The Fight You Were Waiting For... Is Still Yet To Come...

Rating: 6/10 (9 January 2019)

It's the battle we have waiting for to appear on the big screen: Batman Vs Superman. Zack Zynder (best known for Superman Man of Steel & Watchmen) returns to continue Superman's story with the introduction of Superman to Batman. But wait .. there's more! To top it off, if you're aware of Batman's story from comics or ever heard of the Justice League team (thanks to DC Comics) we have a film that feels like it is starting the journey for the many characters in that team and who I'm sure we'll see in other films (like we have seen already with the world of Marvel). Although this could bring excitement to an audience member in the cinema, it's sadly one of this movie's flaws (will explain more on this shortly).
As far as the plot goes, many citizens are concerned about the "Man of Steel": is he a God? Will he bring more dangers to earth (as we saw in the last film)? Could he take over the world? Bruce Wayne (Batman) as you will soon discover, has his opinions towards Superman and reasons for those opinions, but one thing's for sure. According to Bruce Wayne, Superman must be stopped. We are also introduced to Lex Luther who only makes matters worse...
So how did the main actors go?
Ben Affleck puts on the Batman suit for the 1st time and I'm happy to announce I feel he did a great job. Is he the best Batman we have ever seen? Maybe not. But credit where it's due- I did feel Ben Affleck did a fantastic job as not only Batman but also the role of Bruce Wayne. I would assume it would never be easy tackling the two roles. Superman is back and he's the same as we've seen from the previous film "Man of Steel" (No complaints about Henry Cavill) and this is the same for actress Amy Adams who returns as Lois Lane. The only actor I found disappointing was the well known villain from many Superman films "Lex Luther", which was tackle by actor Jessie Eisenberg (Zombieland & The Social Network). Lex Luther in Batman Vs Superman comes across more of a crazy person with quick (and yet very random) responses. Lex Luther from what I always recall was a smart and yet a calm criminal/evil villain. Jessie Eisenberg hasn't done a horrible job, I just simply feel as an actor, he would have been a much better choice if he was casted as "The Riddler" in further Batman film. Hans Zimmer Score/Soundtrack is also perfect as we have heard in the previous Batman films and he was joined by Junkie XL.
So you're probably asking yourself 'if most of our actors did a great job is there any issues with the film'? Sadly, yes there is.
The main issues I have with film is really relating to the director and the way this story is told. Be prepared to see a film that goes back and forth (to past and then present) but also we experience many "dream sequences". To top it off, at one point I personally was confused that we may have had a dream within a dream moment. The story is also cut up to follow many characters of the film and at time feels it felt like it. As mentioned at the start of this review, there are many characters that "sneak in" hinting at things to come with this franchise. Normally I would enjoy these kind of moments, but with this film it feels more forced and it simply adds more to the film when we are already taking so much in as it is. Without giving much away, I can assure you this is something that many people have seen before in the world of Marvel movies (Iron Man, Ant Man & Avengers and the list goes on). Does DC Comics want to complete with Marvel?
Overall, I can say if you love your action you won't be disappointed for both Batman and Superman. The film has done an amazing job with presenting such a stunning film visually, with bright clear sound effects that bring the film alive. The film's biggest let down is the story telling going everywhere with so much being all crammed in one film. The director's 1st cut was supposed to be over 3.5 hours which I would be curious to one day view in my lounge room. I feel this could be a better version to watch compared to the theatrical release which we can assume cut some of the stories you can tell are missing. I also personally think that if the film had more of a basic story with less characters I would have given this film a greater overall score.
I must also suggest if you're thinking of seeing this film to avoid any of the film's trailers- I feel Warner Brothers have really shown way too much information when it comes to the film's trailers. I've personally watched one of the trailers that allowed me to predict the film's start and ending without hard effort.
6.3/10
Walkden Entertainment