TDKR vs Civil War

[Snow Queen]

Maybe this site needs voter registration cards.

Needs to be reigned in. The TDKR vs Civil War Thread Accords, if you will.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

I am a fan of both films, but I'll take CW here. I'd take the other two TDKT flicks over CW easily, but not quite TDKR.

 

[DACrowe]

I know Civil War would win this poll. Even if it was held a few years from now, Civil War would still win it (while I tend to roll my eyes more when fans run this sort of thing so close that BvS can beat TDKR in polls).

Anyway, I still think The Dark Knight Rises is a great work of cinema from an auteur with terrific performances and a very memorable story and characters, including a great villain, and a shockingly bittersweet and exhilarating ending for Bruce Wayne. It will never win among Batman purists, but that movie is a class act and easily gets my vote here.

 

[spiderman2]

Dark knight rises and it is not even close. I am not sure where I would rank Civil war when it comes to CBM but I do know at best it would be my number 3 CBM of all time and dark knight is my number 1 and spiderman 2 is my number 2 and they are by far the top 2. Dark knight rises is so underrated it is much better then dark knight and I love dark knight to.

 

[Chip Chipperson]

lol

civil war made me feel like a kid again, TDKR had me wanting to beat the traffic

 

[Broseph44]

What kind of random comparison is this?

Anyway I vote CW. One of the top 5 CBMs ever.

This post sums up my thoughts exactly

 

[Broseph44]

 

[Superhero 101]

^LOL
Civil War because better cast, better action, TDKR has a better story though.

 

[StormC]

I love TDKR but the plot feels the sloppiest of its trilogy. It's mostly held up by the direction and emotional/thematic elements of the film.

CW's plot isn't as good as TWS but its character focus, incredible action scenes and game-changing events make it a winner in my book and my second favorite CBM after TDK. TDKR missed my top 5 and hits around 6-7.

Interestingly, both are the only movies I've seen in IMAX twice.

 

[CaptainWagner]

Dark knight rises and it is not even close. I am not sure where I would rank Civil war when it comes to CBM but I do know at best it would be my number 3 CBM of all time and dark knight is my number 1 and spiderman 2 is my number 2 and they are by far the top 2. Dark knight rises is so underrated it is much better then dark knight and I love dark knight to.

I'm assuming you meant TDKR was number 1 as opposed to TDK, then?

 

[DACrowe]

^LOL
Civil War because better cast, better action, TDKR has a better story though.

One bad moment from Cotillard aside, I highly, highly disagree with the cast. Especially because nobody was phoning it in like a few members of the Avengers in The Dark Knight Rises.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

I'd take the TDKR cast, but the movie is so poorly paced, and well it is just sloppy at times. It is so clearly cutdown. While I like it a lot, it I find it so damn frustrating.

 

[StormC]

It's pretty rare I actually watch a movie and notice plot problems. I only notice after the fact. TDKR is one of the few times where I actually nitpicked it as I watched it, so I gotta mark it down for that, even though I love it overall. I rewatched it with the whole trilogy recently and it still holds up great. Civil War just excited me in a way the MCU hadn't since the Avengers.

EDIT: I guess this poll is comparing two 3rd movies in the two most critically acclaimed superhero trilogies.

 

[Kobra]

One bad moment from Cotillard aside, I highly, highly disagree with the cast. Especially because nobody was phoning it in like a few members of the Avengers in The Dark Knight Rises.

Yeah, the idea that Civil War has a better cast is pretty wtf to me. I mean: Tom Hardy, Christian Bale, Gary Oldman, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman,Anne Hathaway. The thing is: It's not even close!

There's also no impressive performance in CW. The characters don't really demand much.

 

[Bayne]

Yeah, the idea that Civil War has a better cast is pretty wtf to me. I mean: Tom Hardy, Christian Bale, Gary Oldman, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman,Anne Hathaway. The thing is: It's not even close!

There's also no impressive performance in CW. The characters don't really demand much.

Morgan Freeman barely had anything to do in TDKR and Gary Oldman's character randomly transformed into a moron. Meanwhile, I'll easily take Daniel Bruhl, Elizabeth Olson, Paul Bettany, Robert Downey Jr., Chadwick Boseman and Chris Evans' performances in CW over everything in TDKR.

 

[TeeKay]

Civil War.

 

[Kobra]

Morgan Freeman barely had anything to do in TDKR and Gary Oldman's character randomly transformed into a moron. Meanwhile, I'll easily take Daniel Bruhl, Elizabeth Olson, Paul Bettany, Robert Downey Jr., Chadwick Boseman and Chris Evans' performances in CW over everything in TDKR.

I would take Tom Hardy or Christian Bale over anything in Civil War. The few scenes Michael Caine was in were more emotional and displayed a lot better acting skills than anything in Civil War. There's absolutely nothing special about Chris Evans's performance. His role is just not demanding. RDJ is his usual self. He is as interesting as he is when he is giving an interview. What he does as Tony Stark requires very little acting chops. The entire cast was given very simplistic jobs. There's nothing demanding there.

 

[Lilbaz]

^LOL
Civil War because better cast, better action, TDKR has a better story though.

Not sure about better cast. Caine, Freeman, Bale, Hardy, Hathaway.

As for which film is better is too close to call for me at the moment. Will have to watch Civil War again. Enjoyed both of them.

 

[StormC]

There's absolutely nothing special about Chris Evans's performance.

Now you've just lost me completely.

 

[Kobra]

Now you've just lost me completely.

I don't care. I'm still waiting for him to display anything more than basic acting skills. We're talking about Captain America. We're not talking about The Joker. 90% of the time being Captain America just means being serious and talking like a regular guy would talk.

 

[StormC]

90% of the time being Captain America just means being serious and talking like a regular guy would talk.

Sometimes that's all you really need. Evans has a natural charm to him that carries him in the role, just like RDJ as Iron Man, especially having seen him in the first half of TFA as weak little Steve; throughout all the films, deep down, he's still the sick kid from Brooklyn.

 

[Kobra]

Sometimes that's all you really need. Evans has a natural charm to him that carries him in the role, just like RDJ as Iron Man, especially having seen him in the first half of TFA as weak little Steve; throughout all the films, deep down, he's still the sick kid from Brooklyn.

So what? If someone has a natural charm and can basically just be himself in a role, that's not exactly the greatest example of acting, is it? We're not talking Gary Oldman here, who basically disappears in many different roles, are we? Is Chris Evans a good Captain America? Yes he is. Is the role of Captain America demanding? No, it isn't. As long as you look the part and can talk like a regular confident guy, you won't need much beyond basic acting skills so you can convey the very basic human emotions you need to convey.

 

[StormC]

Now you're comparing natural skill vs. learned skill. Some actors are just well suited for certain roles by sheer natural personality. There are so many actors, very good ones even, that would make Captain America seem old timey, silly, campy, and "let's go get 'em, boys!" Evans is able to carry the role believably through his own natural talent.

Same with RDJ as Iron Man; from the outside in it seems easy and natural, but that's just because he has that skillset innately. Again, lots of plenty good actors would screw up that role too.

 

[Erzengel]

I think Chris Evans is a standout as Captain America and over 5 films has set a standard for his role. Luckily, if they go with Bucky taking the mantle they won't have to worry about the "recast" comparison as with Superman, Batman and SpiderMan.

 

[Kobra]

Now you're comparing natural skill vs. learned skill. Some actors are just well suited for certain roles by sheer natural personality. There are so many actors, very good ones even, that would make Captain America seem old timey, silly, campy, and "let's go get 'em, boys!" Evans is able to carry the role believably through his own natural talent.

Same with RDJ as Iron Man; from the outside in it seems easy and natural, but that's just because he has that skillset innately. Again, lots of plenty good actors would screw up that role too.

It's easy and natural because:

1- The roles are not complex

2- They are naturally very similar to the characters they're playing.

My point is: That's not a demonstration of great acting skills. Great acting skills are demonstrated when you're able to completely transform yourself into someone who is completely different from you. That's what requires real talent and real skill. Look at Gary Oldman as Drexl. That's what you call a really great performance. Chris Evans as Captain America is just basic decent acting, which means he is credible playing a not very complex character.

Must we keep pretending that there's great acting involved in these films, or even great storytelling? I think it's ok to just let things be what they are. We don't need to elevate mediocrity to unrealistic heights, when there are tons of great actors out there that really deserve the credit for the amazing characters they portray. I can be a fan, but i don't need to be delusional. I know Ben Affleck playing Batman didn't require much more than simply looking good in the suit. He was perfect in it, but it's not exactly the most demanding acting job.