What
the hell was that? Seriously, what just happened? Did I just dream
that? There was Superman. But Superman was a nervous wreck, on the
edge of a breakdown, crippled by self doubt and pretty much only
concerned with saving Louis? And Batman was there too, except Batman
was filled with rage and hate and regret and fear, and I mean filled
with it. Lex Luthor was around as well, but this Lex Luthor wasn't
the suave self assured sociopath that we all know and love. This Lex
was a raving lunatic, more like the Joker than Luthor? Also Wonder
Woman was there, but she didn't really seem to be doing much?
Oh
no, wait, I know what that was, I just watched Batman v Superman:
Dawn of Justice.
The
plot? Well, it's
been nearly two years since Superman's (Henry Cavill) colossal battle
with Zod (Michael Shannon) devastated the city of Metropolis. The
loss of life and collateral damage left many feeling angry and
helpless, including crime-fighting billionaire Bruce Wayne (Ben
Affleck). Convinced that Superman is now a threat to humanity, Batman
embarks on a personal vendetta to end his reign on Earth, while the
conniving Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg) launches his own crusade
against the Man of Steel.
I've
got to say up front, when the trailers were coming out for this film,
I was not excited. I was indifferent. It looked like a yawn fest. A
tiresome repeat of the wanton destruction at the end of Man of Steel.
A boring slugging it out between an inhuman Superman and a tired old
bat. Well, I went anyway, and I was wrong, it wasn't boring.
Was
this the superhero movie we wanted? Was this the superhero movie we
deserve? Was this even a superhero movie? To answer those questions
in order: no, maybe, and no.
It's
a brutal film, filled with hate and revenge and selfishiness. It's
concerned with weighty questions, like man v god, who is to
blame, who does Superman owe allegiance to? And
it's totally freaking weird. I mean, off the wall weird. Garrett Cook
said it was “a superhero's nightmare” and that's a fair
summation. It's full of imaginary and dream sequences and if you're
not paying attention you're going to get lost.
The
DC universe is often described as the coming of the new gods and this
seems to fit with what DC are doing in their ambitious film universe.
The film is just chock-full of questions about what does it mean for
there to be a man who is so powerful he can literally do anything?
Does he have the right? What does he want? And what can we do as
humans to stop him, if we don't like the answers to those questions?
Is this even a superhero movie? Arguably not. Sure people have superpowers but, a bit like the end of Man of Steel, no one does much heroic. Everyone is selfish and self absorbed. They have a reason to fight, but they aren't holding up a noble ideal, they're fighting for their reasons and their reasons alone. It's not for a brighter dawn, or protecting the weak, they're fighting because they're pissed off or have something to lose. That makes them the old Greek Gods, but certainly not heroes.
This
is the nightmare scenario. When gods fight. Yeah, Batman is just a
human, except he clearly isn't. If Kal-El is Ra, or possibly Zeus
then Batman is Hades, stern and unyielding and unmoved by prayer.
Gone is the Christopher Reeves Superman, there is no fanfare. Now we
have a Superman who leveled Metropolis to stop Zod. A Superman who
appears to have nothing to fear. And gone is Batman too, no Adam West
goofiness, or Michael Keaton steel, or even George Clooney cheese.
Even Christian Bale's bat is banished in favor of a brutal Frank
Miller-esque Dark Knight. A huge, bone snapping gladiator ready to
punch the man of steel in the face. Who will seek vengeance for the
slain? Who will bring the guilty to justice? Who is the Man of Steel
accountable to? Batman.
Do
we deserve this? Do we deserve a DC universe which is filled with
weighty gods who rain destruction down upon the innocent civilians
and appear to care nothing about it? Unfortunately, yes we do,
because we did this. I don't know if BvS was in preproduction when
Man of Steel was getting roundly thrashed by the critics, but it
certainly feels like the criticisms of that film were listened to.
Most people, myself included, complained about the wanton destruction
at the end of MoS - “What about all the people who must have died
in Metropolis? Doesn't Superman care?” Well, here's your 2.5 hour
reply. If you said that, or thought that, you are Batman. You did
this.
Zack
Snyder's reply is more destruction (with a slight nod that no one is
in fact in these buildings at the time), god v man, a Superman who
appears to only care about two women on the planet and a brutal
Batman who snaps limbs and brands his victims.
Garrett
Cook also said of this film “you're not high enough to watch this
film”, here I don't agree with him. You're not sober enough to
watch this film. This is the cold hard sobering smack to the Marvel
Movie face. Shit is real. People are going to die. What do you
believe in?
Secondary
question, do I even want this film? Do I want this dark and macabre
DC universe? How the hell is it going to hold itself together?
Remember this DC universe, in potential, has Captain Marvel with the
power of Shazam, 52 Earths, Gorilla Grodd and Krypto the Superdog in
it too? Only time will tell if they can balance this universe or not.
At the moment, on the strength of this outing, I'm willing to give it
another shot. This sure as shit ain't Marvel and that's alright, now
that I understand that.
So,
did I enjoy it? Enjoy is not the right word. I respected it. I came out feeling like a piano string after a Shostakivich recital - battered and bruised but feeling like something good had just happened to me. It's intelligent, and it's asking questions, which I have to give it points for. It's brave and bold. It
wasn't boring, but it's not for kids either. This is not Marvel. This is the DC universe, and the DC universe is cold, and brutal. Bones are snapped. Fires are
started. People are branded. Characters are flawed and wracked with guilt. Nightmares walk abroad. And humans are
scant on the ground. Hold onto your loved ones and pray that the
giants don't notice you.
My
name is Chris Meekings, I watched this film, you might want to too.
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