2017-08

Religious Themes and I
This article started out as a
conversation on the way home from
a cinema trip. Last year, Amy Hole
and I took my son Leon and her
boys, Magnus and Isaac, and to
see Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.
I was struck by the amount of religious
imagery used in the fi lm and began
discussing it with Amy while driving back.
What follows is a further exploration of the
ideas that began in that brief chat.
It’s not possible to write this article
without revealing key elements of the plot.
If you haven’t seen the fi lm
yet and don’t want to fi nd
out what happens, then
please feel free to stop
reading here.
Director Zack Snyder’s
2016 fi lm carries on from his
2013 release, Man of Steel,
which introduced us to the latest
cinematic incarnation of Superman,
played by Henry Cavil. Batman v
Superman further fl eshes out the world of
Superman and introduces us to the new big
screen versions of other superheroes from
the DC Comics universe – Wonder Woman,
Aquaman, The Flash and Batman.
Snyder is someone who clearly knows
and loves his comics. Here he weaves in
story elements and images from the wellknown
superman storyline The Death of
Superman, and another critics’ favourite,
Batman: The Dark Knight Returns.
As a comics fan myself, these obvious
references jumped out of the screen at me.
But they weren’t the main things that did.
What struck me particularly was the very
strong use of religious imagery throughout
the fi lm in relation to Superman, and to
those around him.
The subject probably has enough
material to fi ll out someone’s postgraduate
thesis. And I’m pretty certain I didn’t spot
all of it. So for the sake of brevity I’ll stick
to the essentials, those being the clear
parallels that are drawn between Superman
and Jesus.
From early on, we see he inspires an
almost messianic following from those
around him. In one scene, Superman is
in Mexico on the Day of the Dead having
just rescued people from a fire. The crowd
surround him, awed by his presence,
many hands reaching out to touch him.
The image of this crowd, their faces a
mixture of adoration and
fear haunts the viewer and
underlines the sense of
worship expressed towards
this incredibly powerful
individual.
As the film progresses we
see challenges to Superman as
people begin to question his right
to wield such power, and his selfappointed
mission to protect (or perhaps
to save?) humanity. Batman in particular
questions whether Superman should be
allowed to decide right from wrong, good
from evil.
Superman is put on trial, ostensibly for
his very existence, and then finds himself
accused of the bloodshed of innocents.
As the film edges towards its conclusion,
Superman must sacrifice his own life to
stop a seemingly unstoppable monster.
The fight between the two is ended with
the use of a spear – Superman impales
the monster with it while he himself is
transpierced by a bone growing from the
monster’s body.
In the aftermath of the battle, Superman’s
body, wrapped in his cloak, is lowered
down, while in the background, wooden
debris has fallen together in such a way as
to make cross-like shapes. Finally his body
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Church Offi ce: Linden Avenue, Sheffi eld S8 0GA
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Page 24
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