Batman v Superman

So I've just been to see Batman v Superman and thought I'd give my view on the whole experience. I'm going to split this into three sections, Trailers, Spoiler Free and Spoilers (Just a little). I am going to apologise in advance as my reviewing skills may not be the best.

TRAILERS

If the past is anything to go by, Trailers usually set and give you the tone of the movie. However this is not always the case. I'm not going to go into big detail, mainly just a first impression.

Suicide Squad

You've probably seen this before, but I have to say if the trailer is anything to go by, this film should be amazing! The right mix of action, humour and mayhem and you've got a winner on your hands. This is one I'm definitely looking forward to. Hopefully it'll do the comic book justice and not let the fans down.

MIDNIGHT SPECIAL

Firstly I've never heard of this movie and to be honest I'm intrigued! The trailer shows a kid with preternatural powers, army guys, a detective following a series of unexplained events, explosions and things falling from the sky. It tickled my sci-fi bone and now I want to know more.

THE HUNTSMAN

Snow White and the Huntsman was a fairly decent film if you forgive Kristen Stewart. This one is set before  Snow White it fulfills my fantasy quota quite well, lots of visual magic. A great cast of A listers should provide us with good film worthy of your ticket price, but we will have to see.

CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR

Personally I'm a big Marvel fan, not huge but I know what I like. I have and have read the Civil War books and I am expecting good things from this. Now I know it won't be exactly the same as the books have a set history and build up, whereas the movies have their cinematic history as a build up, however we see the introduction of more characters, prodominantly Black Panther and finally Spiderman. The books cast list is expansive with so many heroes, it would quite likely be impractical to attempt it cinematically, too many characters and back stories, along with the explanations as to where they've been and why they're here now. But following Marvels track record, Civil War will undoubtedly bring some ire, but for the most part be a fantastic film with great action, brilliant one-liners and a bucket load of feels. I don't know about you, but my ticket is booked!

BATMAN V SUPERMAN - NO SPOILERS

For those of you going to see it soon I will tell you one thing.... there are no after credit scenes as seems to be the trend with the recent revamp of DC movies. After credit scenes now appear to be the domain of Marvel as this blogger can attest to. But then again does a 151 minute film really need an after credit scene?

First impressions..... I liked it. Admittedly I didn't walk out of the theater going Oh Wow, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. A lot of the scenes and shots were very moody, but then again that seems to be a common theme with Zack Snyder. The pacing was all over the place, one minute slow, then fast, then snail's pace. Action scenes were quick and exciting but without being so fast that you see next to nothing and miss parts which always irritates me. The special effects were without doubt top notch with the exception of one 3-4 second piece where the character just didn't move or look right.

Overall the film was good, however it could have done with being a little shorter. Batfleck did a decent job of Batman considering what has gone before and wasn't as bad as I had heard his performance was from other reviewers.  To be honest you should always treat a film or movie for what it is and try not to compare it to previous versions or interpretations. It's definitely worth going to see but may disappoint hardcore fans.

SPOILERS (JUST A LITTLE)

Now I'm not the type to completely write out the full synopsis of the story, more critiquing the characters and such so let's go.

First of all, Batman kills!! From all the comics I've read before, there is one thing Batman never does and that is kill, maim yes, incapacitate yes but never kill.

Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luther was a great choice, however I've always known either through Gene Hackman, Smallville or the comics that Lex was always an incredibly smart, straight forward mastermind whereas in this while still smart, he is borderline schizophrenic. Not really sure how I feel about this, don't get me wrong though the portrayal was awesome, just sometimes a little disjointed.

Doomsday. Well...... A little disappointed to be honest, but more for aesthetic reasons than anything else. Initially, he looks more like Darkseid than the iconic Doomsday silhouette, though the bone ridges or spikes start to show, they never fulfill the expectation. Also they could have filled an entire movie with this character, build up, battle, and more yet he is relegated to the last 40 minutes and and then killed (hopefully not permanently). 

Wonder Woman. Great for what little we really saw of her. But then again this was just an introduction. She's strong, fast but no hint on flight. In the 80s she was rebooted and no longer needed her jet and like Superman, gained the ability of flight at a later point but which will they go with flight or jet? Thought there is a scene of Diana boarding and the disembarking a plane which may point to no flight.

Jeremy Irons as Alfred was perfect! An improvement on Michael Caine, Irons is excellent comedy relief, a darker more fatherly figure which firs with the impression that they have been fighting crime for 20 years. He's a mechanic, drone operator and seems more like a parent figure than the classically portrayed servile Butler figure, a big improvement for me.

There was also the nice inclusion of Jason Todd's Robin suit with the tag "Hahaha the jokes on you" along with a dream sequence prompted by the Flash. A "dream" showing a future were Superman has taken over the Earth along similar lines to the Injustice: God's Among us comic storyline but it appears Superman has aligned with Darkseid.

Ok now the big one, Superman dies............. but right at the last second of the film before the credits, dirt rises off the top of Clark's coffin. So........ not dead.

So............. All in all a good film with some areas that could have been better. It's one I'd definitely watch again and buy the dvd when released.

How goes it for my first review? Probably like the film... a little disjointed maybe? There's alway room for improvement. Until next time!