By Brett Blake This review is likely going to read as extremely negative, for which I apologize in advance. I’ll say right up front that - all things considered - I think there’s more good in BATMAN v SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE than there is bad, but it’s easier to discuss the movie’s (many) problems in a broad sense, while its virtues tend to boil down to specific moments that I’d rather not spoil. What I can say for certain is that it’s a frustrating film, a movie of supreme high points and truly dire low points. It’s an epic-scale extravaganza, to be sure, and those looking for grand superhero mayhem will certainly be satisfied, but beyond that, it’s a movie that’s ultimately a bit lacking. Picking up 18 months after MAN OF STEEL (and after a prologue introducing us to Ben Affleck’s new Bruce Wayne/Batman), the story - as one might guess from the title - centers around a growing conflict between Batman and Superman (Henry Cavill), a conflict being influenced heavily by one Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg), who - for nefarious reasons - wants to see the two heroes battle it out in epic fashion. The likes of Lois Lane (Amy Adams), Wayne’s trusted Alfred (Jeremy Irons), and even the mysterious Diana Prince/Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) are all along for the ride as the two titans grow ever closer to trading punches. Walking into the theater, I had two primary concerns: one, that - in an effort to bolster our new Batman - Superman would get kind of shafted, and two, that Jesse Eisenberg’s Lex Luthor would be too ridiculous to pose a threat to our heroes. On both those counts, the movie unfortunately comes up short. MAN OF STEEL is a good film, and as an origin story, I think its interpretation of Superman set the character up to be in a more classical vein going forward. That’s not the case in BATMAN v SUPERMAN, however; Superman spends the majority of the film being viewed suspiciously by just about everybody (including Batman and Lex Luthor, most visibly), and there is little joy or optimism to be found in the way the film treats the character. Fans of Superman would surely be hoping the movie would do right by the character, but it kind of doesn’t. The filmmakers were apparently uninterested in giving Superman many opportunities to be, I don’t know, heroic; he gets few standout moments, which is a real shame. Additionally, the movie never really gives Superman a chance to defend himself in any meaningful way against the perspectives voiced by Batman and Luthor, nor does it give him many people in his corner rooting for him, aside from Amy Adams’ Lois Lane. The character himself also takes an enormous amount of abuse in the movie, to the extent that it actually feels sort of perverse, and this carries over into the general tone of the film, which is mature and adult, yes, but also incredibly heavy. Kids likely won’t have much fun with this. Henry Cavill, however, does the very best he can, expanding on the profound decency and earnestness he brought to Superman in MAN OF STEEL; he’s a good guy trying to help others and do the right things, and Cavill really had me pulling for him in his conflict with Batman, and not just because the movie basically stacks the deck in the Dark Knight’s favor and tries desperately to get us on his side. As for Lex Luthor, you ask? Quite simply, Jesse Eisenberg is a terrible Lex Luthor. Like, flat-out awful. His is a spastic, peculiar performance that belongs in a completely different film. Alternating between being an irritatingly arrogant dweeb and a supposedly threatening mastermind, he is never convincing as a legitimate threat for either Superman or Batman. It also doesn’t help that he’s saddled with most of the screenplay’s worst bits of dialogue, and that his various evil schemes are totally irrational and half-baked, at best, and patently nonsensical, at worst (if someone can logically explain his ultimate goal in this movie, please do so!). He’s not even fun in a hammy, “so bad, it’s good” sort of way; he’s profoundly insufferable. What of the movie’s other problems? Chiefly, the plotting and narrative are a mess; characters’ actions are (repeatedly) unmotivated by anything other than the screenplay’s need for them to act in a certain way for rigidly predetermined story goals that don’t feel organic to the setup. The central “Batman versus Superman” conflict is a prime example of this - their eventual fight doesn’t feel properly motivated by anything that transpires in the story itself. It’s motivated by a movie studio wanting to pit the two characters together. As such, though it eventually makes for a visually neat (if too brief) fight scene, it lacks dramatic gravitas and emotional heft. Also, the middle hour of the movie is curiously inert, and this is compounded by some weird editing choices which pull us in a bunch of different directions. The final third ramps up the action, but also tries to cram in WAY too many elements, including some setup for the future JUSTICE LEAGUE film, which is supposedly coming our way at the end of 2017; this setup material is clunky, and it has the potential to be very confusing to audience members who might not be familiar with the extensive comics lore and mythology surrounding these characters. The appearances of certain individuals in the movie are so poorly defined that they’re likely to be baffling non sequiturs to many. Particularly disappointing is the musical score, credited to Hans Zimmer and Junkie XL (aka Tom Holkenborg). Zimmer’s motifs from his (quite good) MAN OF STEEL score are reprised for Superman, although with very little new development or variation; criminally, Superman’s grand and optimistic main theme (which was heard only at the very end of MAN OF STEEL) is simply nowhere to be found in this film’s score, which is a bizarre choice that leaves Superman characterized only by his more introspective and melancholic motifs. The action writing is occasionally impressive, but more often it’s just loud and cacophonous, with thunderous percussion beating us into submission. Many will no doubt praise the action stuff as “EPIC” and “EXTREME,” but with little variance in tone and intensity (it starts cranked up to 11 and pretty much stays there, while the non action stuff is mostly pitched at the level of a heavy dirge), it’s tough not to feel battered by it. So what’s good? I can’t get into bullet points of the individual moments and beats that are great (and there are a fair number), so what can I tell you? First, the movie is a world-class spectacle. ALL of the money is up on the screen, and presented through cinematography that is legitimately Oscar-worthy; the imagery is often flat-out gorgeous (if at times a little dreary, but your mileage may vary). The action, particularly in the first half, is full of intense and visceral stuff. Amy Adams does a TON with relatively little on the script page, and continues to make Lois Lane a proactive and interesting character. Wonder Woman, though not in the film much, gives things a fun spark of energy, and for all the hand-wringing about the casting of Gal Gadot, she’s absolutely fine and seems more than capable of headlining her own film (which is coming in the summer of 2017). Also, Jeremy Irons makes for a fantastic, slightly acerbic Alfred, and he has genuine chemistry with Affleck. You really get the sense that these two guys have been “in the trenches” together for a long time. Speaking of Ben Affleck, he is - without question - the clear standout of the film and pretty much worth the price of admission all on his own. His Batman is now the new standard by which the character should be judged, at least in visual and cinematic terms. The way the character moves and fights is simply thrilling, with exceptional choreography. Coming along with this, however, is a level of sadism and violence that won’t sit right with all fans of the character. Those who enjoy the more intense interpretations of the Dark Knight will likely find much to love in the way the character behaves, but those who prefer to view Batman as more openly heroic may have a tough time swallowing some of what transpires. Affleck also brings a keen intellect to the role, and the movie allows the character (once dubbed “The World’s Greatest Detective”) to be crafty and more than capable of puzzling through a various assortment of schemes and mysteries to an extent we’ve never seen from Batman/Bruce Wayne on film. Christian Bale’s Bruce Wayne still gets the slight edge on that side of the equation, but Affleck’s Batman blows the doors off things. Ultimately, BATMAN v SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE is a step down from MAN OF STEEL, rather than a triumphant leap forward. And yet... minute by minute as the movie goes along, it’s never not compelling, and it’s frequently a highly entertaining ride. Big fans of Superman should prepare themselves for a less than transcendent handling of that particular character, but Batman fans will likely be excited by what the movie has to offer, even if it means sitting through confused and muddled storytelling to get to it.
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