Hi everyone:
Before anything, I would like to give you a little background about myself. Although I have just created my account this past Sunday, I’ve been following this site since 2013 and at least one day per week I lurk in the comments section, so I’m familiar with the usual collaborators and users that make this site worth reading. Why did I choose to finally create an account and write an article after three years? Well, as I mentioned in one comment I posted on Sunday, I was lucky enough to watched Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice last Saturday 19 at the world premiere in Mexico City. Given the fact that I was one of the very first people to watched the movie (even before movie critics), I figured the occasion was worth celebrating, and what other better way to do so than sharing my thoughts on such an anticipated movie with such a passionate group of people? I wanted to write this review and share it with you as soon as I got home from the screening (I would have been the first in doing so) but I’ve been very busy. So, with no further ado, here is my review of the movie.
1) THE GOOD
The first hour and a half (approximately) of the movie is great. I was absolutely engaged since the very first scene and surprisingly enough the movie takes its time to introduce the characters without throwing an action scene after an action scene for no reason, this creates expectation for the actual fight between Batman and Superman and believe me when I tell you that the wait is worth it. This takes me to the following topic: the fight scenes. Make no mistake; all of them are awesome (with the exception of a Batmobile chase that kind of sucks) and prove once again that Zack Snyder has a tremendous ability for visual imagery. Who shines the most during the action sequences? Ben Affleck’s Batman for sure, who is without a doubt the best Batman we have had so far and has an amazing fight sequence with a bunch of goons that is better than any fight scene in The Dark Knight Trilogy (I can’t be the only one who thinks that Christopher Nolan is not very good at filming fight scenes).
Finally, I can assure you that the reasons that led Batman to fight Superman are brilliant, totally justified and go beyond what you have seen in the trailers.
2) THE BAD
My biggest issue with the movie is the pacing. By the last 30-40 minutes or so, the movie gets very convoluted and everything seems to happen in fast forward (kind of like Spider-Man 3) and it’s a shame because I can guarantee you that if it wasn’t because of this, the movie would have certainly be more appreciated by critics and fans alike. However, even if that was corrected, we still have the Lex Luthor problem. The character sucks in this movie. Why does he hate Superman? Who knows, I mean, he says one line that kind of explains his reasoning, but it seems as if the movie feels there is no reason to explain it because the fans have read the comics and therefore, why spending time explaining motivations? Also, the way in which Eisenberg played the character feels wrong and more appropriated for the Christopher Reeve’s Superman movies.
As for Superman’s secret identity, you will be disappointed if you were expecting to see more of Clark Kent because the movie spends so much time dealing with him as Superman. Therefore, the movie adds nothing to the debate of why nobody recognizes him.
Now, about that chase scene I mentioned earlier. I really don’t know what the hell happened, it’s all shaky, you don’t really get what the hell is going on and there are way too many shots of Batman just driving instead of showing us the actual chase. Really disappointed by that introduction of the Batmobile.
Finally there are two things that enter into spoiler territory, so I’ll wait to talk about them after this weekend because I really don’t want to spoil anything for anybody.
3) THE “NOT BAD BUT NOT AS AWESOME AS IT COULD BE”
Wonder Woman. Don´t get me wrong, I’m not saying that she sucks; she is good, but nothing special really. Any actress could pull this off, but then again she deserves more screen time to judge her portrayal of the character.
However, her introduction (as Wonder Woman) is totally epic and includes the most badass track of the soundtrack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCHGhNteXmU.
Also, Doomsday. Not bad but he appears very briefly (like Venom in Spider-Man 3) and the way in which he was created was a letdown because you don’t really understand how exactly did Luthor get the knowledge for his creation (I would like to explain more of this, but it enters into spoilers territory).
4) THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW BEFORE WATCHING THE MOVIE
-Prepared to be amazed during most of the movie but a little bit disappointed by the last 30-40 minutes or so.
-There is a definitive winner between the two and some people will get mad because by the end of the fight it gets a little bit humiliating.
-The ending will either left you wondering what the hell was DC thinking or will make you respect them for the direction they chose to take.
-If you think that the Man of Steel controversy was huge, wait till you see the movie (although this time the controversy will be surrounding another character and it’s not as “in your face” as in Man of Steel).
-Lex Luthor is as cheesy as he seems to be in the trailers. Also, his motivations are barely mentioned.
-You think that the scene in Avengers Age of Ultron in which Thor left the team searching for answers about the infinity gems was random and made no sense? There is an even bigger WTF? moment in this movie. Non-Comic book fans will have no clue of what the heck just happened. Only comic book fans will enjoy that scene (kind of) and recognize the DC character that appears in it (although is still very random and left many questions that I think will be answered in the Justice League movie).
-If you are expecting cameos and references from other Justice League members, you’ll be satisfied and you’ll get your first look at one particular member.
5) MY FAVORITE SCENES
-The scene at the Capitol.
-The Batman vs Superman fight.
-Batman’s fight scene at the warehouse.
6) FINAL VERDICT
My score for the movie is 8/10.
Overall, this is a good movie and if you are a comic book fan you’ll enjoy it way more than average moviegoers. Ben Affleck owns the character of Batman as much as Henry Cavill owns Superman. Therefore, you get really invested in the characters and their motivations, which makes the actual fight between the two way more interesting and epic. Although there are some pacing issues by the end that really hurt the movie, they don’t manage to ruin it.
Okay guys, so that’s it. I hope you liked it and you found it useful. Also, I’m sorry if there are any grammar mistakes but keep in mind that I don’t write in English that often and this is my first article. Any suggestions and criticism is welcome as long as it’s not offensive. I don’t know how active will I be in this site but hopefully this is not the last time I make an appearance. In the meantime, I’ll leave you with some photos I took at the Premiere as well as one short video. Enjoy!
Here is the link for my Flickr Page in which you'll be able to see the photos and video (I will keep uploading the album, so there are more photos to come in the following days):
- https://www.flickr.com/photos/40983989@N04/albums/72157666153492062
Kind regards!