Zack Snyder and The Importance of a Support Crew

In the age where a lot of people are debating what a director even really does is, I think I should try to explain by using one of the most divisive filmmakers in modern cinema: Zack Snyder. For those unfamiliar with Snyder's body of work, he's best known for films such as the 2004 reboot of Dawn of the Dead, 300, Watchmen, and his work on the DCEU, where he also serves as a producer. Snyder's controversial largely for his "style of substance" approach to filmmaking, and he's got the mixed body of work to prove it. 

And for the record, he was only a producer on Wonder Woman, Rise of an Empire, and Suicide Squad.

But why, do you wonder, is reception to his work so varied? It's all because of who he works with and what material he's working on. Look at the reception of Dawn of the Dead, 300, and Watchmen in comparison to Sucker Punch and Batman v Superman. Do you want to know what the major difference is? Here's a hint: he didn't brainstorm the entire story of the first three. Dawn was written by Guardians of the Galaxy writer James Gunn, 300 is an adaption of a Frank Miller comic, and Watchmen is another comic adaptation written by David Hayter and Alex Tse. Whenever the story is left up to Snyder, he tends to go overly bombastic and largely nonsensical. 

The major point of this is that Snyder only works when he's with a team who are able to balance out his flaws. For instance, Snyder's frequent ally is Larry Fong, his cinematographer who, while not necessarily capable of cutting down his excess, makes the films shine, while the various writers he works with give him much better material than what he would normally make. When he's given weaker collaborators or works by himself, he struggles. For instance, compare the reception of Man of Steel (where he had Fong and was overseen by Christopher Nolan) to that of Justice League (where there was no Fong and Joss Whedon oversaw reshoots). 

While not great, it's better, right? Filmmaking is so much more than a solo vision: it's made possible by a team of people who get the vision and are able to make it work. Of course, it helps it if you have GOOD vision.