Batman V Superman Dawn of Justice

Two superheroes for the price of one clash in spectacular but uninvolving smackdown.

The inevitable consequence of there being more than one superhero around is that sooner or later they will butt heads. Just as Marvel’s Avengers are set to disassemble, DC have rushed straight to the same place but in far fewer films. Without the years of build-up that their rivals have put in to get to this point, the results are disappointing and undemanding. While undeniably spectacular this is a movie that becomes less and less involving as it goes on. 

The initial narrative riffs off the events of Man of Steel which, if you’re one of those who made it to the end, you’ll know concluded with most of Metropolis being flattened during a very, very long battle. People are now taking umbrage at this and by extension questioning by what right does Supes dispatch his justice. One of those particularly irate on the topic is Bruce Wayne who in a promising opening sequence we see on the ground in civilian mode during the big battle rescuing his own employees. Viewing the carnage at street level like this is a strong way of conveying the effect of what is happening on ordinary people and suggests this film will be possessed of an intelligent streak.

We should know better! Instead of pursuing this concept by way of politicians slowly grounding Superman with words rather than weapons (the law versus vigilante justice) we soon have a villain manipulating events towards an unlikely forced confrontation. This plot may well support the film’s title but it is a mundane route. There’s no real need for Lex Luthor in the film at all as his presence pushes aside any intellectual agenda replacing it with frantic villainy.
You also have to question Bruce Wayne’s actions. While he is understandably peeved at Superman, he seems to be employing the same tactics. To try and explain this away the film mentions it is only very, very bad criminals he attacks as opposed to the collateral damage of Superman’s antics. This doesn’t square up at all.

Anyway when they do finally clash, Batman is in an unintentionally amusing pair of big metal boots which clang when he walks! The couple engage in the obligatory chucking each other through buildings (they’re abandoned ones so presumably Bruce is ok with that) till a moment that director Zack Snyder appears to view as an emotional highpoint but which the rest of us have to try hard not to laugh at. It’s at this point that the film loses its already tenuous hold on common sense with a brand new monster that Luthor has cooked up rampaging about like a giant Orc with a hangover and no particular purpose other than to knock more buildings over. Oh and to give our duelling superheroes a reason to –surprise- team up together to take it on. Of course the very first trailer gave both that and the arrival of Wonder Woman. She is, incidentally, above all this superhero aggression and slinks her way through the movie in a succession of tight dresses. 

It is probably wrong to expect anything more from a film titled Batman V Superman but disappointing that early signs of life are snuffed out by a story that it is hard to identify with and two main protagonists who can barely crack a smile between them. Worst of all there is no character called Dawn of Justice!

"...and you can get that white dot out of the way too pal." "That's not my white dot- you put it there metalhead."