If you’re a Marvel fan, you would probably take offense to the title. Perhaps, you would want to tell me, “get a life and let people enjoy things.” As early as now, I reiterate to you… this is not about you. This is not about your feelings or your taste. If it would make you feel better, this was written by someone who enjoys watching Marvel films. I have seen them, from Captain America to Spider-Man: Far From Home (except for Endgame). I shipped Stucky and was attached to Ant-Man. Mark Ruffalo was my big crush back then. I appreciate Marvel movies, if you may ask.
My ex-best friend and former date introduced me to the cinematic universe. I’ve been a Marvel “consumer” since 2019. As someone interested in Science and Philosophy, it wasn’t that difficult for me to see why many people like it. I was able to apply my learnings in electromagnetism and quantum physics. But binge-watching during summer and watching three films each day made me realize something. It’s similar to how Scorsese describes them—a rollercoaster ride. Imagine entering a theme park and you ride a coaster with different names. But you ended up disappointed, as you only felt the same thing with each ride.
That’s how it feels like watching a Marvel film. As soon as you start it, you already know how it will end. Marvel movies are formulaic and repetitive. To quote Scorsese (2019), “… It’s a chicken-and-egg issue. If people are given only one kind of thing and endlessly sold only one kind of thing, of course, they’re going to want more of that one kind of thing.” Yet despite this, we still find ourselves falling into the trap and watching these movies repeatedly. However, this is the company’s goal—to get us used to their kind of cinema. What is their way? Repetition.
Subtle Fascism
Fascism or any authoritarian institution often relies on repetition. Even the Nazis thrived through it. They just used simple slogans and repeated them until what these slogans said was ingrained in the people’s minds (O’Shaughnessy, 2017). Marvel does that in a way. I see its fear of taking risks as a fear of losing profit. This is what Scorsese was trying to say with film production treated as a supply and demand issue. Marvel belittled its viewers by thinking they wouldn’t appreciate something beyond what it currently does. So Marvel resorted to the tried-and-tested formula in its storylines. It makes and releases the seemingly same type of films now and then. And with the dominance it has, we are being limited with the kinds of films we see. We happen to experience the same things repeatedly, thinking that it’s the only truth in cinema that exists. That’s the main core of fascism: for someone to create a general reality that is built upon illusions.
Marvel’s authoritarianism also manifests in the distribution phase as it intersects with other film institutions. For instance, the recent flak regarding the showings of Spider-Man: No Way Home during the Metro Manila Film Festival. Marvel fans have said that Philippine Cinema offers nothing new but corny dramas and insensitive comedy films. In contrast, Filipino cinephiles told them they clearly hadn’t watched enough movies.
On the surface, it’s easy to antagonize the other. If we’re going to analyze each statement, both share one thing despite the differences. They blame the audience—attack each other. This situation results from years of mind-conditioning and manipulation by oppressive institutions.
Media, such as films, are channels of communication. Therefore, movies play a significant role in information dissemination. And this is what our society is made up of—information. This is why we must not look at things as binary as we don’t have control over what we see and don’t. Instead, look from afar to see things objectively. You can’t blame MCU stans for looking at Philippine Cinema homogenously. You can’t blame these people for watching these films made by international capitalists and then thinking that it is the only thing that comprises cinema. Our own cinema doesn’t receive proper exposure in its own country. Festival films are difficult to access. We have a “development” council that cares more about international co-productions than empowering film education and literacy. Our policies aren’t enough to assure local films from getting the time they deserve. So there’s no wide chance to view our stories. And these are the only things Filipino cinephiles want. It’s just that the anger is misplaced at the audience, again.
We should look at these issues as an example of cultural imperialism. Isn’t it questionable to see that the only film showing in your local cinemas is a Marvel film? That this film was the only thing being offered? Imagine going to the cinema wanting to watch a different movie. Instead, you see a Marvel film just because it’s the only thing available. It’s frustrating that we use the law of supply and demand in distributing films. Cinema isn’t supposed to be treated like a product. You don’t just pull them out if they’re not selling well and make them stay when they do.
This criticism isn’t just exclusive to Marvel. As a friend of mine said, Disney is fascist too. Disney shares the same element with the MCU. At this point, I hope it’s clear that this is not just an issue of letting people watch what they want. Definitely, it’s not about degrading someone’s taste just because they’re crazy over the whole cinematic universe. To reduce these criticisms as elitism is to reject the idea of resisting big capitalist production companies like Marvel. The inaction ignores the real elitist, which is Marvel, that thinks that people won’t be able to connect with other kinds of cinema.
However, I understand it when people ask why I think about these things. Why can’t I just enjoy what I see? I get them. They’re just tired of the cruel reality and want to see a different one. They only want to escape.
Who Tells Us to Escape?
Marvel offers us a different world. If you’d allow me, the whole cinematic universe is unrealistic. Even the science behind these universes, quantum physics, is purely theoretical. Wakanda, a famous country shown in Black Panther, is the kind of state we have been wanting to want. Its movies are the most fiction among fiction stories. Perhaps, this is why a lot of people like Marvel films. They’re the people’s source of enjoyment, a form of escape. Can you blame them? No. Who would want to watch people die if they suffer in real life? Who would like to pay for cinema tickets only for them to feel bad? But the more important questions are: who tells us to escape? Who makes these escapist films? Who are the reasons why we escape?
We escape because we don’t want to confront things, to forget them for a while. We run away from reality. And when I say reality, it comprises the things we dread: deaths, poverty, suffering, etc. And to analyze these, all the things that we are afraid to face are all products of inequality in society. Poverty is caused by a severe imbalance in wealth distribution and monopolies. Poor healthcare systems, high crime rates, and state killings can cause deaths. Suffering can be brought by unemployment, class status, and personal challenges. All these things are products of capitalism, reducing us into dispensable commodities.
Capitalism isn’t just a system. We cannot just say “fuck the system” and think everything will be okay. A system is controlled by a certain group of people who have the hegemony. In our case, they’re called capitalists. They steal the farmers’ lands, illegally quarry in the ancestral domains, and exploit laborers. Capitalism exists everywhere, and cinema is no exemption. As I’ve mentioned, Marvel dominates the whole industry almost globally. It is also known for making these escapist films.
The irony lies here, we despise a world ruined by capitalists, but we escape by watching films made by them. (1) They create an unlivable society, (2) make films for us to escape reality, (3) and tell us to run away. In essence, we pay for these movies to forget the situation they have put us in. Escapism is a privilege. It teaches us to be passive and look at things as is when there’s more than everything. To compare it with Plato’s allegory of the cave, we are like prisoners inside a cave who enjoy watching the shadows projected by the fire. Without knowing that there’s something outside the cave. This allegory perfectly illustrates the whole escaping thing. It’s a layered structure caused by “unseen” oppressive forces.
Nonbinary Criticism
Whenever people ask me if I find a film beautiful, I find it difficult to give a “yes or no” answer. I know that discussion takes time, but I feel like these two words limit the possibilities in film criticism. But sometimes, when I’m tired of explaining myself, I just answer their question or give them a rating as if they’re Letterboxd. I’m scared that they might judge me for being “nerdy” or “too serious” about criticism when I just really advocate for film appreciation. I think of criticism as something that’s not binary. It doesn’t mean that if I like something, I wouldn’t be able to criticize it anymore. Criticisms aren’t always negative, anyway. Like a meme on Facebook says, “It’s not hypocritical to critique capitalism while participating in it. In fact, we are critiquing capitalism largely *because* we are forced to participate in it in order to survive.”
One time, I tweeted what Abbas Kiarostami said regarding Hollywood Cinema. It says, “…this [what I do] is exactly the opposite to what Hollywood is doing at the moment, which is brainwashing the audience to such an extent that it strips them of any imagination, decision-making or intellectual capacity, in order to captivate them for two whole hours.”
Hollywood has been domineering the whole industry since then. It has been known for having problematic representations, blatant racism, and a superiority complex. Imperialists, capitalists, and colonizers are who shaped it as a cinema. We have been adapting to Hollywood aesthetics for the longest time after thinking it’s the only beautiful thing in cinema. This dissonance in our aesthetics and culture has forced us to rely on purchasing expensive technology and mimicking its conventions. This same cinema birthed the flawed star system that commodifies actors. Hollywood is the symbol of cultural imperialism in cinema. Kiarostami’s criticism of Hollywood cinema is valid on so many levels. It doesn’t speak of the films made alone. It sees through the process, the intent, and the system. To police takes against the shitty Hollywood is to stop people from resisting.
What I am saying is simple, we can like Oscars but still see how white supremacist it is. I can see Disney’s tokenism representation but still cry over the movies they make. It’s fine to pay monthly subscription fees on Netflix despite knowing how their algorithm works. I can talk about how I disliked The Worst Person in the World yet find it relatable. So this also doesn’t invalidate my privileged enjoyment of Marvel movies.
Cinema goes beyond the individual aspect of a viewer. It talks about taste, but it sees the structure that defines our taste. It wants to know our emotions, but it discerns how these drive us as a community. Cinema, in its nature, is collectivist. Now, I tell you, you can watch all Marvel films and wait for the release of new ones. No judgment. But choosing to be ignorant of its capitalist-fascist characteristics perpetuates these oppressive systems. Make this discourse past our individual interests as this is about the society these types of cinema impact. We have to be aware of the structures surrounding us, as knowledge will fuel the rage it precedes.
References
O’Shaughnessy, N. (2017, March 14). How Hitler Conquered Germany. How Nazi propaganda encouraged the masses to co-produce a false reality. Retrieved May 31, 2022, from https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2017/03/how-nazi-propaganda-encouraged-the-masses-to-co-produce-a-false-reality.html
Scorsese, M. (2019, November 4). Opinion | Martin Scorsese: I Said Marvel Movies Aren’t Cinema. Let Me Explain. (Published 2019). The New York Times. Retrieved May 31, 2022, from https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/04/opinion/martin-scorsese-marvel.html
Walsh, D. (1998, April 11). Despair, hope, life – World Socialist Web Site. WSWS. Retrieved June 1, 2022, from https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/1998/04/cher-a11.html