This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.
William Dass’s review published on Letterboxd:
This review may contain spoilers.
It's hard to put down a review with all the furor over BATMAN VERSUS SUPERMAN. It's funny to me, but for a little bit, I forgot what Zach Snyder's filmography was. Based on what I'd been reading on the internets I thought he might be our generation's D. W. Griffith. But, no. He's the guy that brought us Frank Miller's 300. He's also the guy who brought us Alan Moore's WATCHMEN. From the mind of Zach Snyder came SUCKERPUNCH. And now, he's the guy that's brought us Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns - or, some version of it - which is roughly what I expected.
I'd love a conversation with folks who genuinely think that Snyder fundamentally misunderstands Superman regarding their thoughts on all the work Frank Miller did on Batman and whether The God Damn Batman is a fundamental misunderstanding of that character. There seems to be a lot of arbitrary picking and choosing as to what the Core Values are of...of these characters who've been reinvented a half dozen times over the last nearly 80 years. If your thing is that the take on this character is wrongheaded, respect. The sudden swell of passion interests me. In the same way the box office of Jurassic World blew my mind, the furor over BvS and the director and the story fascinates me.
************SPOILERS AHEAD**************
But, what about the movie? I liked it! It definitely isn't the movie I would have made. That seems like an unfair way to take in a movie. I mean, WB didn't hire me to be the shot caller – I have to assume for good reason – on this multi billion dollar investment in their future. I'd much rather have had this story after Batman and Superman developed a relationship. I think they're ripe for a fallout that isn't as easily solved as realizing they're being played by Lex Luthor. There’s something more fundamental to the way they perceive their roles in the world that can just as easily set them at odds as it does on the same side.
What did I love?
Ben Affleck as Batman and Bruce Wayne. I thought he was wonderful and I am so excited for a solo Batman movie directed by the man himself. Jeremy Irons was The God Damn Alfred, man. I loved it. I loved the Bat suit. The regular and the up-armor version. It was great to see that now classic suit in live action. It gave Batman mobility. Flexibility. The ability to turn his head. Which does wonders for enhancing an actor’s choices for performance.
Jesse Eisenberg's Lex Luthor was wacko. All his face tics and his whackadoo gonzo approach were a hit for me. Luthor wears them like Bruce Wayne wears his I've Had Two Martinis whilst out about the town. “We've got trouble up here!” Throwing the pictures of Ma Kent at Superman on top of that tower was a great visual. And I liked that they didn't mess around with the idea of "ohhh, does Lex know who they are, really?" Nope. He knows. Because he's The God Damn Luthor.
Wonder Woman. Gal Gadot. Gosh. I'm super interested in seeing her solo movie. I understand why they didn't give her more to work with in this movie, but I wish she had more. Because, oh my. That image of her smiling after Doomsday smashed her across the battlefield was perfect. Perfect.
The death of Superman. Superman flying to his death. Doomsday stabbing him in the chest with the bone hand as they killed each other. I really liked it. But, hey. The Death of Superman is THE defining comic moment of my childhood. So. There you go.
What did I not like?
Oof. Pretty much anything else in the final battle with Doomsday. It was way too frenetic. It was just explosions and serious faces. I mean The God Damn Serious Faces. The visuals didn't do it for me. And I was bummed that there wasn't more verbal communication between the founding members of the Justice League in that fight. Is she with you? I thought she was with you? ::explosions:: We could have used more character building there.
Then there was the short shrift the secondary characters got. Lois Lane. Martha Kent. Senator Finch. Um. I'm detecting a pattern here. I'm pretty sure we can do better on this front. Lois Lane, intrepid reporter who solved the Superman riddle before anyone knew there was one is a constant damsel in distress. Like, Zach Snyder. Guy. You can't have Perry White ridicule 1938 Superman values but keep the damsel in distress bit. Dude. Bro. Do better.
But, my biggest complaint is that this movie - despite the title card fight - moved this universe not one inch forward cinematically. For all the events, the throw down in the harbor to the actual death of Superman, nothing really changes from start to finish that wasn't already going to be implicitly so by the creation of the DC Cinematic Extended Universe. When they introduced Batman in the opening credits, that was roughly the sum total of character development and advancement. Bruce Wayne doesn't change. Diana Prince doesn't really change. She's back in the world by virtue of being in the movie. Nobody in comics stays dead. So, given that Superman's Return is inevitable, nothing changed for him. It's functionally a lateral movie from a solitary Superman franchise into a Universe franchise. And I feel like they could have handled it better. Maybe if they had the idea in 2007 and executed it with patience and deliberation they could have organic success in the year 2016. #MCUBurnUnit NOPE. They said "Butts in chairs! We need butts in chairs! We'll bet a billion this will be a success!" And that shows a bit. To me.
All in, I quite liked it. I'll watch it again. If it helps you calibrate my review at all, SUPERMAN RETURNS is the best live action Superman movie. BAM.