REVIEW: Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice

You may have heard something about Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, this low-key, heartfelt drama involving men in colorful boots and the grudges they harbor. You may also have questions about the film and its place in the continuingly inexhaustible array of superhero movies. Well, you've come to the right place. I'm here to answer all your questions, so fire away!

So this whole movie is about Batman and Superman whaling on each other?

Well, not all of it, but that's certainly the majority of the initial thrust, as they say.

What's their beef?

Somewhat interestingly, it involves the much criticized raging battle at the end of Man of Steel, a film I had not very nice things to say about. Remember that whole bit at the climax, when Superman (Henry Cavill) battled General Zod (Michael Shannon) all through the city streets of Metropolis, causing mass destruction everywhere? Turns out one of the buildings destroyed in the conflict happened to be owned by Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck), who just so happens to be Batman. Bats was pretty bummed about the reckless loss of life of his people, so he planned and plotted a way to revenge the death of his staff.

Actually, that sounds sort of reasonable.

Not a question, but, yeah, on the surface, you can see why maybe Bats would be inclined to take matters into his own gloved hands. In this way, he becomes sort of a stand-in for all the critics who also thought Superman acted idiotically at the end of that film. You go, Bats!

And isn't there this whole political subtext to their disagreement? Like self-determinism vs. religious piety? Fascism vs. libertarianism? Ayn Rand vs. Stalin? Trump and Sanders, and gun control and stuff?

You did note it's a Zack Snyder film, yes?

So, that's it?

Not exactly. There is a bunch of stuff about Superman being a god (or Jesus, depending), and how his power is unchecked and therefore potentially dangerous, and Bats wants to prove to the world that man is still in control of his destiny, blah blah blah. Oh, also, Alexander Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg) is also in the background, goading Bats on and creating mischief involving a cache of green kryptonite his minions discover somewhere in the Indian Ocean.

Ah, so Luthor is behind it! Now I get it. But Jesse Eisenberg? Really?

You know what? I was pretty convinced that Eisenberg was going to be the cannonball to sink this particular ship -- I mean, the clip they have in the trailer where he has Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne meet at a fancy dress event is teeth-gnashingly bad -- but actually, if you take in his whole performance, he's not the weak link I assumed he'd be. He adds a touch of psychosis to the character (reflected in a series of strange tics and grunts he employs when he gets excited) and for the most part, it works reasonably well. You proved me wrong, Social Network, so nice going.

On the subject of acting ...

I think I know where you're going with this: Ben Affleck is another actor with a kind of limited range -- and lord knows, his previous encounter with the muscled-tights set in Daredevil was a disaster -- but fortunately, Bats doesn't have to do very much other than grit his teeth in pain, work out diligently and banter with his butler, Alfred (Jeremy Irons). He's not necessarily great, but he's definitely no worse than Val Kilmer. OK, that was a low blow. I'll just say this: There's a good chance he won't kill the movie for you either.

OK, so they fight and then I guess they get over it somehow?

Yep, that about covers it. They battle pretty righteously -- Bats gets his hand on some of Luthor's green K, which helps enormously -- and it really seems as if it's going to go down to the death, but then ....

What?

The DC Comics universe is spared pretty much because of a single, fairly common first name.

Seriously?

No, nevermind. I didn't say anything. Nothing to see here. Let's move on.

So how does Wonder Woman fit in?

Well, it turns out Ms. Diana Prince (Gal Gadot) is sort of involved from the outset, but she doesn't really turn up as WW until right near the end, when everyone has to pitch in to combat an evil hybrid Kryptonian zombie creature Luthor cooks up (in the film's least convincing plot contrivance, as it happens).

Is she cool?

She is! She's the best element in the film, for my money. For one thing, she kicks butt, she doesn't stand behind anybody, and there's a great little moment in the midst of battle where she gets this wry smile on her face after taking a pretty big shot from the Kryptonian Zombie Monster. She's an Amazonian! She loves big scraps, and she seems engaged by the challenge. It's a good touch. I'd have to say they treat her character with a decent amount of respect, even if she's wearing a good deal less than everyone else.

OK, all well and good, but the other pretty big strike against the film going in is the guy behind the camera, right?

Man, you just about read my mind. Yes, Zack Snyder, a filmmaker for whom no scene of high drama shall ever be left wanting for rain cascading down like a blown water main, is behind all this. Or shall we say he's in front of a green screen for 90 percent of the flick. I can't say that it's not heavy-handed -- there's the rain! And blowing leaves! And pearls ripped from a necklace! And at least two dream sequences that allow him to really let it fly, including one in which Bats has somehow morphed into Indiana Jones! And frankly the plot eventually just gives way to utter nonsense -- but still, he has done much, much worse in his illustrious career. I realize this is damning with faint praise, but he too isn't the film's biggest albatross.

Uh-oh, so what is?

Well, for all the film's noise, and thrumming violence -- and at least one oddly racy scene involving Lois Lane (Amy Adams) in a bathtub that feels weirdly out of place -- it's pretty hard to care very much about either principal hero. There's very little in the film to humanize them, and very little also to suggest anything beyond the grim, unrelentingly histrionic overtures of Snyder's brand of hyper-melodramatic filmmaking. Much like Steel, it plays at touching on more deeply seated themes, but then just as quickly whisks them away without actually exploring them. For their sake, we can only hope the angelic choir singers who dominate the soundtrack were paid by the hour.

One last thing: So, when Supes and Bats finally do brawl, they do it somewhere remote? A Kansas cornfield, for example?

Oh, no. Confusingly, Bats has it all set up in Gotham City, which, it turns out, is, like, across the river from Metropolis.

It is? But aren't they both, like, really huge cities?

Yeah, it's kind of like if New York and Chicago were just across the Hudson from each other.

Anyway, but wasn't Bats' major issue with Supes that whole destruction-of-the-city thing?

Yep, it sure was. According to him, he initially lures Supes to a largely uninhabited part of the city, but seeing as how everything eventually goes down over there, with the massive waves of total destruction radiating all around that area, it doesn't seem particularly well planned on his part.

Is this movie going to be a hit?

Man, who can say? It will make some dough from those fanboys, for sure, but I don't necessarily know how many other folks will come flocking to it. DC and Warner Bros. really hope this thing will be the kind of atomizing smash that Marvel's The Avengers was, in order to power the further universe of DC comics' properties for years to come. Whether or not that will happen is anybody's guess, but I'd have to say it's hard to see it being that sort of megahit.

Wait, isn't Marvel's big tentpole summer movie, Captain America: Civil War also about superheroes fighting each other for some reason?

Why, yes it is, as a matter of fact, but let's try not to get ahead of ourselves.

MovieStyle on 03/25/2016