I’m going to get straight to the point, Batman V Superman was a huge letdown. I tried to get excited for this film but I saw so many variables that got me worried. Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor? Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman? What is a cave troll doing in this? Well don’t judge a movie until you’ve seen it right? Well I’ve seen it now and I can say I was actually upset when the film finished, not because it was over but because of how much of a disappointment it was.
The destruction caused in Metropolis because of Superman and Zod’s fight in Man of Steel sets the scene for Batman V Superman. The people of the world are split, do we need a Superman or not? While this story unfolds you have Bruce Wayne who believes the only option is to take him out. As well as this the film acts as a prologue for the Justice League movies but it feels so unnatural and forced that it took me out of the experience.
Story That Can’t Catch Its Breath
Batman V Superman’s main problem for me was there was no flow when it came to the narrative. It was all over the place and was structured so incoherently, the film felt so fast paced and rushed that it didn’t let you get involved with the scene. It felt as though there were a ton of sub plots that were meant to tie together nicely but failed to do so.
Now because of problems with the pacing and structure I feel this is why there was no character investment. The film was two and half hours and it was unable to make me feel attached to any of the characters. For example Lois Lane felt so out of place and her story was very boring and tedious. In fact the whole Daily Planet aspect was just there, it wasn’t bad but it wasn’t good. It was just there. Henry Cavill as Superman was fine, nothing amazing but not bad either. I honestly believe there is a great Superman within him but the script doesn’t allow him to express that. What annoyed me was how we are focused on Superman and his conflict and then it’s suddenly dropped. This again comes down to the structure of the film.
I have to talk about Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor too. I really didn’t like this portrayal of the character, he felt so comical and had mannerisms similar to the Joker. I understand this is a different take on the character but it was near alien compared to previous iterations. He did have maybe two or three moments where he felt very menacing and diabolical but overall it just wasn’t there. Jesse Eisenberg is a great actor but it’s like a lot of his movies, he was just playing himself. Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman wasn’t nearly as bad as I expected, I don’t know if this was because she had a small role or she was actually good. I will say she had some great moments when it came to the action.
Too Focused on the Future
So we had already heard this was going to set up the Justice League movies. Fine. I’m fine with that. But why did it have to be so forced. I didn’t feel like this was a Batman V Superman movie which really annoyed me. The way the film introduces us to the members of the Justice League felt so shoehorned in. Recordings on a laptop of each member just felt cheap and didn’t amaze me.
But for me the nail in the coffin for me was the final act. The final act had one shot which made me smile and that was a shot we saw in the trailers. When the trinity are standing together to fight Doomsday, yeah that looked awesome. The whole fight should’ve been awesome but it wasn’t, not for me at least. It felt like a mess, I honestly felt sick during the final showdown mainly because of Doomsday’s God awful design and bad CG. The final fight should’ve had me pumped but I wasn’t feeling it which was a real shame.
Affleck Kills as Batman (literally)
Now that’s what I disliked about the movie, let’s move on to what I did like. Ben Affleck as Bruce Wayne/Batman. I was one the few who was actually looking forward to seeing him play the caped crusader and he didn’t disappoint. This felt like the best incarnation of Batman we’ve had on the big screen. He’s dark, brutal and feels like he’s been ripped straight out of The Dark Knight Returns comic. The action sequences involving him are brilliant, seeing him seamlessly take out criminals was a joy to watch.
The first time we see Batman was actually quite creepy as it played out like something from a horror movie. I also want to point out that Jeremy Irons as Alfred was brilliant, it was a a different take on the character that worked wonderfully. For me the first act was the strongest; opening with the death of Bruce Wayne’s parents and his point of view during the Metropolis battle provided a quick and effective introduction to the character.
As well as the Dark Knight himself some of the action sequences were great. Although I didn’t enjoy the final showdown, the fight between Superman and Batman is marvellous. However the build up to the fight and way it concluded was horrible and again felt very rushed. But seeing Batman pummel the Man of Steel is a sight to behold. The cinematography was nice too, not as great as I expected it was still a good-looking film. I’ve always thought Zack Synder was very stylistic director but storytelling is one of his biggest weaknesses and that’s crystal clear with Batman V Superman.
Did I hate the film? No. Did I like it? Some bits, yeah. The best way to put it is that it had a good concept but was executed poorly, it did have some great elements but it wasn’t enough. I really wanted to love this film but it made it so hard to do so with its inconsistent narrative and lack of character development.
It was trying so hard to set up a franchise it forgot to be a good standalone film which is one of the problems with films these days. Nevertheless I do recommend you see it purely because of how big a film it is and it does have some amazing stuff to offer. If you feel as if I’ve spoiled it, trust me I haven’t, there was a lot more I could’ve talked about. A lot.
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