Batman vs. Superman [M]

What happens when the world pits one superhero against another? In Gotham City Batman’s judicial authorities have been questioned by many for years while across the pond in Metropolis the righteous character of Superman is under attack. Cue a psycho millionaire to tug away at the threads binding the two heroes from clashing and an epic battle transpires: it’s “man vs. God”, superpower vs. advanced technology, Batman vs. Superman. 

You don’t have to be a super cinephile to see what Warner Bros. and DC are trying to do here. The trailer gave it all away. Hey guys we’re going to be doing just what Marvel did when they got the green light for an Avengers movie, but oh such catching up to do in so little time… so here’s a movie that throws three of the major members of the Justice League together because we’re gonna make a Justice League movie! 

The rush to get audiences exposed to the characters is a weakness that the film had before I walked into the cinema, but I am not here to write about how I felt before the room went dark and the screen lit up. So, let’s talk Batman vs. Superman. 

Despite the ‘Sad Affleck’ viral video, the negative preconceptions that were not disappointed, and the writing and the change in characters, which I’ll discuss a little later, I have to honestly say that I have seen worse films. At the risk of being skinned alive by fanboys and girls, there are worse movies than Batman vs. Superman out there. Ultimately where the film falls down is in the writing. Now, as the screenplay of the movie is one of the critical building blocks on which a movie is structured, it’s not great when things go wrong there. 

I can’t really discuss it properly without spoiling it so, *Spoiler warning *. The story itself, when you peel away the layers, is really just an elaborate scheme to get rid of Superman and yes along the way it may explore or touch on certain interesting themes and metaphors, but at the end of the day it’s not hard to see what the point of everything that happens was. The potential dawn of the Justice League is more or less a recurring footnote brought to attention by a middle-aged Batman who needs an outlet for midlife crisis. 

Sadly too, it’s not just the central convoluted kill-Superman narrative where the writers dropped the ball. So, remember how Lex Luthor was a great villain because he was just a really cunning and greedy man that was all about profit? He wasn’t in this movie. Instead, we had a Lex Luthor that obviously had some kind of only-child, issues-with-parents-and-thus-authority psychological problems. What they tried to do was make him like the Joker in The Dark Knight by giving him this psycho edge that never gets explained and is thus mysterious and sinister. 

No, not sinister. He’s not sinister until he’s bald. For the most part of this movie he’s just a child that throws a tantrum when he doesn’t get what he wants and I know that’s going to piss off a lot of people who love Lex’s character in the comic books as well as Gene Hackman’s portrayal of him. 

But, to give credit where credit is due the cast was amazing and all the performances where great. Affleck’s Batman is a little more subtly complex because he is now middle-aged we have to remember, the carefree days of Christian Bale are no longer and a life of fighting criminals would prove taxing on the years. Affleck’s portrayal of the Dark Knight was gritty and in keeping with those that have come before so snaps for Affleck. 

Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor made a great villain, as I suspected he would. I am sure he would have made a great traditional Lex, but he also excelled with the version of Luthor that he was given and he was actually my favourite thing to watch in this film. What can I say, I like the bad boys. 

And when it comes to action, Zack Snyder really knows what he’s doing. The battle sequences were action-packed and adrenaline-pinching as well as CGI spectacles of wonder in themselves. Visually, the battles were exciting and stimulated all the right senses so the film does deserve some accolade for that. 

Starring Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Laurence Fishburne, Diane Lane, Jesse Eisenberg, Holly Hunter, Gal Gabot, Scoot McNairy, and Jeremy Irons, Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice is not the greatest Batman movie there is, but I would not say that it’s the worst either * coughs* Batman & Robin  * coughs*. Filled with action, drama, romance, and the very odd bit of comedy, it fell down because of iffy writing and representation, but it had its positive points too.