Director Zack Snyder
Genre Action | Adventure | Fantasy
Cast Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Jesse Eisenberg
Rating PG-13
Release Date March 25th, 2016
“Fearing that the actions of Superman are left unchecked, Batman takes on the Man of Steel, while the world wrestles with what kind of a hero it really needs.”
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is directed by Zack Snyder who previously directed Man of Steel, Suckerpunch (which was a bust sadly), the violent comic book film Watchmen, and probably the best film on his resume, the 2006 hit 300. Snyder has a resume that easily places him with the upper echelon of directors who have turned comic books into hit films. The cast includes Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, and Lawrence Fisburne. Snyder previously defended his decision to cast Affleck as Batman by stating that he pictured Batman as a bigger and stronger character compared to a somewhat leaner Christian Bale who starred in The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises, both films directed by acclaimed director Christopher Nolan.
I'm going to come right out and say it, I was disappointed with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. I wanted so badly to love it so that I could tell all of the haters out there to stick it where the sun doesn't shine but it just wasn’t meant to be. Did I hate it? No, but it just wasn’t the movie I was hoping for. The plot felt like it was all over the place shifting between different storylines without much of a clear direction, at least in my opinion anyway. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice had plenty of action but it just wasn’t enough to satisfy that itch that is usually easily scratched by a Christopher Nolan directed film. I actually really respect Zack Snyder as a director and I enjoyed Watchmen. I even added it to my movie collection. I suppose the bar was set a bit too high by Nolan and the Dark Knight films, I mean who can be expected to follow-up a Heath Ledger Joker and Tom Hardy Bane? Jessie Eisenberg, I like you as an actor but the shoes were much too big to fill my friend.
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice includes a fantastic cast as far as talent is concerned. Love him or hate him I think Ben Affleck is a talented actor and director, although whether he was the right choice for Batman I am still on the fence about. Henry Cavill is undoubtedly the right fit for Superman and he also played the role in Man of Steel. He has a very dominating presence and portrays the superhero the right way. I really like Jesse Eisenberg as an actor but the 5’9 150lb or so actor should stick to roles that are a bit more believable for him, although he does play the mentally unstable card pretty well. Amy Adams is a fantastic actress but she is just meh in her role, I think Natalie Portman would be a better fit for Lois Lane. Wishful thinking I suppose.
I genuinely wish I could say that I really enjoyed Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, I really do. I just feel like it ended up being just an average film with a huge budget that was unable to live up to expectations. The buzz is that fans have organized a petition asking that the studio release an R-rated version of the film and apparently director Zack Snyder is considering this option. He has confirmed that he has at least 30 minutes of additional footage that was set to release when the film hit Blu-ray/DVD as well as a few variations to other scenes in the film that would have warranted an R-rating. Perhaps a bit more leeway with the content is exactly what Snyder needed. This other version might see a late summer release if it does in fact happen. Only time will tell.
