Could have been perfect.

Rating: 8/10 (24 March 2016)

In a nutshell this movie is great. Not perfect in total but perfect in so many ways.
When Ben Affleck was cast I was not convinced he was a good choice even though I felt no one could fill Christian Bales shoes. I was wrong on both counts, Affleck is the best Batman so far.
Not to say I prefer this film to any of Nolan's but Batman looks like the seasoned professional. A fighter and a detective on a level we have not yet seen. Authentic in every way.
Henry Cavill was born to play Superman and you can feel the conflict that results from his rookie mistakes despite all of his power.
I thought Jesse Eisenberg came off as a clown in the trailers but believable in the movie as someone with a deep intellect and capable of great evil. Even when he lost control he was in control. Maybe the best developed villain of any superhero movie so far.
The opening sequence was simply beautiful.
The fight scene between Batman and Superman was epic. I wish I could find a better word as that is really the description we all hoped for and Snyder delivers in spades. You get a sense of that in the trailer and it really is only a hint compared to what is gifted to us here. Lets face it, as much as I also love Marvel, having all of their finest facing off in a parking lot for Civil War is more like the battle of the anchormen from Ron Burgundy 2. The setting and motives behind the battle between Superman and Batman on the other hand while there are greater things at stake has an intensity and gravitas that lends itself to the more grounded approach DC has decided to take on.
Batman sees Superman as a threat. Suddenly he is not in control, at least in the way he once was. So he reacts, it's human nature. I wonder if there is some parallel in some of the negative reviews of this film being a reaction to the overwhelming positive reviews by those who are not professional. Normal people who just see the movie and loved it. If all the professional critics just agreed with the majority of amateurs they become irrelevant. Dunning-Kruger usually makes an appearance in these circumstances.
Gal Gadot for the win. She is not in as much of the film as I expected but great presence when she is.
Amy Adams is always cool. Just great to watch on screen. She gets more character development here than she did in Man of Steel and it gives depth to the story.
There were some weaknesses and those in the last action scenes that to my mind could have easily been overcome. I'll address those in a spoiler discussion at some point. I wonder too if that had some impact on reviews. It's known that people remember how they felt at the beginning and the end of something. So if something is great in the middle but bad at the start and finish they remember it as bad but if flat in the middle but great at the start and the end they remember it as being great.
On last thing I should say. I love Marvel films and I love that we live at a time when it is possible to have comic books on the screen. But a point of difference in style is that Marvel are lighter in tone, described by some as more cartoon. There is nothing wrong with that. However don't expect that from this film, it's deep, the action comes but sometimes the film is not as fast paced because each scene means something that propels the story. If switching off and just enjoying the ride is your thing this may not be the film for you. If you like your mind stimulated as well as your other senses then get along, you won't be disappointed.
SPOILERS!
The film is a masterpiece right up till Doomsday is unleashed. There are some cool moments after, the arrival of Wonder Woman for example and the fight is good by any standards of other films but sub par based on the rest of this one.
At that point Batman who has been incredible all through really has nothing to do but bring his skills to survive being blasted. That is it.
What should have happened. Doomsday should not have been that gigantic, just powerful.
Batman should have had enough Kryptonite left over to do something but not enough to kill doomsday. He and WW should have worked well as a tag team with Batman giving her the ability to gain more ground.
Superman should have delivered the spear and the outcome the same except Doomsday survives. Batman should have then gone in and beaten doomsday to pulp and destroying the creature in the process. What was implied in the battle with Superman could now be finalized.
It would have been far more satisfying. As I point out because that last battle and the following scenes were just OK people around me that had been cheering and exclaiming delight scene after scene throughout the film up till the doomsday arrival shrugged as the credits rolled and exclaimed it was OK. People remember how they felt at the end and that needed to be better told.
Having said that I saw it twice in the same day and will see it again. Infinitely better than Age of Ultron.