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Superman: Man of Faith
In Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, people are debating on the topic of Superman all throughout the movie. There are some who believe he is a hero and a savior and some who believe he is a false god who is a menace to the world. This choice of writing was done to mimic the way in which people perceived Jesus before he died. Some hated him, and some loved him the same way they did Superman. Zach Snyder chose to do this after Man of Steel to create a realistic view of how the world would view someone with such powers. Not only that but Snyder has been known for putting religious elements in his other films making this clear that he decided to draw similar themes between Superman and Christ throughout the film. One notable scene Snyder does this is during Superman’s trial.
Although the scene ends with a bomb going off, the trial itself is like when Jesus was sentenced by Pontius Pilate to death, as Superman says nothing in the court room the same way Jesus refuses to say very little. Another scene that draws comparison to Jesus is the talk Superman has with his father before he goes before the court.
This resembles the action of Christ pleading to this father before he dies. The character of Bruce Wayne/Batman in the movie is compared to several biblical figures. One being Judas, who betrays Jesus by giving him up for money and later feels guilt, ending with him giving back the money and hanging himself. The actions of Judas are much different from Batman’s at the end of the film, but both feel immense guilt and like they let Jesus or Superman down and try to make up for it. Another biblical character Batman has been compared to is Saul, who was a persecutor of Christians and a non-believer of Christ. This changed when Saul has an encounter with Jesus, after his death, that pushes him on a path of redemption to preach Christ’s words and start one of the early churches to honor Jesus. This can be seen in Snyder’s film when Batman feels guilt of Superman’s death and decides to form the Justice League in honor of Superman and his sacrifice. Another interesting event that happens as Batman and Superman fight in the movie is Batman cutting Superman's cheek with the kryptonite spear. The spear represents the one used to stab Jesus when he was on the cross to make sure he was dead. Although there are many other comparisons that have been picked up on, I find these are some of the most notable in the movie excluding his death and resurrection.
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