SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS!!!
Okay so after seeing Batman v Superman Dawn of Justice three times, I think my opinion on it is set in stone. Before I start, know that I absolutely LOVED Man of Steel. It's in my top 3 comic book movies of all time. Now, can I just start off by saying that Ben Affleck as Batman is the best live action Batman we've gotten so far. This Batman is the most comic book accurate Batman we've gotten aside from the killing, which I will get to in a moment. You could tell that this Batman has been through a bunch of crap. However, you can tell that this Batman is basically equivalent to the Batman we all love in the comics. Now, Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman was written phenomenally. Her character steals the show. When she comes on screen you know that stuff is about to go down, I never heard a cheer louder in a theater when she came on screen. The final character I would like to address is Alfred. Like Batman, this is the best live action Alfred we've gotten. This Alfred is very hands on. Not only that he's smart, he's snarky, and he has a great relationship with Bruce. I also loved the Justice League cameos. Say what you want about the movie but the cameos were great. The hinting towards Darkseid was great too. Another part I loved was the Knightmare Scene. If you watch the movie, don't go to the bathroom during that scene, pee in your pants if you have to. Also, the action was great, the best action we've ever gotten in a superhero movie so far. The fight between Batman and Superman was great. Also, the warehouse scene with Batman was awesome! The film was also visually stunning, it's a treat for the eyes. The soundtrack is great too, I have the Wonder Woman theme as my ringtone now. Also, the Batman theme is probably my favorite Batman theme ever. Those aspects of the film are great.
That was the good, let's get to the okay to bad. Look, I liked this movie but I had major problems with it that kept me from loving it. Let's talk about Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor. Now, I thought Jesse was a great villain, hell he's better than most of the villains in the MCU. However, he was not Lex Luthor. I found it very unfortunate that Bryan freaking Cranston was about to be casted as Lex but instead, Zack Snyder had to screw it all up and have Jesse play Lex. Jesse was supposed to play Jimmy Olsen... How the hell do you get Jimmy Olsen to play LEX LUTHOR!? Another thing that made me upset was that they killed Jimmy Olsen off so early. He was the reporter who died in the beginning. Now let's get to Superman. I really wished Superman had more emotional moments. It absolutely sucks that he didn't. I know that Henry Cavil can play a great Superman. There were just not enough emotional scenes to show him playing the Superman we all know he can be. I also really wished he smiled more. There were no happy scenes with Superman except the bathtub scene at the beginning. I know Henry Cavil can play the iconic Superman we love from the comics, the man who is named "The Man of Tomorrow". We just need a better story for him. We need a happier story for him. Now Doomsday, Doomsday was Doomsday. That's a good thing. He did what Doomsday is supposed to do, destroy things. However, he didn't look all that great. I wished he would've looked more like Doomsday from Injustice or something. Let's get onto the plot and ending. Now, the story was a great story. It just wasn't executed correctly. There were many plot holes like why did Superman know exactly where Lois was but not Martha and how did Lois know to get the Kryptonite Spear? Also, what did Lex plan on doing with Doomsday after Superman was dead? I think Bizarro should've been in Doomsday's spot. It would've made more sense. Also, Bizarro interacting with Superman would've called for a heart to heart moment. As for Batman killing, I thought it fit the movie but I didn't like it. However, I think this will change in Suicide Squad because the Batmobile doesn't have it's turret anymore.
If we had a better director, I'm sure there wouldn't be all these plot holes and problems. Another problem I had was there wasn't really much character development. While Ben's Batman was awesome, we didn't really get any history with him. We didn't know what he had gone through other than it was bad. We also didn't get a heart to heart moment between Batman and Superman. They were enemies and all of a sudden the became friends because their mothers' names were Martha? I liked the Martha thing by the way, I liked how they showed that Bruce didn't want the same thing that happen to him to happen to Superman. But it would've been nice to get more character development. Now the ending. I absolutely hated the IDEA of the ending. It's illogical to put that in so early. However, I loved the way it was executed. The way the ending was done was great. There are problems with that though. I should've been able to cry a little when Superman "died". But, again, we didn't get much character development with anyone, so it's hard to care. Another problem is, is that should've been done in the far future. It should've been done after Justice League. If it was done after Justice League, more people and heroes would've been effected. Many of the stories in the movie could've been their own movie. "Must There Be A Superman" and "The Death of Superman" should've been their own movie. It sucks that there storylines were really wasted in the movie. They could've been a lot better if they were their own movie.
Now should Zack Snyder direct Justice League? No, he shouldn't. DC and Warner Bros need to know that he attracts controversy, no matter what. Justice League has to be loved by everyone in order for it to be a success. Zack is more of a visual director, not a story teller. We need a change. He could help with the visuals but he shouldn't direct. Someone like George Miller, Joss Whedon, or even Ben Affleck should direct.
Now my final words on the movie are, it was good, not great. I liked it but didn't love it. The film was sloppy but it was still a good film. The story was good although it can be inconsistent at times. Does it deserve a 29% on Rotten Tomatoes? Hell no. Does it deserve a 9.5/10 like on IMDB? No. It's a good film, not horrible, not great. While I was heavily disappointed, I would buy it on Blu Ray. Go encourage your friends to it in theaters if they haven't all ready. It's definitely worth $12. I will say that this movie makes me want more of the DCEU and I am excited to see what's coming up next. Also, see this movie more than once, you'll need to. There's so much in this movie to digest, it'll need a second screening.
Final Scores
As a fan: 7.5/10 B
As a critic: 6.5/10 C+
As a casual movie goer: 7/10 B-
Please leave your thoughts about the movie in the comments and tell me why I'm wrong or right.
