DC Movie Moments That Stunned Audiences

By and large, we go to superhero movies to feel stunned. There are exceptions to this rule, but usually superhero films, big and small, are meant to instill in audiences a sense of awe in seeing something they haven't seen before. This doesn't have to be awe defined by excitement. This sensation can be defined by anything ranging from suspense to uncertainty to joy. Whatever the emotion they're intended to reflect, superhero movies tap into the most classical purposes of cinema; to create art that inspires a profound reaction from the viewer. 

This sensation of being stunned has cropped up in several feature films based on characters from DC Comics. Over the various decades that these projects have been made, several individual films have delivered moments burned into the brains of moviegoers for how memorably jaw-dropping they are.

These include everything ranging from a particularly heroic moment for Wonder Woman in her first-ever live-action movie to an unforgettable montage sequence in Zack Snyder's "Watchmen" to the reveal of a larger-than-life villain in "The Suicide Squad," among many others. Watching these exhilarating moments from the history of DC Comics movie adaptations doesn't just lift one's spirits immeasurably, they also provide a reminder of the very specific wonders superhero movies can accomplish. 

"Shazam!" was already working as a film with Billy Batson's grown-up title alter-ego as the only superhero on-screen. However, the increasingly personal bond developed between Batson and his assortment of adopted siblings meant that it was only inevitable that this movie would hint at the idea of these other characters taking on their own adult superhero identities as the other members of the Shazam family. However, the final of "Shazam!" took things one step further by delivering a memorably crowdpleasing moment.

As the forces of Dr. Sivana and the Seven Deadly Sins prove too daunting to face alone, Batson realizes he's going to need help. He tells his step-siblings to grasp the staff of the wizard that first granted him superpowers and say the word "Shazam." Once this is accomplished, a cloud of dust emerges and the brightly lit lightning bolts on the chests of these grown-up superheroes shine through. Batson's no longer alone: he's now got a whole crew of superhero cohorts. It's a cheer-worthy moment that director David F. Sandberg executes with a welcome sense of theatricality, but what really makes this moment work is how fulfilling it feels as a culmination of Batson's arc. Previously a loner, now he's urging others to join him in his superhero escapades. What a wonderful mix of character development and delightful comic book references.

Back in 1989, comic book movies were not something that appeared every month in movie theaters, let alone ones with real production values and polished filmmaking. So the arrival of Tim Burton's "Batman" in this era was a bolt out of the blue, a reason for celebrating. To see the Caped Crusader inhabiting such a vividly detailed project, complete with the participation of actors like Jack Nicholson, was like watching dreams come true on the silver screen. This was made all the more apparent once the finale of "Batman" arrived and delivered a truly stunning moment of excitement.

Said climax involves Batman speeding off to stop The Joker's evil plans, and to get there quickly, Batman uses the Batwing. To see this piece of equipment in a live-action movie would have been thrilling enough. But "Batman" delivers a striking moment where the Batwing soars so high up into the sky that it flies directly in front of the moon. The image of the black Batwing against the white full moon is a powerful one that reflects the heights Batman can aspire to. It's such an impressive moment that it's still imitated in movies like "Tom and Jerry" decades later. Superhero movies are more common now, but moments as impactful as this one are not.

Zack Snyder's 2009 movie "Watchmen" has proved a divisive project over the years, with some viewing it as Snyder's masterpiece and others seeing it as a total hatchet job of the source material. But one thing everyone seems to agree on is how good the montage sequence depicting the origins of Jon Osterman / Doctor Manhattan (Billy Crudup) is. Lifted directly from the comics, this moment in "Watchmen" sees Osterman reflecting on his life in a fragmented manner, including his time before he got transformed into a blue-skinned being with limitless power.

While some parts of "Watchmen" didn't quite adapt as readily to the screen, this moment fit like a glove. Translating this sequence into the form of a montage helped to convey how rapidly flashes of memories float through the head of the unique new organism that Osterman becomes. The editing and Crudup's narration help to accentuate this sensation and make this rumination on Doctor Manhattan's past the most memorable moment in all of "Watchmen."

Most "Batman" movies draw a straight line between Bruce Wayne taking on the Batman identity and the demise of his parents in that fateful alleyway. But leave it to the animated movie "Batman: Mask of the Phantasm" to go somewhere more psychologically complex with the idea of what triggers Wayne to don the Batman persona. Here, a failed romance between Wayne and Andrea Beaumont is shown to be as influential as anything else on this character's decision to become a superhero.

In the aftermath of Beaumont abandoning their engagement, Wayne sees no other way forward in his life but becoming a masked vigilante bent on justice. This lends a uniquely tragic quality to this iteration of the character and his decision to become Batman, one informed as much by adulthood turmoil as residual childhood trauma. Those underlying meanings come to a head in a memorable moment where Wayne puts on the Batman mask for the first time, much to the horrified astonishment of Alfred Pennyworth. The audience is just as shocked as Alfred as they watch this moment define a unique twist on Batman's origins.

For a long time, the live-action DC Extended Universe movies had been defined by adherence to gritty realism. Even certain science fiction elements, such as Doomsday, had to be reworked to be byproducts of more grounded origin tales. But starting with "Wonder Woman," this norm began to get chipped away, with subsequent films like "Aquaman" and "Shazam!" working hard to emphasize a willingness to embrace the absurd. If one wanted a perfect portrait of just how far the DC Extended Universe had come in terms of accepting the ridiculous, one need only look at the first full reveal of Starro in "The Suicide Squad."

The story's primary antagonist is glimpsed throughout the film, including an early, smaller version of the character seen in old archival footage as well as a gigantic tentacle slamming against a window. Eventually, writer/director James Gunn is done teasing Starro and is ready for this otherworldly creature to be seen in all his glory. Once Starro bursts out from the ground and is seen in broad daylight, it's a truly impressive sight. It's incredible to see a version of Starro that makes no bones about being an enormous starfish, while the sheer scale of the character makes for an imposing adversary for the scrappier lead characters. It's an impressive moment guaranteed to blow audiences' minds and remind them how much modern DC films have changed in a short period of time.

If there was ever a moment in the history of DC Comics movie adaptations that was the very definition of "crowdpleaser," it was Wonder Woman's trek into No Man's Land in "Wonder Woman." The first time the character shows up in her iconic costume since she's left the island of Themyscira, Wonder Woman's very presence on this battlefield isn't just a rebuke of gender norms. It's also a moment that offers hope to many, including Steve Trevor, who believed that No Man's Land was impossible to cross — terrain emblematic of the hopelessness of World War I.

The sight of Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) walking into that battlefield without a moment's hesitation is the kind of stirring image that can't help but send chills up one's spine. At this moment, Wonder Woman doesn't even need to use her sword to elicit a sense of excitement from the viewer. Her standing up to a physical embodiment of hopelessness is enough. The extra context of this moment occurring in the first big-budget superhero movie headlined by a woman only enhanced the majesty of this image. A world of new possibilities for comic book movie storytelling had opened up at this moment, possibilities that indicated these films could inspire as often as they thrill. For those who had waited for so long to see Wonder Woman on the big screen, this moment from "Wonder Woman" was a dream come true and then some.