I'm not going to go back and forth after I dissect your review because I'm tired and nothing will really convince you anyways;
Ok Bronson, here it is. My review.
I have been pondering this thing since I saw it and the more I think about it, the less I like it. BvS was a really depressing film, in spite of all the hype it had coming into things. BvS really just felt like a combination of multiple scripts, each alone could have been ok but together was just a mess. Let's start at the beginning:
Opening message from Snyder: He looked so disheveled and beaten, he looked like he was like, "Well guys, here it is. Enjoy...I guess." His demeanor was so subdued, it was weird. Like he wasn't overly excited about the movie he turned in...based on that I had a feeling we were in for something.
Movie starts after no trailers (A+ choice!). Intro was standard Batmang origin fare with the Comedian as his father...whatever, cool. The next 15 minutes or so were great. The action of Metropolis being destroyed through Bruce Wayne's eyes. (though I have no idea why Bruce's dude on the leadership team evacuated the building, only to stay up there to die?!?) Wat.
Anyway, that stuff was good, set the table for Batman/Bruce to hate Superman. Perfect. Then the other scene in the opening. The Superman in the desert nonsense. What a confusing scene. Lois is there, i guess to get an interview with a local warlord, but there's some independent contractors there too for a double cross and Superman gets called in as a care package...I still have no fucking idea what the point of that scene was...to frame Superman or whatever...idk, it was dreadful.
There were multiple elements at play here. Lex was securing the kryptonite, I think Lois was doing a piece on the war (not hard to believe, she's a war journalist), and it made people question Superman's role in the world after a false accusation came out that he killed all the soldiers.
Movie moves on and we are introduced to Lex Luthor, who presumably runs a Google like tech company. He is wasting his time scheming and plotting over changing topics throughout the film. I think one of the reviewers said it, he felt like a combination of Joker (from the Batmang script) and Lex from the Man Of Steel 2 script. I liked Lex well enough but his motivations were odd and seemed misplaced a lot of the movie. I was hoping for a Lex that was going to take the loss in Metropolis to openly position himself as the savior that the world should turn to, post Metropolis, .i.e. he helps rebuild, pours a ton of money and "good will" making his case...as I wrote awhile ago in my thoughts for MoS2:
I agree, he was a little too dramatic at points. It seemed less about bringing Lex up in the public, and more about Lex proving his point that god can't be all powerful and good at the same time, presumably because of his upbringing. He also obviously viewed people with contempt, I think he feels threatened by Superman's presence, one of the few people that could challenge his position in the world.
Diana Prince is introduced at a party that Bruce Wayne is going to to try and get information on whatever Lex is up to so he can get the Kryptonite to stop Clark and whatever. What a wasted opportunity this was for Diana to really assert herself more than basically becoming Selina Kyle and one upping Bruce for the McGuffin. I felt that Wonder Woman as a whole was horribly misused in this film. My SO said the same. She hated the way she was protrayed, especially the crotch shot at the end during the fight with...ok, back to what I was saying. She was sorely underused.
I would have loved to see WW used more but she was the second or third main plot thread, which was that metahumans exist. I liked her mannerisms and I thought she had a few clever scenes, outwitting Bruce. She seemed fully capable, and not just some eye candy.
Bruce Wayne/Batmang was hit and miss. They tried really hard to make him the brooding Dark Knight we all know and love but in a movie trying to do so much, there simply isn't enough time to get the setup all in without forcing it. They have a scene where he is hunting some goon or whatever with a presumable human trafficking operation. It isn't enough to build him up and the world of the DCCU seems oblivious to his existence, even though Gotham has a fucking Bat signal AND they mention that for 20 years they have been fighting in Gotham. Long enough to lose Robin and become a weathered old man. It's inconsistent and constantly feels off. The action with him was great but his breaking of the "no kill" rule so blatantly was extremely off-putting. Most of that action could have happened without guns on the Batmobile and flatout murders...oh well...Scar as Alfred was great.
The killing was part of his character development.The central theme for the movie was "There's no good men left", that included Batman himself. I didn't really see anything contradictory with Man of Steel, he's a vigilante and not a meta human, I don't know why comparisons between him and Superman would arise, especially since Superman wasn't a hero at that point, it was essentially his first day, the world didn't know he existed..
Superman...wow...ok. where do I start? He doesn't feel like Superman at all, and certainly not like a Superman in a post Metropolis world. He isn't introspective at all. He cost the world thousands of lives and even if it was collateral damage, he doesn't seem moved by it. The first we see him, he is driving an African warlord through a wall. Where is the reflection? A missed opportunity....what might have been is, having the film open with Superman in the north, in solitude. Maybe this is where you work in the scene with Pa Kent's ghost. Perhaps, the narrative is while he works a day job at the planet trying to move on, he spends his alone time in the fortress broken by the guilt of what he let happen. He still does a save or two, but he is having a hard time coping with the loss he was part of causing...i'll put the fanfic to the side for a bit and come back to it later...Superman feels inconsistent with the world he lives in. He finally comes to Capitol Hill and is once again, powerless to stop the loss of tons of people. The explosion scene was weird and did less to solidify Superman's eventual redemption. The only time it is even brought up, is on Lois' patio and he is sulking, not emotionally broken. As a Christ analog, it was so weird seeing him perform this way. When doing saves in this film, Superman seems so blah about doing any of it. The Dia De Los Muertes scene showed it all. Resigned to a fate of helping people...that isn't the Superman I know or even the one introduced in MoS.
His core conflict was brought on by Scoot's character, whether or not the world needed a Superman. Superman was under the impression that he was causing more harm than helping by Scoot's appearance and points (remember, Zod was drawn to Earth by Superman's existence), which was reinforced when the bomb exploded and he was too naive to have prevented it. The world is proven to need a Superman later on when Doomsday appears out of man's creation, rather than an external threat.
The fight between Batmang and Supermang. It felt sooooo hamfisted and corny. "I have your mother, haha. You will work for me now, hahaha." Ugh. It was Lex's master stroke but it didn't land for me. It could have been a great scene but it all came together so clunky. The movie showed its hand by showing Martha get kidnapped, thereby showing the audience what Supes doesn't know. So the surprise is awful because we know the card that Lex is about to play. Maybe that scene plays stronger if she is taken off screen and we are surprised along with Superman...
The only thing I disliked about the fight was Superman's shove on Batman. It still felt like there was room for dialog. Forcing Superman's hand makes sense, he was never suppose to outright hate Batman, he never intended to apprehend him violently. He first tried the presses and Perry didn't want to run with it, so he threatened Batman in person, finally being forced by Lex (again trying to prove that great power isn't always innocent) to kill Batman. Superman was always the good guy in this film, there isn't suppose to be a morally grey reason for why he wants to fight Batman. He felt the brandings were wrong and wanted to stop him peacefully.
The fight is bad and forced since they had to accelerate the hatred between Bats and Supes. The "Lex said I gotta kill ya!" crap made it feel even more unnecessary. It was a bad premise. Batman using Kryptonite vapor instead of the stone was another misstep by this movie. I know they wanted him to appear clever but it was a bit wasted. Also, what I THOUGHT they were doing was, Batman mixed the Krypotonite with Scarecrow's fear toxin. Batmang started monologuing about Fear and shit and I was like, "Oh shit, this is COOL!" Nope. Just words.
BTW, I totes called that gas plot point.
This is more about expectations than actual results. Batman's plan was solid enough, I don't see any issue with it.
Superman just got owned in that fight and never really had the upper hand and...OH! That reminds me, the armor that Mang wore. I was hoping it was going to be constructed using the Zod armor (to explain it being able to absorb a Supes strike) but nope, it is just powerful because Batmang made it awesome. Missed opportunity once again.
He was pretty much wrecking him until the gas shot, even after that he got a few good shots in
Doomsday was just a 3rd act plot point so I won't address him much. I will address the events around him. Why Batman took off that armor is beyond me. My SO leaned over and asked, "Why isn't he wearing the armor anymore?" I had no answer.
It was literally wrecked, half his face was torn off, he was flying in a jet and it would have been pointess. He never intended to face doomsday in h2h combat, and even if he did, he'd probably would be fucked just by one punch from him without him being affected by kryptonite. Speed would have been more beneficial in this case as we can see him dodging doomsday's attack.
Why did Lois throw the blade in the water? Why didn't Wonder Woman take the challenge to stab Doomsday, seeing as how she is just as strong and not vulnerable to Kryptonite? Superman, decides on a whim, that he needs to self sacrifice, just like Pa Kent, for...uh, reasons. He looking for a redemption that is unearned...which hooks into the fanfic I scribed earlier on. If this movie had established that Clark was in search of redemption throughout the film, and Doomsday posed an immediate threat to thousands of people (like Zod did)...that would have felt earned. That in that moment, he makes the ultimate sacrifice because he doesn't want the loss of millions on his hands as the loss of thousands already are. He could have said as much!
More of an issue of convenience, Superman probably didn't want to risk another Doomsday supernova if he had waited for WW to pick it up, she also is unable to fly and we really don't know (neither does Superman) how strong she is.
I guess that is my biggest issue with this film. Nothing felt earned. Lex's place in the world. Batman/Superman's fight. Wonder Woman's decision to get off the plane and help. Superman's redemption. Because it felt like they were trying to do so much world building in 2 hours and 40 minutes, nothing was fully baked.
I agree the film could have used less plot threads, but ultimately I felt like the result was understandable and the themes were paid off by the end.
All the minor fuckery like the videos of the other JLers and Batmang's email to Wonder Woman and what not has been covered to death so I won't.
There was some good in it. LOVED the soundtrack (I like the Batman theme a lot) and the action as always with Snyder, was top notch. The Batmobile chase scene and the Martha rescue in particular was excellent.
All in all, I was disappointed more than anything else. Had this movie been Man Of Steel 2 or Batman Reboot, it could have been solid. As mutation of both, it fell flat.
I'd give it a C.
Although I disagree with some of your points, I do feel like there could have been some changes that made the film much smoother. There was nothing really wrong with the plot, just the way it was conveyed.
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