Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice - Review: Not a Masterpiece

Rating: 5/10 (26 March 2016)

Part 1: Opinions
My anticipation for BVS was not high to begin with. I didn't really care that Ben Affleck was going to play the iconic Batman. When Gal Gadot was cast as Wonder Women I didn't care. I've only seen Gadot in the Fast & Furious movies, she's capable in those types of movies. Jesse Eisenberg plays Lex Luthor. Eisenberg is a capable actor, however, my only problem with him is that he always acts the same in everything. Jeremy Irons plays Alfred, okay sign me up. Henry Cavill is good as the Man Of Steel. Honestly, I'm not a huge Superman fan to begin with. Batman is my number one superhero, so you already know who I wanted to win this fight. Zack Snyder is back in the director's chair for BVS. I've seen a few of Snyder's movies, 300 is my favorite, Man of Steel is fine, and I honestly don't care for the rest of his catalog. In my opinion, everyone single one of Snyder's movies are mostly style over substance. David S. Goyer is back again as the screenwriter for this project. In my honest opinion, I don't believe Goyer to be the best screenwriter, all of his projects seem to work when he's collaborating, and when he's writing solo I feel that a majority of his projects stink.
My anticipation for BVS suddenly skyrocketed When Warner Bros Pictures brought in Chris Terrio. Argo is one of my favorite movies, I don't know much about Terrio, but it sure seems that Warner Bros sure like him. Warner Bros wants Terrio back to write Justice League part 1 and 2.
Part 2: Views
Jesse Eisenberg gave a fantastic performance as Lex Luthor, however, I feel like the character kind of felt out of place. Honestly, I would've preferred a more methodical version of Lex Luthor. Amy Adams plays Louise Lane and she doesn't really need to be in the movie. Louise Lane is on a mission, her mission is pointless, and it bores me to sleep. The first act of this movie is tremendous, the second act is tedious, and the third act is a spiritless extravaganza. I like that this movie has a darker tone, it's darker than a majority of superhero movies, however, this having a darker tone doesn't make up for the fact that this movie feels over packed. The stories plot could've been trimmed tremendously. I believe that the story doesn't have a crucial focus on what it's trying to achieve. All the story had to do was focus on Batman Vs. Superman, showcase their conflicted ideologies throughout, but what I got was a bunch of unnecessary fullers instead of getting the real meat.
Part 3: Positives and Negatives
POSITIVES: 1. Ben Affleck is great as Batman: In my opinion, this is the best live action Batman that we've ever received. Affleck was the perfect choice for this new incarnation of Batman. Affleck's Batman is brutal, he's menacing, he takes no prisoners, and he holds no punches (literally). The fight scenes with Batfleck are truly amazing and they're something to behold; in my opinion, every fight scene with Batfleck is 10x better than what we got in The Dark Knight Trilogy, and I'm sorry but I just have to point out that Batfleck is better. Affleck's Bruce Wayne is also quite good; Bruce Wayne is tired, bleary- eyed, frustrated, sorrowful, and extremely angry; however, in certain scenes Mr. Wayne's public persona is still somewhat of a spoiled rich jackass, and so this Bruce Wayne has bravado. I don't believe Affleck is the best actor, however, I do believe that he is a capable one. Ben Affleck's Batman massively shines in this movie.
2. This movie has a serious tone: I like dramas, suspense, and thrillers because those are my favorite types of genres. BVS's story is dark, brutally dark. People die in this movie and that's the focus. This movie focuses on how death can linger over someones head and consciences. Does BVS have drama (check), suspense (check), and emotional scenes (check).
3. The action was good: Synder never really has a problem showcasing action. Certain action scenes stood out among others. The opening Metropolis sequence was suspenseful. Batman fighting Superman was entertaining. Batman's warehouse fight was exhilarating. The final battle was fun.
NEGATIVES: 1. The story line was tortuous: I believe that this movie's runtime is excessively long. I don't mind extremely long movies if they're good; I love TDK, BVS's runtime is similar to that of TDK, but BVS just had to many subplots, and once it hit that hour mark I became tired. I've seen BVS three times now, on two occasions it put me to sleep, I've fallen asleep during the exact same sequences, on the third viewing I managed to stay awake, and my opinion on the movie has only slightly changed. Honestly, I believe that there's just to much extra fluff in this movie, it's interesting, but it just goes on forever, and at a certain point I drift off because I'm bored.
Side Note: I believe that Batmobile chase sequence was unnecessary; It's a useless action sequence that really went nowhere.
Overall, The first half of this movie is interesting, but certain plot points overstay their welcome, and by the time I see Batman fighting Superman I feel fatigued. The first act starts off in a good place, but then the story adds more layers to it, and then after an hour I fall asleep because of pure boredom. The action and fight sequences keep me entertained, but that doesn't make up for what I have to endure. This movie is simply not engaging enough for me to keep my eyes open during its entire runtime. I wasn't expecting a masterpiece, I just wanted a good movie, and what I got was...
Final Grade: C+