closer to the source material than any of the previous superhero films, it featured good actors, had exceptional cinematography, and the special effects were excellent. So what went wrong?
The film had several problems and virtually all of them were the result of staying as true to the source material as possible. Watchmen is a very mature series filled with violence, mystery, and heroes willing to cross moral lines to do what they believe is necessary; the series was also long. The film was long and was paced similarly to the comic; the pace being too slow for some audiences.
The heroes within the series were all original. It is a much more difficult sell to introduce original or obscure characters to movie audiences. In addition, many of these heroes were morally ambiguous; some audiences had trouble building empathy.
The motivation, attitude, and personality of a superhero is more important than their superpowers or skills
The movie was more violent and had more mature themes than any other mainstream superhero movie up to that point; resulting in a R-rating. People expecting lighthearted fair or a serious film on par with the Dark Knight got a bit more than they bargained for.
The events in the film were much too dark and violent for many audiences; the ending of the movie was changed, but was still too polarizing for some. Many comic fans loved the movie; many did not like the ending, but they loved the movie. Unfortunately, the love of comic fans is not enough to make a superhero film successful if general audiences do not respond well to it.
In the case of Watchmen, the source material was not conducive to one feature film nor were audiences ready for it at the time. A property like the Watchmen comic series would do much better in a format other than a single film; the format in which writers present a story is just as important as the story itself.
Marketing is important because many people will not view a film if they are not certain what they can expect. Filmmakers almost always have to introduce spectacle to films and resulting trailers to entice audiences to take a chance on unknown actors or properties. The Watchmen film contained action and special effects, but still could not match properties like Spider-Man, Spider-Man 2, Batman Begins, or the Dark Knight on sheer entertainment value.
At the end of the day, if filmmakers insist on using popular superheroes or heroes from other forms of media to create films, they would probably get better results by staying true to the essence of the character. Settings and miscellaneous minutiae can be changed at will and not drastically affect the character. If filmmakers do decide to change the character, the changes should make sense within the context of the setting or be things fans would logically expect the hero to do given the circumstances.
What type of character a superhero or hero is is just as important, if not more so, than the stories writers feature them in. The most popular comic book characters tend to be from Marvel or DC Comics.
DC Comics character are larger-than-life. These are the iconic, awe inspiring heroes who care about everyday people but are generally not one of them. For all intents and purposes, these heroes are god-like; with the exception of heroes like Batman, and even his skills, abilities, and resources set him on a level far beyond most heroes. They tend to be above things like fear, hatred, jealousy and all the petty flaws than normal people have. These heroes are inspirational because they represent the hope, justice, and goodness that people with problems can look to for inspiration.
These heroes tend to see the world in terms of black and white, right and wrong, and good and evil. There is little or no room for gray solutions in their worldviews. DC Comics has made considerable changes to many of their characters to make them more relatable to audiences and place greater emphasis on the lesser known and more grounded characters, that inhabit the various worlds surrounding their more iconic heroes.
Like DC Comics, Marvel Comics also has its fair share of over-the-top, powerful and iconic heroes. The main difference with the heroes of Marvel is many of them come with flaws, fears, and frustrations or deal with problems similar or comparable to those of the audiences who admire them. The necessity of having to overcome their own problems as well as using their skills and abilities to combat enemies, and protect the innocent, makes these characters relateable on a much different level than their DC counterparts.
The heroes of DC Comics are inspirational because they represent the best humanity has to offer and what humanity should strive to be; even if many of them are not human. Readers often connect to Marvel Comics heroes because they, with certain exceptions, can relate to problems similar to the ones these heroes face. So the reader is often more emotionally invested in the challenges of the heroes encounters in the stories. Whether the hero sees things in black and white, isn't afraid to crack a few skulls, has no apparent problems or weaknesses, or has personal issues, if the audience cannot relate to the way writers portray the character in a project it will under-perform or completely fail.
The motivation, attitude, and personality of a superhero is more important than their superpowers or skills. Whether the character is a larger-than-life figure who seems all but invulnerable or the heroic underdog who seems hopelessly outmatched on occasion, how writers handle who the character is can maintain, improve, or erode the goodwill of audiences.
This is the main reason why it is so important for filmmakers, TV producers, or writers to stay as true to the source material as possible when adapting characters from comics, games, animation, or novels. Fundamentally changing an established character too much to make him or her quote, unquote "more relatable" or for the sake of "artistic vision" is a huge mistake. Not only do the filmmakers and writers risk alienating the existing audience for the character, they also risk creating a version of the character that does not resonate with new audiences.
When writers decide to re-imagine a character, they also have to ensure the character develops logically within the framework of the medium they use. In a comic, an animated or television series, or a series of novels, writers have time to re-imagine a character and build them up. Filmmakers are taking a considerable risk by fundamentally changing important aspects of a character's origin, re-imagining the character, trying to develop the character, and making him or her relatable to the audience in 80-150+ minutes. The results are often poor, but may be overlooked by some audiences if they are creatively hidden behind a layer of spectacle.
Heroes tend to come in larger-than-life and trouble free models, underdogs, and variations in between; the rapport the audience tends to have with these variations depends on which model is used, how the writers handle his or her characterization, and the nature of his or her challenges. Let's start with a larger-than-life and virtually trouble free model for analysis, shall we?
A character like Superman works best as most people tend to remember him: the ultimate Boy Scout; the one person who can always find another way to stop the bad guys when the only option left is the unthinkable. A being who serves as a benchmark for justice and nobility that a normal person could never reach, but inspires that same person to strive to do the most good they can. For all intents and purposes, Superman is virtually the perfect character with the perfect powers.
Unfortunately, a character like Superman, with no real problems and weaknesses, is difficult for many writers to handle. Superman's traditional weaknesses were Kryptonite and magic; of course, he could be injured by powerful enough enemies as well. The less creative writers could not write compelling stories featuring the Man of Steel. The enemies Superman dealt with often felt contrived and were usually terrestrial enemies who conveniently managed to have a piece of Kryptonite to use against him.
Creating powerful new enemies, a plethora of great writers, and re-imaginings of his character throughout the years has helped Superman remain relevant during his 75+ years. Creative writers often developed stories where Superman would have to rely on his brains more than his physical abilities to save the day. Superman's greatest enemy is someone he could crush in an instant, but is so clever in covering his tracks that Superman cannot prove he is guilty of the crime and hardship he causes. Even with this, it is often difficult for even the best writers to consistently write Superman stories that will maintain the average comic book reader's interest. Bringing a character like Superman to the big screen and general audiences can be a lot more complicated.
Many modern movie and comic fans have a difficult time relating to Superman's character; probably based more on Superman's reputation than by actual exposure to the source material. A larger-than-life character with no real problems would be difficult for many members of the previous audience to relate to because they have grown accustomed to characters who seem more like them or are dealing with everyday problems: read Batman or Spider-Man.
Writers can occasionally overreach when adapting a character to film or creating an original one
These audiences are capable of enjoying larger-than-life characters provided the characters are also dealing with large-than-life problems; this is evidenced by the success of movies like the Avengers.
The problem with a character like Superman or any character similar to him is it is harder for audiences to build rapport with them if they seem invulnerable to risk or do not seem to ever struggle. Writers can often partially overcome this weakness by allowing the audience to glimpse early episodes in the character's life and allowing them to experience the character's growth. This process works well in comics, a television series or books, where the writers have time to let the character develop. When a writer only has 80-150+ minutes to completely develop a character, they cannot afford to waste time on unnecessary backstory.
Confounding the problem are writers who overreach or over-complicate the events in a character's history that affect them, burden the character with concerns that do not feel logical, or do not provide enough evidence to prove the character's growth before exposing them to the true conflict(s) of the film. The results feel rushed, contrived, and do not resonate well with audiences. Heroes who are more grounded and experience problems similar to those of audiences tend to fare better across different forms of media, but they can still be poorly written.
Audiences like an underdog story. People like to see a hero who has problems, but works to overcome them. They like a hero who manages to overcome enemies who seem all but impossible for him or her to defeat.
Ask the average, uninformed movie fan to name a heroic underdog and many will say Batman...yes, that is quite amusing. Ask any movie, animation or comic fan in the know, and they will tell you it is the amazing, spectacular, sensational, avenging...this guy:
Spider-Man is a popular character because he deals with a lot of the same problems the average fan or audience members deals with; bills, trying to hold a job, changing personal plans, relationships, occasional bouts of sickness, etc. Audiences can relate because they know what these problems are like...minus the supervillains and webbing up random criminals of course.
Spider-Man represents the type of underdog character that virtually any writer can write well provided the writer does not overreach when re-imagining various aspects of the character's origins, and they know when to ease up on the personal challenges and self-doubts that the character might have. Goodwill to an underdog only goes so far if the writers give the character too much to deal with.
Some writers have a tendency to overload a character with self-doubts, flaws, and personal troubles because they believe it makes the character more relatable or it makes heroic achievements more meaningful when compared to what the character is usually like. Anime and Manga are quite guilty of overusing this trope for main characters; this is also overused on the occasional television program. Overdoing the hero's problems often has the effect of frustrating and disconnecting the audience.
In this case, the problems the hero has feel forced. Suspension of disbelief becomes difficult because it seems unlikely that one person can have so many problems and still manage to be capable of heroics or even function day-to-day. Characters may often be described as having no redeeming qualities that support characters can acknowledge. To add insult to injury, many heroic projects do a poor job of allowing underdog characters to grow beyond many of their problems or faults when not engaged in heroic activity.
Relatability is extremely important when adapting superheroes or heroes from one form of media to another. It can never be said enough times that if writers feel the need to fundamentally change a character because the character may not be as relatable in the original form, he or she should reconsider using a different character or create their own. Writers should never feel the need to artificially weaken a larger-than-life character by shoehorning unrealistic character issues or social problems onto them, nor should they generously load an underdog character with excessive amounts of internal or external baggage. Too many or unrealistic problems make it difficult for audiences to build rapport with a character, and some audiences may not have the patience to wait and see if a character develops as a story progresses.
As a component of relatability to a superhero or heroic character, writers need to provide a character's attitude and motivation. Why does the hero do what he or she does?
What makes the a tick? What circumstances in a character's life motivate him or her to join the battle between good and evil. Every character has a story, and it is up to the writers to present it in a way that makes the audience understand why the hero turns out the way he or she does.
There are any number of reasons for a character to become a hero; however, some motivations for heroism resonate better with audiences than others. Some heroes are raised with a desire to help others, have a destiny they cannot avoid, or are reluctantly cast into the role. Some do not care either way, but their actions usually cast them in the role of hero. Some of these heroic motivations can be difficult for writers to translate or adapt for certain audiences.
The reluctant hero is a common trope in Anime and Manga and is often used in tandem with the underdog hero trope for various television shows; both tropes are meant to make the hero's actions more meaningful when they finally have to make a stand.
These tropes when combined with poor character development can ruin even the best projects for all but the most fanatically loyal audiences.
Writers can occasionally overreach when adapting a character to film or creating an original one. Writers can make a character too emotionally weak and his or her origin unnecessarily convoluted, so when the character finally decides to become the hero audiences expect, it feels rushed and/or forced and contrived.
Most superhero or heroic stories start with some form of tragedy.
Comic books or novels work best for the more complex heroic motivations because these are mediums conducive to a slower, more descriptive storytelling pace. The strategy can work for television, but writers must be creative enough to maintain the audience's interest in the series while they learn who the hero is.
Many character motivations are difficult to translate to film. Writers cannot always fully develop a character within 80-150+ minutes.
Enjoying a character who is reluctant to do what he or she was expected to do until almost the end of the movie can test the patience of even the most dedicated moviegoers. Some filmmakers develop narratives as overarching tales to be told over multiple films. For this strategy to be effective, filmmakers must make the characters and stories interesting and compelling enough to allow each film to stand individually while forming a complete narrative when viewed together.
Many script writers tend to avoid using complex character motivations and stick with simpler ones, so audiences find them easier to understand. Most superhero or heroic stories start with some form of tragedy. The hero is victimized in some fashion or someone the hero cares for suffers, and the hero is powerless to stop it. Tragedy is the easiest motivation to use because nearly everyone has either experienced some form of tragedy or have seen someone else suffering and wished there was something they could do. Tragedy can connect the audience to a hero faster, but it is up to the writers to ensure the audience stays connected to the hero for the remainder of the narrative.
A hero's story can be told without tragedy, but in the hands of less experienced writers it is a tougher sale. Two heroes who come to mind from non-tragic origins are Captain America and Superman.
Captain America brings audiences the story of a weakling who wants nothing more than the opportunity to serve his country, but his size and state of health leads to his constant rejection each time he attempts to join the Army.
His bravery and character make him the ideal candidate for an experimental super-soldier program. After surviving a dangerous experimental process that gives him superhuman abilities, he becomes Captain America.
Superman brings audiences the story of an infant child sent to Earth from a dying world. The yellow sun of this world will cause the child to develop abilities that make him the mightiest being on the planet. This child is found by a childless couple and raised with their values. He also develops a sense of community and a desire to help those in need from the small town he is raised in. As much as his parents and his childhood sweetheart would appreciate him staying in Smallville, they know he has a greater purpose in life than simple farm work and encourage him to leave Smallville to find it.
Both of these heroes are motivated by nothing more than a desire to help those in need and right wrongs, and they have the necessary powers or abilities to do so. However, writers often struggle to make these types of characters continually interesting; this is especially true for a powerful character like Superman. It is difficult to make Superman compelling because he is not a character subject to problems the average person has. He is also a character who is unlikely to find himself in jeopardy or forced to struggle with a protagonist like a less powerful hero would.
Add to this audiences who have become jaded by poorly adapted versions of straitlaced hero models and the positive response to darker stories like those in the Nolan Batman Trilogy, and you have a recipe for darker movies, darker heroes, and potentially disastrous storytelling.