This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.
sequila’s review published on Letterboxd:
This review may contain spoilers.
I don't know what cracked the critics are smoking.
Yes, there are unnecessary scenes in the movie that could be removed and not effect the plot in general, and there are also an overexposition on Superman powers and the destruction that it causes on humanity, but in general the movie is decent and good. It is not a bad movie with good moments, but a good movie that has some problems.
Most of the complains in this movie are exactly just that, complaints and nitpicking that aren't constructive criticism. By defintion itself, nitpicking means the tendency to look for slight mistakes or faults. giving too much attention to details that are not important, especially as a way of criticizing. Another definition of nitpicking is when it begins to focus on things that are not actually critical to the goals and the overall scheme of it.
Personally for me, the problem is not in the third act, but in the first act of the movie. Synder spend too much emphasis and overexposition to make the audience think if Superman is good for humanity or not, instead letting them decide it for themselves. The story drags for an hour because of this, but eventually keeps up and the action starts on rolling up to its climax.
Now here is my problem to critics.
⚫Is it overstuffed?
Yes.
⚫But to say the movie is incoherent, nonsensical, and convulted?
No, it is not. You are too dumb and stupid if you don't get the movie and its ending.
*There would be a lot of spoilers below these*.
The plot of the movie is basically about whether Superman can be trusted by humanity because of his god-like power and abilities he possessed. It is basically like the plot of X-Men Days of the Future Past. Lex wanted the support of the government to weaponized and legalized his kryptonite weapon to used as a defense against Superman, but the government disagree on his proposal. So, what he did is that he kidnapped Lois Lane and Superman's mother, Martha Kent, to forced him to fight Batman because Lex knows that him and Batman both shares the same mentality that Superman is a threat.
Unfortunately, this failed. Why? Because Superman's last words before he died is that Batman must save his mother, Martha. In which both of their mothers just happens to have the same name. This moment made Batman realized that Superman is just like him. Not just that their mother possessed similar names, but they are both considered as icons, symbols, untouchables, a myth, and also god-like by the people around them. Gotham, its people and the criminals within it has mythicized that Batman as a superhuman, a demon, unkillable, but what they don't know or perhaps forgotten is that he is just human. While Superman is taken as a messiah, as a supreme being, a God, but underneath it is that he is still also just human and has problems just like normal people. This is what Batman realized and the wake up call that gave him. That just like him, Superman may be considered invincible and lacks fear, but those that are around him are not, and that Superman is very much afraid if the people that he cared about are hurt.
What about the ending? What is it necessary, needed, and relevant to kill Superman in the movie? Yes, it was. The ending gave resolution to the whole plot and theme of the movie. Lex was not just sad, angry, and in rage because he was imprisoned and failed to kill Superman, but because Superman sacrificing himself to kill Doomsday gave the opposite effect of what Lex wanted to happened. Instead of "killing" Superman and completely turning him against the public, the public realized how far Superman is willing to save humanity even in sacrificing and killing himself in the process, and also in that process proves that he is not a threat to humanity, but only wants to help them. This is why Lex is angry on his cell. Superman death and sacrifice immortalized his "legacy" and Lex Luthor would be forgotten. Except, of course, Superman is actually not dead as what we see in the movie.
This is why the first act is the problem for me and not the third. If Snyder expanded more on the third act then we wouldn't have this problem of haters giving low ratings just because they didn't get it.