Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice Movie Non-Spoiler Review

Below are my non-spoiler video and written reviews for the new Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice movie which opens in theaters tomorrow night.



Director Zach Snyder continues the dark and gritty portrayal of the DC Comic Universe in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice that he began in Man of Steel. Actor Henry Cavill returns as Superman while we are introduced to a new Batman played by Ben Affleck and Wonder Woman played by actress Gal Gadot.

First, I have to say I am not a big fan of Snyder’s vision of the DC Universe. I didn’t like it in Man of Steel, and I don’t think it plays any better in this movie. Second, I think this movie suffers from trying to do too much in too little time, albeit the movie is two and a half hours long. Basically this movie tries to be a sequel to Man of Steel, a reboot for Batman, and attempts to lay the seeds for the DC Comic Cinematic Universe that will lead to a Justice League movie. Instead of having a story that flows well (which Man of Steel did fairly well at least), you have this hodge-podge of a story going off in all different kinds of directions. None of the characters are fleshed out very well in the movie. We learn next to nothing about this version of Batman other than the basic origin story and that Bruce Wayne was in Metropolis for the ending battle seen between Zod and Superman in Man of Steel.

Superman’s archenemy Lex Luthor also is introduced in this movie. Played by Jesse Eisenberg, this version of Luthor comes across as a spoiled rich kid with psychotic tendencies. I would say the casting of Luthor was probably the worst thing about the movie.

The movie did have a few shining lights. I thought Jeremy Irons did a good job as Alfred and his interactions with Bruce Wayne came off very well. As for Affleck, I thought his portrayal of Bruce Wayne was solid. The things I didn’t like about him as Batman, I contribute more to the overall movie than his specific performance. I thought Gal Godot did a solid job as Wonder Woman. We only get sprinkles of her throughout the movie and then she is tossed in for the big climactic battle at the end, but her performance gives me hope for her own solo movie which is in the works now.

Finally the movie score done by Hans Zimmer was great. I love most of his work and think when it comes to movie scores, he is second only to John Williams. The music in this movie really helps keep you engaged.

The fight between Superman and Batman, albeit fairly short, was decent though I found the ending to be a bit corny. All I will say is thank god Bruce and Clark’s mothers share the same first name.

The movie wraps up with the big cliche battle between the heroes and a huge CGI monster who struck me more as a deformed Incredible Hulk than Doomsday. Some of the special effects get a little iffy during these fight scenes and the ending which has a bit of a surprise really didn’t deliver the emotional impact I would have liked.

Besides all that, a few easter eggs were planted for the Justice League. One scene in particular, a harbinger of possible things to come, will likely leave most non-DC Comic readers scratching their head wondering what it was they just saw.

I know some of you out there will enjoy this movie as you did with Man of Steel. After all, it is cool to see Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman all share the same screen finally. But for me, the movie was not that great, and I would like to see better for these character going forward.

Grade: C