The Upside: Batman V. Superman

DC’s Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice was perhaps one of the most criticized and disappointing superhero films of the year, scoring a 6.8 on IMDB and scoring 27% on Rotten Tomatoes. Ouch. While there have been some mixed reviews, for the most part the film has been regarded as another example of how DC just keeps failing and failing, unable to keep up with the success of the Marvel franchise. Its predecessor, Man of Steel didn’t tank with audiences quite as badly, but nonetheless, couldn’t live up to fans’ expectations.

Despite being a failure of a script, it does have its merits. Here are a few upsides I found noteworthy.

1.) Batman is a miserable, joyless, and moody SOB.

As Batman should be. While some may consider this boring and annoying, I think Ben Affleck captures the character better than most people claim he did. Yes, he constantly has the look of a moody teenage boy just dumped by his first girlfriend. But let’s face it, ever since the 80’s, when Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight debuted along with Tim Burton’s Batman, followed by the even darker Batman: The Animated Series, the masked vigilante has been less fun to watch and increasingly more depressing.

And those abs, man. Phew.

Problem is: well, he’s a miserable, joyless, and moody SOB and the movie doesn’t give us enough time to get to know, let alone give a hoot about this rendition of Batman. If it weren’t for that pesky Wonder Woman and shameless setup for the Justice League movie! Can any movie nowadays focus on just one or two superheroes at time? The title is Batman V Superman, not Batman V Superman kind-sorta teaming up with Wonder Woman who seems to have some weird ambiguous goal of her own.

2.) It embraces Superman as god-like.

Let’s face it, if we had someone like Superman land on Earth we wouldn’t welcome him with open arms. We’d scream and run in terror, even if his cape was a massive banner that said IT’S OKAY I’M THE GOODGUY. Superman, despite being named Kal-El, Hebrew for “voice of god,” is a messiah, closer to Jesus than Moses. He sacrifices himself for a world that he could destroy. A lengthy essay could easily be devoted to the topic of how the world blames the actions of the many (General Zod and the gang) on the actions of the one (Superman) despite the fact that he just saved the frackin’ planet.

Problem is: they seriously overdo it. Lex Luthor must say the word “god” at least 15 times throughout the film when just two or, better one time would suffice. There are some magnificent shots of Superman looming over people like an archangel, but they lose their effect when we see them over and over.

3.) It gives us a new, weirder rendition of Lex Luthor.

Perhaps the most redeeming part of this film and the only fun part is Jesse Eisenberg. He Channels his performance as Mark Zuckerberg from The Social Network and mixes it with Heath Ledger’s Joker. His intelligence is a superpower in its own right. I don’t think it made sense to the audience that he stutters and goes on tangents when he speaks because as far as I know, no Lex Luthor has really done this before. To me, it was there way of showing that he’s so smart it’s frustrating. His speech can’t quite keep up with his brain. Why he goes crazy? No clue, but I liked it.

Problem is: why does everyone keep Lex’s hair until the end of the movie? Just make him bald from the start people.

4.) Henry Cavill looks the part.

For Man of Steel Cavill trained six months at the infamous Crossfit predecessor, Gym Jones to get in shape for the role. We’ve never seen a live action Superman this buff. Some complain about the bloated look of the film, but I think that in the age of CGI, actors looking as much the part as possible is the one thing that makes us feel that we’re watching humans onscreen. Back in the day, special effects couldn’t come close to what we can do today, but in this sense, I think we harken back to the days of Lou Ferrigno. Granted, it sets ridiculous standards of beauty, but we’ll forgive that for now.

With the jawline, the hair, there’s no mistaking him as Superman. And those pecks… abs… phew.

Problem is: would it kill him to smile?

5.) We get to see just how strong Superman is compared to Batman.

Batman can’t compete with Superman without Kryptonite. With just a flick of his finger, Batman would break a few bones.

Problem is: once is enough, Snyder. We don’t need to see Superman hovering over the Caped Crusader as rain pours down over them as we saw in every preview. Like most things in this movie, it gets old really quick.

6.) They kill Superman.

THANK GOD. Finally someone has the guts to kill a superhero. Was I the only one who was ticked off they let Batman live in The Dark Knight Rises? I know he’ll come back, but let me dream about finality and closure to a story.

Problem is: dual burial scenes? Much, too much. Not to mention we don’t meet Doomsday until act III. Zack Snyder needs to take Screenwriting 101.