The Upcoming
  • Culture
    • Art
    • Cinema
      • Movie reviews
      • Film festivals
    • Food & Drinks
      • News & Features
      • Restaurant & bar reviews
      • Interviews & Recipes
    • Literature
    • Music
      • Live music
    • Theatre
    • Shows & On demand
  • Fashion & Lifestyle
    • Accessories
    • Beauty
    • News & Features
    • Shopping & Trends
    • Tips & How-tos
    • Fashion weeks
  • What’s On
    • Art exhibitions
    • Theatre shows
  • Tickets
  • Join us
    • Editorial unit
    • Our writers
    • Join the team
    • Join the mailing list
    • Support us
    • Contact us
  • Interviews
  • Competitions
  • Special events
    • Film festivals
      • Berlin
      • Tribeca
      • Sundance London
      • Cannes
      • Locarno
      • Venice
      • London
      • Toronto
    • Fashion weeks
      • London Fashion Week
      • New York Fashion Week
      • Milan Fashion Week
      • Paris Fashion Week
      • Haute Couture
      • London Fashion Week Men’s
  • Facebook

  • Twitter

  • Instagram

  • YouTube

  • RSS

CultureCinemaMovie reviews

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice | Movie review
24 March 2016
Mersa Auda
Avatar
Mersa Auda
24 March 2016

Movie and show review

Mersa Auda

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

★★★★★

Release date

25th March 2016

Certificate

UPG121518 title=

Links

TwitterFacebookWebsite

Following the events of Man of Steel, the citizens of Metropolis are yet to recover from the collateral damage of Superman’s (Henry Cavill) battle with Zod. The superhero’s actions and intentions are therefore scrutinised assiduously and his every choice is seen as a political move. He soon becomes a victim of the public’s general distrust, and is targeted as a threat. Batman (Ben Affleck) is also concerned that Superman may have become a menace to humans, and so decides to forcibly stop him from further involvement with them. As the two superheroes battle one another, scientist Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg) has plans of his own to annihilate the city.

While the audience is already familiar with Cavill’s Superman, Affleck’s Batman is a surprise as the revengeful and almost sadistic version of the dark character. Eisenberg also offers an interesting interpretation of Lex Luthor but, although he captures the sinister nature of the villain rather well, his rendition is heavily laden with unfulfilled potential. The role is intriguing and lends itself to a show-stealing performance, which is never achieved. It could be that the psychotic, faintly Ledger-esque shade of the role inspires comparisons with the infamous Joker and unfairly raises such expectations.

Batman v Superman is likely to delight followers of the genre as it is packed with action, special effects and the occasional plot twist. In fact, the film offers exactly what is expected from a superhero feature, and this is good news for the fans who have impatiently awaited its release. In terms of balancing faithfulness to the comic books and innovation, director Zack Snyder’s mix will undoubtedly satisfy, as will the highly engaging visuals, breathtaking action and epic scope.

To those looking for a solid plot, however, the storyline will seem disjointed and overburdened with characters – their role is primarily to instigate fresh fights and prevent slumps in the flow. The film is clearly made with the upcoming instalments in mind, thus tending to exalt the promise of future adventures at the expense of weakening the narrative at hand.

Perhaps the enormous amount of pressure from fans and from the industry, which counts on such films to succeed on a cosmic scale, is too strong to permit movie-makers to be uninfluenced in their creative choices, leading to a scattered medley of popular elements. The film’s shortcomings, however, will not detract from the enjoyment it can provide. Overall, it succeeds in its scope of providing entertainment and it makes for a captivating addition to the DC Comics film series.

★★★★★

Mersa Auda

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is released nationwide on 25th March 2016.

Check out the Impossible Collection exhibition in London featuring the very first appearances of Superman and Batman here.

Watch the trailer for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice here:

Please accept YouTube cookies to play this video. By accepting you will be accessing content from YouTube, a service provided by an external third party.

YouTube privacy policy

If you accept this notice, your choice will be saved and the page will refresh.

Related Itemsbatmandc comicsreviewsuperman

More in Movie reviews

Imperial Blue

★★★★★
Guy Lambert
Read More

MLK/FBI

★★★★★
Andrew Murray
Read More

Sing Me a Song

★★★★★
Abbie Grundy
Read More

A Night of Horror: Nightmare Radio

★★★★★
Andrew Murray
Read More

Wonder Woman 1984

★★★★★
Jake Cudsi
Read More

Come Away

★★★★★
Sylvia Unerman
Read More

Murder Me, Monster

★★★★★
Andrew Murray
Read More

David Byrne’s American Utopia

★★★★★
Rosamund Kelby
Read More

Dreamland

★★★★★
Guy Lambert
Read More
Scroll for more
Tap

Movie and show review

Mersa Auda

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

★★★★★

Release date

25th March 2016

Certificate

UPG121518 title=

Links

TwitterFacebookWebsite

  • Popular

  • Latest

  • TOP PICKS

  • Female filmmakers lead nominees for the London Critics’ Circle Film Awards
    Cinema
  • An interview with Ifrah Ismael: Tales from the Front Line and other stories
    Theatre
  • Persian Lessons
    ★★★★★
    Cinema
  • Jeremiah Fraites – Piano Piano
    ★★★★★
    Album review
  • Lonely the Brave – The Hope List
    ★★★★★
    Album review
  • Identifying Features
    ★★★★★
    Cinema
  • 23 Walks
    ★★★★★
    Cinema
  • Live Lab at The Yard Theatre: An interview with associate director Cheryl Gallagher
    Theatre
  • We Still Fax at ANTS Theatre Online
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • We Ask These Questions of Everybody: An interview with Amble Skuse and Toria Banks
    Theatre
  • Identifying Features
    ★★★★★
    Cinema
  • We Still Fax at ANTS Theatre Online
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • WandaVision: Marvel’s charming sitcom proves an astounding success
    ★★★★★
    Cinema
  • The Queen’s Gambit: A chess story that’s not about the moves but the motives
    ★★★★★
    Cinema
  • Undercover at Morpheus Show Online
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
The Upcoming
Pages
  • Contact us
  • Join mailing list
  • Join us
  • Our London food map
  • Our writers
  • Support us
  • What, when, why

Copyright © 2011-2020 FL Media

The Impossible Collection: Over 1,000 of the world’s finest comics on display ahead of the Batman v Superman release
People, Places and Things at Wyndham’s Theatre | Theatre review