DC is not afraid to embrace the gritty features of live-action filmmaking. It has been synonymous with darkness to the point where it has had to move away from it in order to garner a wider audience’s attention.
Throughout the history of modern filmmaking, whether in the DC Extended Universe or the Christopher Nolan trilogy, ultra-violent and bleak fight sequences have left an indelible impression on the viewer.
DC has it all, from Batman breaking his back to Superman’s war destroying the city he wants to protect. And in this video, we will go over twelve of these classic instances.
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Superman Fights Batman To His Death
Superman and Batman clash against one another for the first time in live-action in the 2016 film Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Directed by Zack Snyder, the story follows the exploits of Lex Luthor. The criminal mastermind manipulates Batman into battling his arch-nemesis Superman and revives the Kryptonian monster that is Doomsday.
It follows the events of Man of Steel where Superman battled General Zod in Metropolis. Following the destruction caused by the battle, the people have begun to see the Man of Steel in a controversial light. Batman himself believes this overpowered being to be a threat to humanity.
Meanwhile, Clark Kent isn’t on terms with Batman’s vigilantism and ruthless brandings and wants to expose him as a reporter. At the same time, Lex Luthor is trying to import Kryptonite under the guise of protecting the future from Kryptonian threats.
Luthor invites Bruce to his fundraiser event where Clark Kent interviews him as a representative of the Daily Planet. Bruce Wayne confesses how he considers Superman to be a threat. Bruce later gets a terrible nightmare where an evil Superman has turned the world into a post-apocalyptic place. After he wakes up, he gets his hands on the Kryptonite Luthor was trying to import as he wishes to fight Superman with it. He then builds a powerful exoskeleton, a spear tipped with the mineral, and a kryptonite grenade launcher to aid him in battle.
Luthor kidnaps Superman’s adoptive mother Martha Kent and Lois Lane. Clark saves Lois but Lex being Lex, asks him to take Batman’s life in exchange for Martha’s. He also confesses how he fuelled their distrust towards one another to make the two heroes stand against each other.
When Superman and Batman come across each other, Superman tries to talk it out. However, Batman is not interested. He activates sonar cannons to gain an advantage on Superman and it seems to work for a second or two, but that’s about it. He throws Batman away with a slight push and destroys his machine gun turrets with his heat vision. He proceeds to overwhelm Batman completely with very lightly placed attacks because, well, he’s a bit too powerful isn’t he? However, this is Batman with prep time. He finally fires the kryptonite gas grenade at Superman, turning the Man of Steel into..just a man.
It then turns into a battle of skill and Superman is no match for Batman. For a while, he throws Superman around like a toy and takes only a hit or two. He smashes his head against a wall and pulls back no punches, until Superman turns into the steel again. The tide of the battle turns for a short while until Superman intercepts another kryptonite gas grenade. Once again, Batman dominates. He throws Superman from atop which takes a huge toll on Superman’s body since he is weakened. He then proceeds to hit him with a ceramic sink and toys with him. With his kryptonite spear, Batman manages to cut Superman’s skin, which brings up the famous dialogue, “Do you bleed?”.
Batman Saves Superman’s Mother
Continuing from where the previous example ended, Superman asks Batman to save Martha. At first, Batman is furious because he believes Superman is using Martha Wayne’s name to exploit Batman’s weakness. However, Lois Lane arrives at the nick of time and explains the situation – Martha is the name of Superman’s mother. Batman finally regains his senses and realizes that Lex Luthor is the mastermind behind all of this. He promises to save Martha and heads to the warehouse in Gotham where she was being held.
The place had been shielded by several criminals working under the command of Anatoli Knyazev, and by extension, Lex Luthor. Batman reaches there via the Batwing and infiltrates the warehouse. He launches a surprise attack on the criminals and absolutely decimates them despite fighting several people at once. He goes as far as to pin one of them to the wall with his knife. For a guy who doesn’t kill, he probably ended up killing many here, albeit not intentionally. He was also aided by Alfred, who as usual, was working behind the scenes.
Finally, Knyazev blackmailed Batman, threatening to kill Martha with an explosion. However, after the explosion was activated, Batman shielded Martha and successfully rescued her.
Kal-El vs. General Zod
The 2013 film Man of Steel marked the debut of the DC Extended Universe. It featured Superman’s origin where Clark Kent learns about his lineage as an alien from a destroyed Krypton. He then devotes himself to protecting the Earth as Superman with his unparalleled strength and ultimately, clashes against General Zod, another Kryptonian who wants to destroy humanity.
The movie begins with a destabilized planet Krypton. Meanwhile, Kal-El was the first naturally born Kryptonian in centuries. He was infused with a genetics codex and sent to Earth in a spacecraft to ensure his survival. Meanwhile, an uprising took place where the corrupt General Zod kills Superman’s father, Jor-El, as he tries to get his hands on the codex. But before he can shoot down Kal-El’s pod, he is arrested and imprisoned in a pocket universe or the Phantom Zone. The planet eventually explodes.
Kal-El grows up as Clark Kent in Kansas where he gradually discovers his abnormal strength. His adoptive father, Jonathan Kent, urges him to keep it hidden, even during a tornado where he eventually dies. Ridden with guilt over not saving his father, Superman searches for a purpose in life.
One day, Clark investigates a scout ship as a worker. It turns out to be Kryptonian where Kal-El learns about his true nature via an AI. Meanwhile, Zod and his crew escape imprisonment. They come to Earth, hoping to make it the new Krypton and try to terraform the planet. His ultimate device, the World Engine, damages Metropolis to a massive extent and threatens the existence of humanity.
As Superman, Clark goes underneath the machine and tries to overcome the output of its engine. When he does so, he crashes through the World Engine, causing it to explode and subsequently causing the device to get ruined.
Superman destroys the control panel of the ship at Metropolis and destroys the spacecraft and the Genesis Chamber with his heat vision.
Zod’s ship and its people also intercept an attack and disappear in a singularity. Now devoid of any way to revive Krypton, General Zod swears to exterminate humanity to exact revenge on Superman. The two Kryptonians then engage in a battle that causes abnormal amounts of collateral damage, which would eventually put the events of Dawn of Justice in motion.
Zod gains powers similar to Superman as he adapts more and more to the atmosphere. Skyscrapers all across Metropolis are destroyed as the two superpowered beings collide. Zod’s newfound heat vision creates more troubles with the damage. Construction sites, cars, and the streets are devastated. The fight is taken to space where it even destroys satellites and causes a meteor shower. As they crash land, they find themselves in a train station.
Here, Zod activates his heat vision. He threatens to kill innocent people while Superman has him in a chokehold. Ultimately, Superman is forced to twist Zod’s neck and kills him to save the others.
Aquaman vs. King Orm Scene: The Final Battle
Aquaman is a 2018 film that is centered around Arthur Curry’s journey to stopping his violent half-brother, King Orm, and preventing him from destroying the surface world.
Before we get into the meat of the story, a little bit of a backstory is needed. Before Arthur’s birth, his mother Atlanna, the Queen of Atlantis, fell in love with a human named Thomas. They gave birth to Arthur but Atlanna eventually had to leave to protect her family from her people. As Arthur grows up, he learns how Atlanna was executed for loving a human and he rejects Atlantis.
In the present, one year after Steppenwolf’s defeat, King Orm of Atlantis tries to gain the title of Ocean Master to destroy the surface world.
His ally, Nereus, has a daughter, Mera, who is betrothed to Orm. But, she refuses to aid them. She tries to get Arthur to help them and is aided by Vulco. Arthur and Mera go on a quest to retrieve the Trident of Atlan so that Arthur can become the king. After an adventure, they are able to retrieve its coordinates. However, during a battle with amphibious monsters from the Trench, they are transported to unchartered territory.
Here, Arthur meets Atlanna, who was actually sacrificed to the Trench but managed to survive. Arthur goes against a mythical leviathan named Karathen to acquire the Trident. Following this, Orm’s followers turn to support Arthur as he now wields the Trident of Atlan.
Finally, Arthur engages in a historic battle with his half-brother amidst a storm in the ocean. The two Tridents clash evenly and Aquaman tries to push Orm to a propeller. Orm bypasses it and attacks back but Aquaman then uses his Trident to literally wield water as his weapon. Ultimately, he breaks Orm’s Trident instead of killing him.
Wonder Woman No Man’s Land Battle
This 2017 movie features Wonder Woman for the second time in a live-action format. This is also the first standalone movie for Diana of Themyscira. In the movie, the events of World War I make Diana suspect that Ares, the God of War is behind this. So, she escapes from Themyscira with an American pilot and spy to bring an end to the War.
The story begins with the origin of Diana, who is an Amazon. She was told since her childhood that Ares wanted to destroy humanity and Zeus used the last of his power to make the God of War retreat. Before his death, Zeus left a weapon called the God-Killer with the Amazons to use, should the occasion arise. At first, Diana’s mother tries to shield her but finally lets her sister train her.
After Steve Trevor’s plane crash lands in Themyscira, German soldiers invade the island. The Amazons fight them off and interrogate Steve who tells them about the war and his status as a spy for the Allies. After stealing a notebook owned by the German chemist Dr. Isabel Maru, he had blown his cover. Diana believes that Ares is behind this and is determined to stop him with the god-killer.
She goes to London with Steve Trevor and translates the notes of Dr. Maru, who plans to release a deadly gas at the Western Front. Steve recruits another spy, a marksman, and a smuggler to stop the atrocity and with Diana, they reach the front in Belgium. However, they are stuck in No Man’s Land, which hasn’t budged an inch in a year. Diana takes it upon herself to bypass the No Man’s Land.
She takes off her coat and goes to the battlefield in her armor. She intercepts the bullets with her indestructible bracelets and is able to ward them off. Even the grenades are blocked by the shield as she keeps advancing over the enemy’s attacks. The others on her side begin to move in as well and finally, they cross the No Man’s Land and reach the German trench. Diana breaks the guns with her shield and with Steve and the others, they proceed for an even grittier fight.
In the town, Diana receives a rain of bullets but that’s nothing her shield can’t block. She absolutely decimates the enemies wielding guns with her sword, lasso, and shield. She tries to take out a sniper but fails at first. She overturns a tank and fights off more enemies. Ultimately, Steve uses debris from the now broken tank to catapult Diana high up in the air and not only does she take down the sniper, her attack also breaks the upper portion of the tower.
The Suicide Squad Kills The Wrong People
In 2021, the Suicide Squad movie got a fancy reboot. Directed by James Gunn, the movie features convicts joining Amanda Waller’s Task Force X in exchange for reduced sentences. They are sent to an island called Corto Maltese to destroy the traces of an alien starfish called Starro the Conqueror.
Amanda Waller assembles the Suicide Squad with inmates from bell Reeve. They are to be sent to the island nation of Corto Maltese, which has been overthrown by an anti-American regime. A Nazi-era laboratory on the island hosts a secret experiment called Project Starfish. The Squad lands but the Corto Maltese military ambushes them and wipes them out. Only Harley Quinn and Colonel Rick Flag manage to survive. It works out as a diversion and then, the real Suicide Squad is introduced with Bloodsport, Peacemaker, Ratcatcher 2, Polka-Dot Man, and King Shark. Meanwhile, Flag and Quinn are missing.
Waller orders the original Suicide Squad to find Rick Flag who had been captured by the rebel soldiers. The Squad manages to find the base and massacres everyone there. Bloodsport and Peacemaker are both mercenaries, excelling at marksmanship and the two of them get into a rivalry over who is better at their job. King Shark eats a guy alive. There’s a scene where Peacemaker finds a guy who is lying down and casually stabs him like a kid stabbing an apple with a fork. Ultimately, they find Rick Flag but find out that he is having tea with the leader of the rebellion, Sol Soria because they are on good terms.
Superman vs Doomsday
We go back to Dawn of Justice once again for this one right here. Apart from the very obvious battle between DC’s two most popular superheroes i.e. Batman and Superman, the film also brings two more surprises. Wonder Woman and Doomsday.
Lex Luthor had discovered a radioactive mineral in the Indian Ocean, which turned out to be the Kryptonite that Batman had trailed and stolen to defeat Kal-El. At the same time, Lex also got access to Kryptonian scout ships and by extension, the body of General Zod.
After Batman stole the Kryptonite, Lex went back to the scout ship. He used Zod’s fingerprints and entered the Genesis Chamber of the Fortress of Solitude. Here, he learned about the existence of hundreds and thousands of recorded worlds. With his new knowledge, he later brought Zod’s body to the chamber to genetically modify him. He then combined Zod’s blood with his own, allowing the chamber to transform Zod’s body.
After he learned that Superman and Batman did not kill each other, he moves to execute his backup plan. He awakens the genetically modified monster he had created – Doomsday, a Kryptonian deformity designed to kill Superman. Doomsday awakens and Superman arrives to battle his natural enemy.
Superman somehow manages to persevere in the fight and is aided by military helicopters, but all the explosions backfire and make its body more durable. Superman takes Doomsday to space and the US President orders the launch of a nuclear missile. Superman ensures Doomsday intercepts it but once again, the explosion only makes him stronger. Its body regenerates. Batman is cornered and Doomsday is about to unleash its power to kill the Dark Knight when Wonder Woman appears out of the blue and saves Batman.
The energy surge from her bracelets manages to take a toll on Doomsday when Superman returns to the battlefield after being out following the nuclear missile strike. He sends Doomsday flying into a gas tank while Wonder Woman joins in as well. While the two of them attack Doomsday, Batman tries to expose it to the kryptonite. Wonder Woman cuts off its right hand, which is now replaced by the sharp bony protrusion.
Ultimately, Superman gets the Kryptonite tipped spear made by Batman, at the cost of his own health hazard while Wonder Woman holds Doomsday back with her lasso of truth. Superman arrives and pierces the spear in Doomsday’s heart, even though the prolonged exposure will be fatal for him as well. To make matters worse, Doomsday pierces the protrusion on his arm into Superman’s chest. Superman, who has accepted his death, uses it as leverage to push his body forward and pierce his spear deeper into Doomsday.
Finally, Superman kills the creature. However, he himself dies in the process, giving Lex Luthor the result he wanted all along.
Suicide Squad’s Battle On The Street
Before the James Gunn Suicide Squad, David Ayer had his own version. It follows a similar Amanda Waller recruits convicts into her Task Force X trajectory. But with a different ensemble cast except for a few characters.
The movie is set in a time, nine months after the death of Superman in the hands of Doomsday. Waller brings Deadshot, Harley Quinn, Captain Boomerang, Katana, Killer Croc, El Diablo, Enchantress, and Slipknot together. Meanwhile, June Moone, who is Colonel Rick Flag’s lover and the host of the Enchantress, begins to fall prey to the witch spirit residing in her. The Enchantress escapes and contacts her brother Incubus. Together, they attack the city and create a horde of monsters.
The Squad is sent to fight the Enchantress. When she senses their arrival and intentions, she causes their chopper to crash. Not long after, they encounter a swarm of the monsters created by the witch. In fact, seeing the nature of the creatures, even the villains get a little serious. Only a little.
Colonel Rick Flag and Deadshot rely on their weapons. Harley begins to hit them with her baseball bat, Katana slashes with her sword, and Boomerang goes off with his boomerangs, accidentally dropping his cute pink unicorn stuffed toy in the process (don’t worry, he recovered it). The minions gang up on Rick Flag but Harley defeats them with her baseball bat. Deadshot takes the lead and singlehandedly eliminates a massive portion of the creatures, just to flex on Rick Flag.
The Final Battle Between The Justice League And Steppenwolf
The 2017 Justice League movie garnered polarizing views and mixed reviews. Fans demanded the Synder Cut version to be released and in 2021, that dream came to life. In Zack Snyder’s Justice League, the League goes against Darkseid, Steppenwolf, and the Parademon armies as they try to save the world from catastrophe.
For five thousand years, Darkseid has tried to conquer Earth with the three Mother Boxes. Time and again, the plans have been foiled and the Mother Boxes were eventually hidden separately.
In the present, Superman is dead (courtesy, Doomsday) and death has reactivated the Mother Boxes. This has caught Steppenwolf’s attention, the disgraced lieutenant of Darkseid. Here, he wants to get the boxes and form the ‘Unity’, changing the Earth into Darkseid’s home i.e. Apokolips, and regaining his favor once again.
Steppenwolf gets the mother box from Themyscira and Atlantis. Diana informs Bruce of this and they set out to form the Justice League with metahumans. Victor or Cyborg retrieves Motherbox in the human world and explains how the boxes can rearrange matter. So, the League decides to use it to resurrect Superman.
The plan works out until a resurrected Superman turns against the League but Lois Lane arrives in time to stop Superman’s rampage. Meanwhile, Steppenwolf receives a vision of the Anti-Life Equation. This was a power Darkseid was after as it controlled all of existence.
The League minus Superman heads to fight Steppenwolf who is trying to form the Unity. Even though Steppenwolf subdues them in battle, Superman arrives in time and completely turns the tide. Even though Wonder Woman and Aquaman pull their weight in the fight, Superman alone is more than enough. He nullifies Steppenwolf’s attack with his freeze breath and fights back with his heat vision. He throws Steppenwolf around who is just no match for the Man of Steel but ultimately, Cyborg fails to separate the boxes.
Batman vs. Ra’s Al Ghul
Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins reboots the Batman film franchise and is the first film from an iconic trilogy. It follows Bruce Wayne’s journey to becoming Batman. However, he must go against Ra’s Al Ghul and Scarecrow.
The movie introduces Batman’s origin with him being attacked by bats and that terrifying night at Crime Alley.
Bruce spends years training to fight criminals. In Bhutan, he’s recruited into Ra’s al Ghul’s League of Shadows by Henri Ducard. However, he learns how the League intends to destroy Gotham City and rejects the League. He burns down their temple which allegedly kills Ra’s. However, he saves Henri Ducard.
Bruce returns to Gotham and takes up the moniker of Batman while presenting as a billionaire playboy in public. He later gets involved in an entanglement with the Scarecrow, who had introduced a fear-inducing drug into Gotham’s water supply. Following the events, Henri Ducard attends Bruce’s birthday party at Wayne Manor.
However, Ducard reveals himself to be the real Ra’s al Ghul. He has stolen a powerful microwave emitter from Bruce’s company and he intends to vaporize the water supply in the city with it, which would’ve caused Scarecrow’s drug to be airborne. He sets Wayne Manor on fire but Alfred saves Batman.
Ra’s loads the emitter onto the monorail system of Gotham, hoping to realize his plans. Batman reaches the monorail to fight him while Commissioner Jim Gordon waits to aid Batman. The two of them fight to the death. Batman doesn’t kill and is against Ra’s idea of killing but of course, the Dark Knight is a terrible opponent to have.
A nasty and brutal fight ensues in the train and neither side holds back their punches. That is until Commissioner Gordon uses the Tumbler’s cannons and destroys a section of the railway track. Ra’s chides Batman for being one to not kill but Batman simply replies with the fact that he won’t be saving Ra’s either. And with that, Batman escapes. The train crashes and the huge explosion kills Ra’s.
Harley Quinn vs. Cops And Prisoners
Birds of Prey is a 2020 movie that follows vigilante women who combat organized crime. The Joker has dumped Harley Quinn and she is now threatened by Roman Sionis, a Gotham City crime lord. She teams up with Black Canary, the Huntress, and Renee Montoya. Together, they go to save Cassandra Cain.
Following her split with the Joker, she blows up Ace Chemicals to make their breakup public. Meanwhile, a crossbow-wielding vigilante is out and about after being a part of a series of mob killings.
Detective Renee Montoya finds Harley’s necklace at the Ace Chemicals explosion site and suspects that she is in danger. She tries to get in touch with Harley’s ally and Sionis’ driver Dinah or Black Canary but Dinah resents the GCPD.
Sionis sends Victor Zsasz and Dina to retrieve a diamond with the account number that could access the massacred Bertinelli crime family. However, Cassandra Cain, a young pickpocket steals it and swallows it when arrested. Sionis’ men also capture Harley, who is threatened to recover the diamond from Cassandra.
Harley goes to the GCPD, armed with a variety of non-lethal firearms. She breaks into the department and fights all the guards. Not only does she use her fun weapon, Harley Quinn also does not shy away from throwing hands.
She heads to the place of imprisonment where she doesn’t know which button will open the door for her. So like a sane person, she smashes all the buttons and gains access. She manages to find Cassandra Cain but the other prison doors open as well. Now, Harley has to fight the other convicts and she holds back no punches, no kicks, absolutely nothing. Ultimately, she manages to free Cassandra and they escape.
Batman vs. Bane – Sewer Fight
The 2012 film The Dark Knight Rises is the third film in Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy. It is set eight years after The Dark Knight where the terrorist Bane forces Bruce Wayne to resume his life as Batman as he poses a huge threat to Gotham City.
Bane is a former member of Ra’s al Ghul’s League of Shadows. He abducts a nuclear physicist with the end goal of looking into Gotham City succumbing to nuclear destruction.
The Gotham City police enjoy expanded powers, thanks to the Dent Act. Organized crime has been eradicated and Batman is nowhere to be seen. Dent’s crimes have been kept under the wraps and Wayne Enterprises isn’t flourishing like before.
The masked terrorist sets up his base in the sewers. He prompts Bruce’s corporate rival to buy Bruce’s fingerprints, which are obtained by Selina Kyle. The police are alerted and they follow Bane into the sewers. However, Commissioner Gordon is captured and taken to Bane. Thankfully, Gordon escapes.
He is found by the rookie officer John Blake, who has figured out Batman’s identity. He tries to get him to return as Batman. Meanwhile, Bane uses Bruce’s fingerprints to attack the Gotham Stock Exchange, which bankrupts Bruce. Bane expands his operations and Batman resurfaces.
Kyle offers to take Batman to Bane but double-crosses him. Batman is led into Bane’s trap and here, Bane confesses that he wishes to destroy Gotham to fulfill Ra’s al Ghul’s mission. Prior to the fight, Alfred was unconvinced about Batman defeating Bane. This turns out to be true as Bane easily subdues Batman.
Batman is literally no match for Bane here. While Batman is unable to get a single decent hit in, Bane grabs Batman by his throat and lifts him in the air. He throws Batman around and when the lights go out, gives out a bone-chilling speech about being born in the darkness. Molded by it. Throughout the fight, Batman fires himself up with his growls. Meanwhile, Bane is calm as he gives out marvelous speeches. But in the end, as he tries to figure out which one is going to break first, Batman’s spirit or body, he lifts Batman up and breaks his back.
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