A Messy Story and Weak Characters Make "Batman v Superman" A Huge Let-Down

Rating: 5/10 (15 August 2019)

After the mixed reception to "Man of Steel," Warner Brothers should've known that a change from Zack Snyder and David Goyer was needed for "Batman v Superman." Although "Man of Steel" was entertaining, it suffered from weak character development and Snyder's gloomy visual style just wasn't appropriate for the material. These problems are compounded and then some in "Batman v Superman," a frustrating mess of a movie that distorts instead of celebrates its popular main characters.
First and foremost, BvS is an awful representation of both Batman and Superman that fundamentally misunderstands their appeal as figures of popular culture. This is the movie's biggest flaw and the root cause of why it doesn't work. Audiences love Batman and Superman because they triumph over adversity, stand for justice in an unjust world, and ultimately inspire them to be better people. That's why these characters have lasted for over 80 years. But none of these characteristics are present in BvS, where Batman is depicted as a paranoid, bloodthirsty psycho no better than the villains he fights while Superman is a bland muscleman in tights without any of the hope and optimism that defined Christopher Reeve's iconic portrayal. With characters so unsympathetic, it's impossible to remain invested enough in their stories to enjoy the overall movie.
The film's plot is an awkward hodge-podge of confused story elements that just don't work together. BvS tries to be a Batman detective story, a Superman redemption story, a Wonder Woman story, a political thriller, a philosophy lecture, an adaptation of both The Death of Superman and The Dark Knight Returns, and an introduction to the Justice League all at the same time. A movie that focused on Batman and Superman's relationship could've worked, as shown in the 1990s animated feature "World's Finest" starring Kevin Conroy and Tim Daly. But the writers of BvS squandered their chance to tell a great superhero story by overloading the script with so many disjointed plot threads that aren't even developed enough to stand on their own.
In many comic book movies the visuals soar where the story fails. But while Zack Snyder's dark directorial vision worked in "Watchmen" it's totally out of place in BvS. The movie is ugly to look at: the few colors you see on screen are often a painful combination of mud brown, pitch black, and a steely gray. Many scenes are so poorly lit you can't even see most of the frame, especially in the action scenes which should be the highlight of the movie. As for the performances, Jesse Eisenberg is cringe-worthy as Lex Luthor but Ben Affleck and Amy Adams are solid as Batman and Lois Lane respectively. Laurence Fishburne shines in the few scenes he has, though I wish he had a larger presence in the movie.
Despite some strong performances and occasionally compelling scenes, such as the main titles sequence, "Batman v Superman" just doesn't hold together. If you're a fan of these characters, you're better off watching the movies starring Christopher Reeve and Christian Bale. Even the animated TV shows from the 1990s are much more entertaining adaptations of DC's iconic stories. I can recommend certain individual elements, but not the movie as a whole. 5/10.