"You either die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become the villain."

- Harvey Dent (The Dark Knight)







Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice: Ultimate Edition title screen.

Batman v Superman is a Zack Snyder film through and through. While most films are composed of scenes, Zack Snyder's films are composed of moments. This is due to two key aspects: stunning visuals and beautiful sound design. Let's talk about visuals and tone first. This movie is not your typical superhero film and you see this from the simplicity of the opening credits. Where most films go with crazy 3D text and colorful decoration, Batman v Superman opens much like an indie film. This tone is set right from the start and carries on throughout the rest of the film. While the film's Marvel counterparts are much more family friendly and light hearted, the DC films are grounded and ask complex questions about mortality and government. I understand that this isn't for everyone but there is no better way to believe a superhero than dropping them into modern society and seeing the ripples. (Plus, as much as I love the Marvel movies, seeing the same formula being implemented with different characters gets boring and it's good to have a change of pace. And I'm pretty sure if Batman v Superman did go the family comedy route, people would say it was just copying Marvel.) Accompanying the tone is the gorgeous imagery that makes each frame look like a carefully drawn painting. The camera never moves unnecessarily, there is always a point of focus and reason. Simply put, Snyder's direction along with Larry Fong's cinematography is superb. There's also Snyder's signature slow motion and snap zooms. Love 'em or hate 'em they do have a purpose in the film. The slow motion allows the audience to take everything in and, during a heated battle, take a break from the action, meanwhile the snap zooms are great for understanding the scale and scope of something. (As a bonus, they look really cool.) For example, in the beginning of the film as you see the events of Man of Steel unfold from ground level there is a scene where debris is raining down from the atmosphere and destroying Metropolis and the camera zooms in to see Superman and General Zod plummeting along with the fireballs. This gives you an idea of how devastating the damage was and how it looks from the point of view of a civilian looking up as their city is being destroyed. is a Zack Snyder film through and through. While most films are composed of scenes, Zack Snyder's films are composed of moments. This is due to two key aspects: stunning visuals and beautiful sound design. Let's talk about visuals and tone first. This movie is not your typical superhero film and you see this from the simplicity of the opening credits. Where most films go with crazy 3D text and colorful decoration,opens much like an indie film. This tone is set right from the start and carries on throughout the rest of the film. While the film's Marvel counterparts are much more family friendly and light hearted, the DC films are grounded and ask complex questions about mortality and government. I understand that this isn't for everyone but there is no better way to believe a superhero than dropping them into modern society and seeing the ripples. (Plus, as much as I love the Marvel movies, seeing the same formula being implemented with different characters gets boring and it's good to have a change of pace. And I'm pretty sure if Batman v Superman did go the family comedy route, people would say it was just copying Marvel.) Accompanying the tone is the gorgeous imagery that makes each frame look like a carefully drawn painting. The camera never moves unnecessarily, there is always a point of focus and reason. Simply put, Snyder's direction along with Larry Fong's cinematography is superb. There's also Snyder's signature slow motion and snap zooms. Love 'em or hate 'em they do have a purpose in the film. The slow motion allows the audience to take everything in and, during a heated battle, take a break from the action, meanwhile the snap zooms are great for understanding the scale and scope of something. (As a bonus, they look really cool.) For example, in the beginning of the film as you see the events ofunfold from ground level there is a scene where debris is raining down from the atmosphere and destroying Metropolis and the camera zooms in to see Superman and General Zod plummeting along with the fireballs. This gives you an idea of how devastating the damage was and how it looks from the point of view of a civilian looking up as their city is being destroyed.



Superman fighting General Zod during the beginning of Batman v Superman.

Then there's the sound. Everything regarding sound is amazing in this movie. Zack Snyder's films have great sound design and everything feels more potent because of it. During the right moments, small actions take center stage. The sound of a horse's hoofs hitting the ground to break the silence of a disaster or the subtle sound of an object that is important in the scene, or the film as a whole, clatter with a subconsciously appropriate effect. I can't say this enough, everything in Batman v Superman feels purposeful by the director, writers and editors. This is all backed up by one of the best soundtracks for any superhero film which is produced by, the legendary, Hans Zimmer and Junkie XL. I would be lying if I said some tracks didn't put a smile on my face. The best way I can describe it is this: When I went to watch Batman v Superman in theaters, the day it came out, there was a little kid and his mom sitting in front of us. There was a particular scene in the film where the music took center stage (the introduction of Wonder Woman if my memory servers me right) and I had a huge smile on my face and in my head I said That's awesome! Then in front of me the little kid turned to his mom with an ear-to-ear grin and whispered "That's awesome!"



Now before we move onto the story and characters let's start with a bit of backstory. This is a very different Batman you are seeing from Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Trilogy. The Batman from Batman v Superman is more reminiscent of Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns comics and movies. This is a Batman who has witnessed the death of Robin. He is a war-torn man who has been broken by the Joker. If you are wondering how I know this, the scene in which the Robin suit is shown with yellow paint saying "HAHAHA the joke's on you BATMAN" is post death-of-Robin as shown in Under the Red Hood. Keep this in mind because that is why he starts killing or brutally assaulting the thugs in Gotham City. We aren't looking at the same Batman who came home from Ra's al Ghul's training and refused to kill. (If you want more of that type of Batman watch Under the Red Hood, The Killing Joke and The Dark Knight Returns movies.)



Ben Affleck as Batman.

Despite early doubts, the best thing about this film is Ben Affleck's Batman. Over the decades that Batman movies, comics, and games have been made, there have been many iterations of the Caped Crusader. But on film, this has to be one of the best. (A statement I never thought I would say after The Dark Knight.) This is very much a modern Batman with roots in the character's comics and animated movies. Like I said earlier, the design and aesthetic is inspired by The Dark Knight Returns which means he is older and, as weird as it is to say, wider. Taking it one scene at a time, let's start with the introduction. Batman is hanging from the roof and blending into the shadows. Below him people are scared saying "the devil" saved them, which is an accurate description of Batman because of his "pick-one-off-at-a-time" fear tactics and, of course, pointed ears. Then we get a brief look at security camera footage where he drops down, grabs a thug, and repels back up before anyone can get a shot off on him. If you played the Batman Arkham games then this should be familiar considering the game has you doing the same thing. Batfleck also loves his gadgets and the warehouse scene at the end is a great example of this. He throws sticky bombs on people's guns to disarm them and uses his grappling hook to throw them around. What is Batman, other than a billionaire philanthropist with crazy martial arts skills, without his gadgets. Sure, Bale's Batman also used gadgets but not in combat like he does here. Above it all, however, is Batman's skills and there is no better showcase of this than the Knightmare sequence. In layman's terms, that long uncut take is everything you need to know that we are looking at the best Batman we have ever seen. Period. Then there's the sound. Everything regarding sound is amazing in this movie. Zack Snyder's films have great sound design and everything feels more potent because of it. During the right moments, small actions take center stage. The sound of a horse's hoofs hitting the ground to break the silence of a disaster or the subtle sound of an object that is important in the scene, or the film as a whole, clatter with a subconsciously appropriate effect. I can't say this enough, everything infeels purposeful by the director, writers and editors. This is all backed up by one of the best soundtracks for any superhero film which is produced by, the legendary, Hans Zimmer and Junkie XL. I would be lying if I said some tracks didn't put a smile on my face. The best way I can describe it is this: When I went to watchin theaters, the day it came out, there was a little kid and his mom sitting in front of us. There was a particular scene in the film where the music took center stage (the introduction of Wonder Woman if my memory servers me right) and I had a huge smile on my face and in my head I said That's awesome! Then in front of me the little kid turned to his mom with an ear-to-ear grin and whispered "That's awesome!"Now before we move onto the story and characters let's start with a bit of backstory. This is a very different Batman you are seeing from Christopher Nolan's. The Batman fromis more reminiscent of Frank Miller'scomics and movies. This is a Batman who has witnessed the death of Robin. He is a war-torn man who has been broken by the Joker. If you are wondering how I know this, the scene in which the Robin suit is shown with yellow paint saying "HAHAHA the joke's on you BATMAN" is post death-of-Robin as shown in. Keep this in mind because that is why he starts killing or brutally assaulting the thugs in Gotham City. We aren't looking at the same Batman who came home from Ra's al Ghul's training and refused to kill. (If you want more of that type of Batman watchandmovies.)Despite early doubts, the best thing about this film is Ben Affleck's Batman. Over the decades that Batman movies, comics, and games have been made, there have been many iterations of the Caped Crusader. But on film, this has to be one of the best. (A statement I never thought I would say after.) This is very much a modern Batman with roots in the character's comics and animated movies. Like I said earlier, the design and aesthetic is inspired bywhich means he is older and, as weird as it is to say, wider. Taking it one scene at a time, let's start with the introduction. Batman is hanging from the roof and blending into the shadows. Below him people are scared saying "the devil" saved them, which is an accurate description of Batman because of his "pick-one-off-at-a-time" fear tactics and, of course, pointed ears. Then we get a brief look at security camera footage where he drops down, grabs a thug, and repels back up before anyone can get a shot off on him. If you played thegames then this should be familiar considering the game has you doing the same thing. Batfleck also loves his gadgets and the warehouse scene at the end is a great example of this. He throws sticky bombs on people's guns to disarm them and uses his grappling hook to throw them around. What is Batman, other than a billionaire philanthropist with crazy martial arts skills, without his gadgets. Sure, Bale's Batman also used gadgets but not in combat like he does here. Above it all, however, is Batman's skills and there is no better showcase of this than the Knightmare sequence. In layman's terms, that long uncut take is everything you need to know that we are looking at the best Batman we have ever seen. Period.



I also want to mention briefly that the Bruce Wayne in Batman v Superman is also very different from previous silver screen iterations. He is a more politically driven character with a lot to say. I'm not very political but it's easy to see that Bruce treats the devastating attack on Metropolis as an act of terrorism. He is drive purely from his patriotic rage as he does anything in his power to destroy Superman. This is what blinds him to be so easily influenced by Lex Luthor. We see more of this blind rage in Batman in the animated movies but this is the first time we get to see it in a live action adaptation.



Henry Cavill as Superman.

Superman on the other hand is a bit of a different story. One of the main criticisms I had about Man of Steel was that there wasn't too much character development in it. The character didn't really go through any change. Clark Kent simply becomes Superman. In Batman v Superman he's a conflicted superhero. No longer the one that would fly down, damsel in distress in his hands, to people cheering under him. This is modern day Superman, where everyone seems to have something to say and no two people are on the same page. As he states in the film he doesn't know if this is his world or not. He feels rejected by the world he's trying to save and believes you cannot be all good in it. (That last statement is what all three main characters, Bruce, Clark and Lex, have in common. Lex actually says this as he explains to Superman that "If God is all powerful, He cannot be all good.") However, the struggle that Clark Kent has would have been more significant if we got to see the character grow more in the first film. The questions asked in the film regarding Superman are important and some of them do get the point across, but a well rounded character would have worked better under such testing circumstances. For example, in The Dark Knight Rises as Batman is being urged to quit and not put his life on the line for Gotham we know what his answer will be. After being with the character for 2 films already, we have seen him grow, and we know he will do anything to keep his promise and keep his city safe. With all that said the impact of Superman deciding that this is his world after all still lands and his sacrifice, however temporary, was the change that needed to happen to show that Superman's love for Earth will not waver. He will be everything that we need him to be...and none of it!



Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor.

Lex Luthor is one of the characters in the film that is very different from the comics. All the characters in the film are adapted in someway shape or form to fit into modern times and Lex is no exception. He is a socially awkward millionaire who wants to pin the all powerful Superman against the Dark Knight. But rich introverted businessmen are common in the world so why did people have such a hard time believing this character. Well there's several reasons, and each person brings a different criticism to the table but the main reason is that Lex is not what people expect to see. This man who has figured out the secret identities of Batman and Superman. This man who sent a letter to Bruce Wayne saying "you killed your family" and pictures to Clark Kent that ask for justice to get them both riled up. This man who causes Batman and Superman to want to kill each other. He's just a scrawny guy in a suit who cannot deliver a speech without getting sidetracked about power and knowledge. That's because this modern take is inspired by other, popular, movie villains. Not just from superhero films but just good villains in general. Kevin Spacey from Se7en comes to mind, for some reason, as an obvious inspiration. But even with that change they still manage to capture the concept of Lex as an antagonist. Even in the comics, as Lex is setting up his plan to take over the world, he's in the backline. He sets things in motion and watches it unfold. No one sees him as a threat. Hiding in plain view. As Zack Snyder says in an



Okay...here we go: why did he say that name? This has to be the most mentioned criticism about the movie but one that can be easily explained and has been setup since the beginning of the film. Setting the stage: Batman has Superman under his foot and is about to drive the spear of Kryptonite into his chest and kill him. With his dying words Superman utters something about Martha and Batman stops. The big reason why he just doesn't drive the spear down is because the act of saying someone else's name before he died showed that Superman cares about someone else. This grounds Superman in Batman's eyes. And to drive the point further, Bruce Wayne's father's last word was also "Martha". Now, not only did this humanize Superman, to Batman, this linked him to his father who said and did the same thing as he died. In theory, any name could have been said and, ultimately, Batman would have come to the same conclusion. The names being the same was probably done to simplify things but that kind of backfired in retrospect.



Next, there are four dream sequences in the film, three of which are indicated by the sound of the World Engine and one of which starts the film. (So to those wondering why young Bruce was floating up into the sky, it's a dream. Don't worry.) Of the three main dream sequences, one is where Bruce gets attacked by a giant bat at his parent's tomb, the second is trench coat Batman kicking ass and the last is when Flash comes back in time to warn Bruce about Lois Lane. (Although the Flash one could also be real because of the papers flying in the background.) With that out of the way, let's dive into the premonition that Batman has about the future. We see a desert-like world which is likely Earth after the World Engine has been used to drastically terraform it. This shows an alternate timeline where Lois Lane has died, and without anyone to ground him to humanity, Superman becomes evil. He has his own private army and Batman is trying to find Kryptonite in order to kill him. (This is similar to the storyline of the inJustice comics for those who are interested.) The reason why this is important is because this is one of the possible paths the story could go. Now granted, in the comics Lois was pregnant when Joker kills her but, imagine, if Lois died at the beginning of the film, we would be headed in that direction. If you didn't get all that from the dream, Flash basically says this to Bruce: that Lois is the key and that he was right about Superman. (This could be hinting at a future DCEU film in the main timeline or possibly an upcoming spin off.)



Superman (Henry Cavill), Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) and Batman (Ben Affleck) facing off against Doomsday.

Lastly, there's Doomsday. To this day, I have no idea what the PR team was thinking when it put out that final Batman v Superman trailer. Doomsday isn't that exciting visually; he's just a deformed humanoid monster. But the impact of seeing him without knowing he was in the film would have been much better than having it spoiled in the trailer. The only thing that carries this abomination (literally because he looks like Abomination from The Incredible Hulk) is the trio. The chemistry between Batman, Wonder Woman and Superman just feels right. Batman diving to cover as Wonder Woman puts up her shield to block a laser and Superman just putting his arms up as he tries to move up...you can see there the beginning of the Justice League. Also I'm just gonna sneak in here that the Wonder Woman entrance while "Is She With You?" blasts in the background is SUPER badass! Such a cool entrance for a superhero cameo. (Yes...even compared to Civil War's "on the roof".) If it weren't for the great casting choices and direction, the last third of the movie would be almost entirely wasted. To any fan of Justice League, comics or tv show, the the back-and-forth the characters have towards the end feels ripped straight out of source material. I believe there is no better proof of concept for the Justice League movie than the trio conquering Doomsday. Batman using his tech from a distance, with Alfred in his ear, Wonder Woman having a grand old time slicing Doomsday and Superman finally deciding that this is his world after all. Perfect!



As for what the Ultimate Edition, it adds roughly 30 minutes of extra content that draws out backstories. Instead of the Africa story ending with the opening scene, it starts a thread of events that carry on through a majority of the film. I won't go into the details of the thread, but it gives more meaning to the scene in the beginning. There's also more development from the point of view of Clark Kent investigating the Batman. There's an added scene in which Kent goes to talk to a woman, related to another more drawn out thread, and he talks to some Gotham City residents to see what they think of Batman. Some say Batman is scary and that you shouldn't go out at night. Others say you can go out safe, as long as you didn't do anything wrong. The scene adds an interesting point of view from the citizens of Gotham, which we don't see a lot of. Skipping over some other side plots that I'll leave for you to watch and enjoy, the last key thing in the Ultimate Edition that was surprisingly cut from the film is the court bombing scene. In the Theatrical Cut, Superman simply looks disappointed after the explosion and flies off. In the Ultimate Edition, he helps rescue survivors from the fire before looking at Lois longingly and flying away. These small things that were cut throughout the film add a lot to Batman v Superman as a whole. They were probably cut to reduce run time which allowed them to screen the movie more times in a day, but after seeing the Ultimate Edition, the Theatrical Version simply doesn't land with the same impact.



In the end, Batman v Superman breaks the mold of conventional superhero films. It wants to have it's own identity from its competition and predecessors and it succeeds. But it lays largely misunderstood with most people not having experienced the ideal version of the film. The thing that hurt the movie the most was the studio. From letting it's PR team ruin a key plot point in the trailer to cutting down Zack Snyder's vision to a shorter, less impactful, Theatrical Version, the studio set the movie up for failure. Of course, the movie was a success in box office but biting the bullet and putting out the extended version would have pleased more fans and kept the collections flowing longer, and not dropping drastically after the opening weekend. Whether you already loved Batman v Superman, and are tempted for a rewatch. or if you were on the fence, and now making the jump, I would HIGHLY recommend watching the Ultimate Edition of the film. It's worth it! Superman on the other hand is a bit of a different story. One of the main criticisms I had aboutwas that there wasn't too much character development in it. The character didn't really go through any change. Clark Kent simply becomes Superman. Inhe's a conflicted superhero. No longer the one that would fly down, damsel in distress in his hands, to people cheering under him. This is modern day Superman, where everyone seems to have something to say and no two people are on the same page. As he states in the film he doesn't know if this is his world or not. He feels rejected by the world he's trying to save and believes you cannot be all good in it. (That last statement is what all three main characters, Bruce, Clark and Lex, have in common. Lex actually says this as he explains to Superman that "If God is all powerful, He cannot be all good.") However, the struggle that Clark Kent has would have been more significant if we got to see the character grow more in the first film. The questions asked in the film regarding Superman are important and some of them do get the point across, but a well rounded character would have worked better under such testing circumstances. For example, inas Batman is being urged to quit and not put his life on the line for Gotham we know what his answer will be. After being with the character for 2 films already, we have seen him grow, and we know he will do anything to keep his promise and keep his city safe. With all that said the impact of Superman deciding that this is his world after all still lands and his sacrifice, however temporary, was the change that needed to happen to show that Superman's love for Earth will not waver. He will be everything that we need him to be...and none of it!Lex Luthor is one of the characters in the film that is very different from the comics. All the characters in the film are adapted in someway shape or form to fit into modern times and Lex is no exception. He is a socially awkward millionaire who wants to pin the all powerful Superman against the Dark Knight. But rich introverted businessmen are common in the world so why did people have such a hard time believing this character. Well there's several reasons, and each person brings a different criticism to the table but the main reason is that Lex is not what people expect to see. This man who has figured out the secret identities of Batman and Superman. This man who sent a letter to Bruce Wayne saying "you killed your family" and pictures to Clark Kent that ask for justice to get them both riled up. This man who causes Batman and Superman to want to kill each other. He's just a scrawny guy in a suit who cannot deliver a speech without getting sidetracked about power and knowledge. That's because this modern take is inspired by other, popular, movie villains. Not just from superhero films but just good villains in general. Kevin Spacey from Se7en comes to mind, for some reason, as an obvious inspiration. But even with that change they still manage to capture the concept of Lex as an antagonist. Even in the comics, as Lex is setting up his plan to take over the world, he's in the backline. He sets things in motion and watches it unfold. No one sees him as a threat. Hiding in plain view. As Zack Snyder says in an EW interview, this new Lex is different from previous versions but he's just as cunning. He speaks his mind with no filter, which is probably why some of the film's main themes are spoken by him.Okay...here we go: why did he say that name? This has to be the most mentioned criticism about the movie but one that can be easily explained and has been setup since the beginning of the film. Setting the stage: Batman has Superman under his foot and is about to drive the spear of Kryptonite into his chest and kill him. With his dying words Superman utters something about Martha and Batman stops. The big reason why he just doesn't drive the spear down is because the act of saying someone else's name before he died showed that Superman cares about someone else. This grounds Superman in Batman's eyes. And to drive the point further, Bruce Wayne's father's last word was also "Martha". Now, not only did this humanize Superman, to Batman, this linked him to his father who said and did the same thing as he died. In theory, any name could have been said and, ultimately, Batman would have come to the same conclusion. The names being the same was probably done to simplify things but that kind of backfired in retrospect.Next, there are four dream sequences in the film, three of which are indicated by the sound of the World Engine and one of which starts the film. (So to those wondering why young Bruce was floating up into the sky, it's a dream. Don't worry.) Of the three main dream sequences, one is where Bruce gets attacked by a giant bat at his parent's tomb, the second is trench coat Batman kicking ass and the last is when Flash comes back in time to warn Bruce about Lois Lane. (Although the Flash one could also be real because of the papers flying in the background.) With that out of the way, let's dive into the premonition that Batman has about the future. We see a desert-like world which is likely Earth after the World Engine has been used to drastically terraform it. This shows an alternate timeline where Lois Lane has died, and without anyone to ground him to humanity, Superman becomes evil. He has his own private army and Batman is trying to find Kryptonite in order to kill him. (This is similar to the storyline of the inJustice comics for those who are interested.) The reason why this is important is because this is one of the possible paths the story could go. Now granted, in the comics Lois was pregnant when Joker kills her but, imagine, if Lois died at the beginning of the film, we would be headed in that direction. If you didn't get all that from the dream, Flash basically says this to Bruce: that Lois is the key and that he was right about Superman. (This could be hinting at a future DCEU film in the main timeline or possibly an upcoming spin off.)Lastly, there's Doomsday. To this day, I have no idea what the PR team was thinking when it put out that finaltrailer. Doomsday isn't that exciting visually; he's just a deformed humanoid monster. But the impact of seeing him without knowing he was in the film would have been much better than having it spoiled in the trailer. The only thing that carries this abomination (literally because he looks like Abomination from) is the trio. The chemistry between Batman, Wonder Woman and Superman just feels right. Batman diving to cover as Wonder Woman puts up her shield to block a laser and Superman just putting his arms up as he tries to move up...you can see there the beginning of the Justice League. Also I'm just gonna sneak in here that the Wonder Woman entrance while "Is She With You?" blasts in the background is SUPER badass! Such a cool entrance for a superhero cameo. (Yes...even compared to's "on the roof".) If it weren't for the great casting choices and direction, the last third of the movie would be almost entirely wasted. To any fan of, comics or tv show, the the back-and-forth the characters have towards the end feels ripped straight out of source material. I believe there is no better proof of concept for themovie than the trio conquering Doomsday. Batman using his tech from a distance, with Alfred in his ear, Wonder Woman having a grand old time slicing Doomsday and Superman finally deciding that this is his world after all. Perfect!As for what the Ultimate Edition, it adds roughly 30 minutes of extra content that draws out backstories. Instead of the Africa story ending with the opening scene, it starts a thread of events that carry on through a majority of the film. I won't go into the details of the thread, but it gives more meaning to the scene in the beginning. There's also more development from the point of view of Clark Kent investigating the Batman. There's an added scene in which Kent goes to talk to a woman, related to another more drawn out thread, and he talks to some Gotham City residents to see what they think of Batman. Some say Batman is scary and that you shouldn't go out at night. Others say you can go out safe, as long as you didn't do anything wrong. The scene adds an interesting point of view from the citizens of Gotham, which we don't see a lot of. Skipping over some other side plots that I'll leave for you to watch and enjoy, the last key thing in the Ultimate Edition that was surprisingly cut from the film is the court bombing scene. In the Theatrical Cut, Superman simply looks disappointed after the explosion and flies off. In the Ultimate Edition, he helps rescue survivors from the fire before looking at Lois longingly and flying away. These small things that were cut throughout the film add a lot to Batman v Superman as a whole. They were probably cut to reduce run time which allowed them to screen the movie more times in a day, but after seeing the Ultimate Edition, the Theatrical Version simply doesn't land with the same impact.In the end,breaks the mold of conventional superhero films. It wants to have it's own identity from its competition and predecessors and it succeeds. But it lays largely misunderstood with most people not having experienced the ideal version of the film. The thing that hurt the movie the most was the studio. From letting it's PR team ruin a key plot point in the trailer to cutting down Zack Snyder's vision to a shorter, less impactful, Theatrical Version, the studio set the movie up for failure. Of course, the movie was a success in box office but biting the bullet and putting out the extended version would have pleased more fans and kept the collections flowing longer, and not dropping drastically after the opening weekend. Whether you already loved, and are tempted for a rewatch. or if you were on the fence, and now making the jump, I would HIGHLY recommend watching the Ultimate Edition of the film. It's worth it!





Over a year ago, I walked out ofmuch like a little kid: a huge smile on my face, and screaming "more! more! more!". But not everyone thought the same and the film became the center of much controversy. Initially, I tried to defend the film which I so dearly enjoyed but soon gave up. Now having watchedI am tempted to not just review the film, but to, hopefully, explain why it's great. Also, since the film has been out for awhile, I will not only gloat about the movie but give examples, wherever I can, so spoiler warning ahead.The plot ofshould be simple enough to explain. It's in the title. However, the movie carries more baggage than just that.has to not only be a sequel tobut also introduce Ben Affleck's Batman AND setup the upcomingmovie. Now with all that being said the movie still focuses on one line from The Dark Knight Trilogy: "You either die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become a villain." Although that exact quote isn't said, it is reworded several times throughout the course of the 3 hour long movie. Superman is being accused of killing innocent civilians and people start doubting if he's really a force for good or if he's just a wild card. Batman has seen the destruction Superman has caused 2 years ago and is hellbent on killing him. Lex is playing them both in order to have them take each other out and leave the world ripe for his taking. There's a lot at stake inbut the movie doesn't spoon feed you the information. It simply lays it out in front of you and waits for you to see it.