By Tom Cottingham
Staff Writer
The cinematic rivalry between America’s biggest comic book distributers, DC and Marvel, starts 2016 with DC’s blockbuster “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.”
Director Zack Snyder, who also directed DC’s “Man of Steel,” enjoys positioning the characters, set and plot in a deep, dark tone. Like “Man of Steel,” “Batman v Superman” is full of political drama, religious symbolism and fantastic visuals, but for how big of a deal these two heroes are, the film fell flat.
To start things off, the pacing of this film was way too slow. It takes about an hour and a half of build-up just to see the two icons battle. With several plots within the movie, including one with Lois Lane, one with Wonder Woman and a few for Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent, it can be easy to lose track.
There are a few things to like about this flick, though, with one of them being its actors’ stellar performances. Ben Affleck does an amazing job playing Batman. He is stone cold, merciless and plays the role like he studied the Dark Knight right out of the comics. Also, he kills. He kills a lot. Batman’s butler Alfred, played by Jeremy Irons, brings charming comic relief and wise advice, which feels refreshing. Wonder Woman has the best entrance by far because of the film’s amazing score. And, like always, Zack Snyder brings his signature eye-popping visuals. The best of these visuals is shown during the fights towards the end of the film. Doomsday, one of the main villains, does not look that great, however. The CGI looks messy, and I do not believe Snyder used Doomsday to his full potential in the movie. He is a much stronger, violent and terrifying monster than what he is portrayed as in the film.
In addition, I did not enjoy Lex Luthor throughout the film. His persona is a sinister, bald, evil genius. What “Batman v Superman” gave us was a diet Joker with green hair. Jesse Eisenberg, who plays Luthor, was not terrible. The character itself was bad, but Eisenberg’s acting was great for what he was given. He also provides small doses of dark humor, but still, I’m not a huge fan of this portrayal of Luthor.
Superman was another character that just did not feel right to me. The film’s tone is dark and dreary, but Superman could have been the saving grace of colorful energy. Instead, we are given an emotionless, confused Kryptonian, who just tries to do the right thing. I was really hoping for a vintage but modernized Superman who quickly changes into his suit in a phone booth and saves the day.
I did not hate this movie, and do not think it deserves some of the scores that it is receiving. This movie was great the first time because of the hype and just the pure love for comics on the big screen. It is a great movie for DC fans. There are just too many flaws, plot holes and other things that held this film back from becoming truly great (Especially the name “Martha”). The fight was good, but it took too long to finally start. Batman was fantastic, but there was too much of Lois Lane in the movie. Some spots are amazing, but others hurt the movie critically. It could have been one of the best superhero films since “The Dark Knight,” but the storyline fell short.
