(2016) 151 Minutes, Rated PG-13
A.C.'s Review: At
long last in the 80 years or so history of DC COMICS their two most
iconic characters share the big screen for the first time….as enemies.
During the Silver age of comics these two superheroes were best friends
until the reboot of the DC universe in 1986. In the new continuity these
two were no longer best buds but more of adversaries based on their
different methods of operation. This paves the way for the film
currently showing worldwide.
Henry Cavill returns from THE MAN OF STEEL and is now joined by Ben
Affleck donning the cape and cowl to portray the Dark Knight of Gotham
City. In the movie Batman is distrustful of Superman based on the danger
Superman might present should he ever go rogue like the Kryptonian
villains who laid waste to large portions of Metropolis in MOS. Superman
for his part frowns of Batman’s vigilante justice. This puts the two on
a collision course.
The villain of the piece if Lex Luthor played by Jesse Eisenberg who
most will remember as Mark Zuckerberg in THE SOCIAL NETWORK movie about
the founding of FACEBOOK. Here he is Zuckerberg on evil steroids as he
plots evil doing…with little or no motive. (not even a fanciful real
estate scheme like in the classic Christopher Reeve movies or the
Brandon Routh SUPERMAN RETURNS movie.
The first half of this movie plays like an entirely different film as
Batman is doing his detective work tracing a criminal scheme that is
linked to Luthor and Superman is framed for some deaths during his
appearance in Africa to rescue Lois Lane (a manipulation by Luthor)
Eventually
Luthor captures Clark Kent’s mother Martha Kent (Diane Lane) and forces
Superman to battle Batman to the death or he will kill Ma Kent. It’s
only about here where the movie picks up in its last half hour to 45
minutes as the epic fight unfolds before the two must join forces to
battle a new threat Luthor unleashes on the world. They are at the end
joined by Wonder Woman who is pursuing her own subplot here and there in
the movie.
This review is hard to write because the movie is so densely plotted
and murky in places it’s hard to explain someone of the stuff the that
happened. I’ll try and sum it up. Basically its two movies in one…a
detective/drama for the first half and a superhero special effects
extravaganza in the second half where the heroes finally don their
costumes and it becomes BATMAN VS SUPERMAN not BRUCE WAYNE vs CLARK
KENT.
Overall the film continues the same dark and joyless tone of the MOS
and from that Nolan/Bale Dark Knight films. I get it..it’s DC/WARNER
BROTHERS way to differentiate itself from the MARVEL movies…it achieves
that goal but they aren’t very much fun. Anyway Wonder Woman played by
Gal Gadot who was Han’s girlfriend in the FAST AND FURIOUS movies and
got her chips cashed in in movie number 6 did a good job with the role
and I will watch her solo movie with more interest than anymore Superman
or Batman movies.
Best Scene: Luthor plants a bomb in the US Capitol building to discredit Superman.
A.C.'s Rating: Matinee
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