More Dusk than Dawn of Justice

Rating: 4/10 (31 March 2016)

This movie has been a must-see for DC Comics fans since it was announced 2-3 years ago. Despite the controversial title, many fans will know that there is precedent set in the DC Comics world for a show down between Batman and Superman.
Expectations have run high following the heady heights achieved by Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy and the excellent Man of Steel reboot. So does Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice live up to its billing? ...Alas, not quite. I'll try to give you an honest view without giving away any spoilers.
Let's deal with the good things first. One of the main question marks hanging over the movie was whether Ben Affleck could pull off Batman after Christian Bale's definitive performance as The Dark Knight. The answer is yes; he is older, darker, far less moral and for me stole the show somewhat from Henry Cavill's Superman. In fact the acting performances and characters were, in the main, effective – as you would expect of such a strong cast. Zack Snyder has also maintained the darker atmosphere and more serious story lines of the DC Comics movies, which sets them apart from the more tongue-in- cheek (but highly effective) Marvel movies. However, Batman v Superman does take itself a little too seriously with an almost complete lack of humour of any kind.
So why did I not enjoy the movie? The answer is straight forward; the story simply wasn't good enough. It was disjointed, confused with some of the better concepts being poorly executed. Zack Snyder failed to hold on to the flowing and more plausible story line which he achieved in Man of Steel by trying to cram a little bit too much in. The end result is a two and half hour movie that feels very long because too many scenes drag on without adding enough to the story. You will even find yourself scratching your head at times and asking "what was the point of that?" Sadly these moments happen a little too often in a movie that just isn't engaging enough.
What about the action sequences? Well as you would expect of a superhero flick, there is a good deal of explosive CGI fueled mayhem, with our heroes and villains leveling as many homes and office blocks as possible. Some of the scenes are great and engaging...but, strangely, some just fizzle out and overall the action scenes just aren't enough to lift and carry the movie. Surprisingly even Hans Zimmer's music score was something of a let down.
For fans of Batman and Superman this is a must-see movie, but don't go in with high expectations. I can only hope that the inevitable follow up to Dawn of Justice can breathe life back in to the Justice League concept.