WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Superman: Red Son, now available on digital HD.
Superman: Red Son was always going to be a thought-provoking film, especially given the highly-charged sociopolitical state of today's world. The topic of migrants and refugees is a hot button issue in the movie, pivoting on it as Superman grows from an alien crashing in Russia to the head of the USSR who wants to bring down oppressive Western politics and anti-freedom policies.
As such, it's a violent take with two world powers, American and Russia, going to war. But in the midst of all the heavy-handed messages, the animated movie actually fixes a major flaw when it comes to the DCEU's Man of Steel. Conversely, director Sam Liu also embraces a highly-criticized aspect of Zack Snyder's Batman.
THE PACIFIST MAN OF STEEL
Snyder's Superman was deemed overly aggressive following the events of 2013's Man of Steel, which carried over into Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice. Henry Cavill did a great job portraying Clark Kent, but the way Superman fought Zod and tore Metropolis down without care, likely killing thousands of innocents, made people feel neglected of the warm, heroic inspiration that the Man of Steel usually brings.
However, in Red Son, even though Superman grew up in the cold USSR where emotions aren't welcome, he still acts as a genuinely kind beacon of hope. He cares for everyone and tries to help the poor, albeit Stalin keeps slavery and other dark secrets hidden due to internment camps shielded by lead. Superman's naive and still has a kid-like mentality, which comes to be an issue when the pacifist has no choice but to eliminate his 'dad.' When Lex Luthor eventually sends Superior Man after him, as they demolish the streets of Stalingrad, Superman quickly sees collateral damage and flies to the snowy Russian mountains where he can cut loose and return the blows. It's a far cry from when Snyder's Superman tussled with Michael Shannon's Zod in hotheaded fashion, bringing skyscrapers down as they came to blows.
Even as a child, this Superman was against violence, and he prefers to fight in the skies or far away from humanity. It shows he does care for mankind, and his decisions are always opposing war. It pops up when his Brainiac servant keeps insisting he invade America, but despite having just cause, Superman opts against such acts. Red Son's hero believes peace should always be the first option, fixing the DCEU's flaw with its Kryptonian.
A MORE BRUTAL BATMAN
Another criticism of Snyder's world his Batman coming off as a grim and quick-to-fight vigilante. Instead of talking out his problems with Superman, he built an arsenal and went right after the alien, aiming to kill him. Even Alfred mentioned he should just have a conversation and not dive headfirst into a personal war, but Snyder wanted this Caped Crusader to be weary from years of fighting, and a soldier out for blood.
Red Son's Batman embraces this vengeful and lethal mentality more, making a big change from Mark Millar's comic. In the film, Bruce's parents died in Stalin's mines so Batman, decades later, wires a museum dedicated to the tyrant to blow up, killing many civilians after lying about them having ten minutes to escape. He also derives joy when he takes Wonder Woman hostage with her lasso. As he binds her to his will, he makes it such that if Superman hurts him, she'll kill herself. Both of these vicious stipulations weren't in the comics so clearly the powers that be wanted to make this version of the Bat as dark as possible.
It's an odd choice because the comic saw Bruce watch his parents get gunned down by Stalin's bodyguard, setting up his violent tendencies cleary. But instead, his terrorist mentality is stronger in this movie which admittedly gives Superman more reason to engage him in battle. What's interesting is the feud feels more organic and plays to both of their characteristics. The DCEU had them all too eager to fight, while in Red Son, Superman still wants to hold punches because he knows Batman's been misled by the perception he's a warlord.
Directed by Sam Liu, Superman: Red Son stars Jason Isaacs as Kal-El, Amy Acker as Lois Lane, Diedrich Bader as Lex Luthor, Phil Morris as James Olsen, Phil LaMarr as John Stewart, Vanessa Marshall as Wonder Woman, Sasha Roiz as Hal Jordan, Roger Craig Smith as Batman, Paul Williams as Brainiac and William Salyers as Joseph Stalin. The film is now available on digital HD, and will be available on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and DVD on April 17.