A risk that didn't pay off?

Rating: 7/10 (4 June 2016)

This year we were presented with some grand superhero movies - Captain America Civil War, X-men Apocalypse; awaiting Suicide Squad etc. But not one was more anticipated than a duel of the two greatest superheroes of all time - Batman and Superman.
Since the very first teaser the world was in a state of hyper expectation. The second trailer only enhanced that sensation and when the movie hit the big screen everyone was waiting to see the grand finale. Sadly, the hyper expectation and childish over excitement left us wondering if this is truly it.
Now, this movie has it's flaws. Some of them should never have been made, especially if we take into account everyone who worked on it. The screenplay was a little too thin, the ending was too abrupt and out of order with the rest of the movie, the pace is too slow at points etc. But if one truly expects a One flew over the cuckoo's nest kind of screenplay in a movie called Batman v. Superman, then that person should not even come close to this movie.
The reasons why this movie is almost universally panned by critics are exactly the above said reasons. The reason why this movie didn't stick with fans is because they expected something different. And here we come to the point of what I believe Snyder wanted to do, and successfully did. He risked, he gambled and he won! It is important to remember that it is a sequel to Man of steel, not a stand alone Batman movie (even though Affleck's performance is the best performance of Batman ever). So, I believe the primary approach of the audience was wrong. If this movie is approached as a Man of steel sequel, some elements of the movie seem more potent and much more in place.
The casting of Affleck did this movie more marketing that all the trailers and posters together. Again, his astonishing portrayal of both Bruce Wayne and Batman is, I believe, exactly what the authors of "The dark knight returns" comic book had in mind. Affleck is indeed the best Batman/Bruce Wayne in movie history. Eisenberg's portrayal of Luthor was as frightening as it could be. He created a whole different type of villain and the philosophy behind it is, to this point, unheard of. So, an atypical cast for a typical villain resulted in a superb super villain. Finally, Gadot as Wonder woman was the acting element that, besides Affleck, stole the movie. Her acting capabilities, as well as her knowledge of how to dominate the scene is wonderful. Seeing her again in the role of Woneder woman will be as satisfactory as seeing Affleck as Batman.
The battle of Batman and Superman was the sequence everyone waited for. The dark surrounding, the ominous music (Zimmer and Junkie XL make a good combo, but Zimmer's parts outrank Junkie a lot), the heavy rain and the reason why and how it ended was, I believe exactly what everyone was expecting. Seeing the two greatest superheroes of all time, for the first time in the same scene, killing each other without regret, for reasons so humane and so lifelike was the highlight of the movie and every time I see it, I feel the same way - astonished. But, the Doomsday fight afterwards was an over the top CGI nuclear bomb that could have been done and incorporated better.
In the end, it is not the movie we wanted or expected. It could have been done differently, with less flaws, more action and a different approach, but the fact remains that seeing Batman and Superman for the first time ever in the same movie, has so much significance that all the other flaws simply fade away. In the mist of MCU's slightly stagnating movies, this is exactly what comic book fans needed - a dark and realistic portrayal of the two greatest superheroes ever. So, try to forget all you wanted to see, forget what you think was wrong, and you will see that this movie is exactly what you needed to see.