Villagers, put down your pitchforks and torches. Zack Snyder is not the antichrist, and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is not the unmitigated disaster you may have heard.
Caveat emptor, it’s got some serious problems and is anything but perfect. But it’s got some real strengths and doesn’t deserve the critical and fan community drubbing it’s been enduring.
Batman and Superman have a long history of encounters in the comics, stretching back to 1941 and a whole slew of World’s Finest comics. Their first real dust-up as “adversaries” really began with Frank Miller’s revisionist 1986 Dark Knight Returns series, to which Batman v Superman owes a huge debt. That antagonistic Gotham vs. Metropolis tone lasted for over a decade. But as we all know, adversaries often become allies when faced with a common foe. They’ve been trying to get a Bats-against-Supes film going since 2001, when Andrew Kevin Walker and Akiva Goldsman pitched a story where Bruce Wayne’s fiancée is killed by the Joker, sending him on a rampage of revenge and locking horns with the Man of Steel.
In Snyder’s film (written by Argo scribe Chris Terrio and Man of Steel’s David S. Goyer), an entire skyscraper full of Bruce Wayne employees are 9/11 collateral damage from the massive conflict at the end of Man of Steel. Rather than blame General Zod (which would make a lot more sense), Wayne focuses all culpability on the battle’s survivor – Superman.
Batman is the visceral, vigilante counterpoint to political forces (led by Holly Hunter) caught up in an anxiety of xenophobia about the Man of Steel’s intentions. Aspiring demagogue Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg) looks to play both sides of the fence to nefarious gain.
Let’s talk about what doesn’t work. The picture is crazy overlong, easily by 30-40 minutes. What should be a crisp, economical first act drags itself along with a muddling conspiracy involving Superman rescuing Lois Lane from an African warlord. While editing plays a part, the ambitions of the script make for a really murky liftoff. There are plenty of moments where logic and convenience are stretched pretty thin. But for me, the biggest misfire in the entire enterprise is Lex Luthor. Eisenberg is a cackling dilettante – a Whit Stillman version of American Psycho. His takes seem desperately rushed and unfocused, and his manic performance is a dead flounder on the dock. It’s the most annoying performance in ages, and Luthor’s motivations are completely lost. It’s a terrible take on the character, an epic casting misfire. There’s also a crazy-quilt of distracting cameos, from Anderson Cooper to Neil deGrasse Tyson.
But there’s plenty in BvS that works, and works great, starting with Ben Affleck. I was at the front of the skeptical line when his casting was announced, but Affleck took it really seriously and does a stupendous job here, both as haggard, bitter Bruce Wayne, and as Batman. Fans have been complaining for years that they want the Batman of the comics – a grim, brutal punisher who loses control. Well, this is that Batman, and Affleck sells it. One of the things the design team has done is deliver phenomenal costume work that really serves the iconic stature of the characters. Batman’s regular costume and his suit of armor are fantastic, and straight out of Frank Miller. The Batmobile rocks, and his new Batwing is fantastic. Amazing production design, 110% Batman.
A lot of objections have been raised about Batman's use of firearms in this film. I love that in most of the comics, Batman disdains guns in favor of devices and his wits. But in the earliest Batman stories (heavily influence by The Shadow),
he used guns all the time, like any other pulp hero. But let's agree that when he does use them, it diminishes Batman as a character - though we never seem to have a problem when he mounts machine guns on his vehicles...
I think Henry Cavill is terrific as Superman. His Lois and Clark scenes are a little weak, but he has the presence of Superman, and he conveys the sense of a hero who’s been taken for granted and received more suspiscion than gratitude for his efforts.
Gal Gadot's scenes as Wonder Woman
are an absolute highlight, and she nearly steals the picture. When she finally steps into the costume, you’re ready for the Wonder Woman movie now! She’s a fighter from another age, and you’re intrigued as hell to learn her origin story. She rocks here and doesn’t disappoint.
The finale is overstuffed, but I had plenty of fun with it – and will stay largely spoiler-free here.
If you’ve seen any trailers, you know that these kids will ultimately have to join forces. Snyder does a great job with the action, amping things up to a near operatic level of mayhem. I hate that he’s become fandom’s whipping boy (“He’s Michael Bay!!!”), simplistically defining him by his use of slow-mo, like saying all J.J. Abrams does is lens flare. He’s got a lot of fondness for, and knowledge of, the superhero genre, and I’m amazed by people who dug the trailer but hate on this movie. As mentioned above, it’s got some issues, but it’s absolutely the movie that was advertised. Snyder’s let down by some of the excessive CG, most of which is good, but some of it’s choppy, and the Big Bad is more animal than villain here, more primal force than calculating supervillain. For me, the ending works. Again, it’s an ending that has plenty of comic fidelity, and for the story we’re given, it fits.
Absolutely, Batman v Superman feels like it’s a set-up for Justice League, Wonder Woman and other tentpoles. Ya think? That’s really its purpose. Parts of it drove me a little nuts, but overall I was pretty thrillingly entertained and I’m definitely excited for more DC films, especially Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman. I hope audiences and comic fans don’t drink too much of the toxic review Kool-Aid this films been hosed down with. It’s a big, crazy comic entertainment, and if you could do a hell of a lot worse. Give it a shot and make up your own mind.
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