Disappointing

Rating: 4/10 (26 August 2016)

I think we were likely the first generation Indians to have our childhood completely immersed in the world of comics heroes. Indrajal Comics, which was like the Indian arm of King Features' Syndicate, was our steady companion keeping us surrounded by Phantom, Mandrake, Flash Gordon and their ilk. The best thing about Indrajal comics was that they used to translate the original stories in almost all major Indian languages. For small-town-studying-in-vernacular-medium-school children like us, they fit right into our childhood fantasy land. We even had cases of children hiding behind neighborhood shrubbery and desperately calling out for 'phantom's help' faced with real-life emergencies!
In comparison, DC comics which came only in their original imported format were not readily accessible to most. A few issues (typically quite expensive for Indian middle class families in the '70s) would sometimes trickle down from big cities. Given my pedestrian English there was no question of making much sense out of them. My serious affair with DC characters, in particular with Batman, began after moving to Bangalore a couple of decades later - thanks to the myriad second-hand bookshops selling all sorts of unbelievable gems. By this time, Superman with all his alien super-powers was already a loser. For a twenty-something would-be-academic he could never match the enigma and the complex humanity of the Bat.
Interestingly, my Hollywood experience followed more or less along similar lines. The original superman movies, released only in the metro cities, never really reached the children living elsewhere. I only had a chance of viewing them after Michael Keaton has already established himself as the iconic Batman for our generation. No wonder Superman movies looked somewhat childish in comparison. Another decade passed before the deadly combination of Christopher Nolan (our beloved 'Nolan-dada') and Christian Bale literally scorched the screens with the intensity of the 'Dark Knight' series. Zack Snyder's Superman (Man of Steel, 2013) never really had much of a chance even after the retirement of Nolan's 'Dark Knight'.
Cut to 2016. Snyder now brings the Superman back to face the Dark Knight. Let me admit right here that I really like Ben Affleck. My respect for him has actually gone up a notch after watching 'Batman v Superman'. I really wouldn't have believed anyone could do even a modicum of justice to the caped crusader after Christian Bale if I didn't see the role essayed by Affleck. Unfortunately, he didn't have much to work with. An actor is as good as his director, or rather the space that his director allows him to bring a particular character alive. Neither did Affleck had the space, nor did he ever look the part in that juggernaut of a costume. I don't know how one could even move a muscle in the suit, let alone pull off all sorts of gymnastic tricks. I really, I mean really cringed every-time Affleck got into the bat suite and hated the movie even more for wasting him entirely.
Disappointing. Very disappointing. Full of goofs too. Why was the cameraman in the desert scene using film cameras? Who uses those anymore? Were we supposed to be in the 70s? Then what with the cell phone and all the fancy gadgets? Very very incongruous. The only person I liked in the movie was Hesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor. He has brought a touch of the 'Joker-esque' insanity to Luthor. Very apt.
As can be expected, I ended up berating myself for sitting down to watch another Zack Snyder movie after the terrible Man of Steel. The only consolation is that I didn't really make a trip to the theater but wasted a late night TV viewing slot instead. :)