Review by Adam Winn, Staff writer
After riding the coattails of success created by the release of the fellow superhero movie “Deadpool,” many film enthusiasts have speculated if the current sequel/reboot “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” would be able to live up to all the publicity it was creating. While this film is certainly different from previous installments in both the “Superman” and “Batman” franchises, it is undoubtedly worth the cost of an admissions ticket.
The plot picks up following the events of what happened in “Man of Steel,” the latest Superman film. After the alien attack that left the city of Metropolis in ruins, many citizens, including Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck), who plays Batman and had one of his buildings destroyed in the invasion, immediately begins to see Superman (Henry Cavill) as a threat to all lives on Earth.
Batman begins to search for a way to stop the Man of Steel with the hopes of preventing him from using his powers for evil. During this time, the devious villain Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg) is also conspiring his own vicious plan against Superman.
The film’s runtime was a little over two and a half hours long, which makes it the second-longest superhero movie to-date behind “The Dark Knight Rises.” However, even with an incredibly lengthy runtime, the plot never seems to wane or become tedious.
Like most blockbuster superhero films, the cinematography was nearly flawlessly executed. There were a few scenes where the CGI was slightly overdone, especially during the climactic fight scene near the end, but these trivial imperfections don’t hurt the overall film in any way.
The acting was outstanding, with Affleck bringing a dark ferociousness to the character of Batman. He does this even more so than any other actor that has portrayed Batman in the past, including Christian Bale.
Even with Affleck’s astounding performance, it’s honest to say that Eisenberg’s portrayal as the psychopathic Luthor was particularly commendable. He creates this unsettling presence during every scene his character is in. He ultimately shows the audience just how insane his character is by the time the movie reaches its epic climax.
Some film critics and audience members may criticize this movie and compare it to Christopher Nolan’s extremely successful “Dark Knight” trilogy. Even though Nolan helped produce this new film, this movie exists in its own universe and is more of a reboot with very few connections to any of the previous ones.
While Nolan’s film series was exceptional, this picture is more honest and connects to the actual comic book version of Batman, more so than any of his previous movies.
Another thing viewers might also notice is the fact that the Dark Knight is different from the way he has been shown in former movies. For instance, this Batman has no problem killing bad people, unlike previous portrayals of the character who goes out of his way to avoid hurting anyone, including villains.
Some audience members will love “Batman v Superman” and appreciate its connection to the comics, and others may be displeased with the film due to its differences from previous adaptations. As long as the viewers go in knowing that this flick is intentionally setting itself up for future installments, including the upcoming “Wonder Woman” and “Justice League” movies, then spectators are guaranteed to have an entertaining and engaging experience.