BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE: SPOILER-FREE REVIEW:

I really really wanted to like this film. The trailers didn’t fill me with much faith, but I honestly wanted to like this film. Unfortunately though, “Bitter Orphans With Daddy Issues Battle: Dawn Of The Computer Generated Kitchen Sink” is an absolute mess of a film. 

It’s really hard to explain the plot of this movie because this is not a movie, this is several movies all vacuum-sealed into one overly long two and a half hour runtime. The first half of the movie feels like four or five different movies with their own looks and styles that don’t even feel like they fit together. There’s the Batman story which is dark and gritty and receives the most screen time, then there’s Lois Lane investigating something that honestly leads no where, then there’s Jar Jar Luthor acting all creepy and weird on a f*cking pantomime level that just begs the question of why anyone would ever even trust with a pack of gum let alone military secrets. Then there’s the mysterious Diana Prince who just shows up from time to time, no explanation, no backstory, she’s just there. Then of course, there’s this guy called Superman who seems like a complete after thought and has to use his superhuman abilities just to fight for what little screen time he is given. Just to add to all the narrative confusion, we have these dream sequences that are often jarring and non-sensical to say the least. We even have a dream sequence within a dream sequence with little to no context for whenever any of them show up. 

The main cast do what they can, but besides Affleck, do not really have much to do. Henry Cavill plays a sometimes mopey, sometimes sad, sometimes angry, never content version of Superman, and his alter-ego Clark Kent is nearly non-existent in this film. For a guy sharing top-billing in this movie, you sometimes forget that Superman is even in this film. Gal Gadot has some brief moments and could easily have been written out of the film entirely if there hadn’t been such an emphasis in cramming as many Justice League members as possible into this film. Then there’s Amy Adam’s Lois Lane, who solely exists in this film to do stupid things so that Superman can save her - when are they going to finally write a good Lois Lane character? Ben Affleck’s Batman (and Bruce Wayne) are good, not great, but good. I wouldn’t compare his performance to Christian Bale’s Dark Knight because it really is an apples and oranges comparison, but for all those fan-boys claiming that this was going to be the definitive comic-book Batman, they’re going to have to wait. It’s a good Batman, but not a comic book Batman; he’s no more of a detective than Bale’s Batman was and this representation is more akin to the Arkham Knight video games series than the comic books, though he does have one incredible fight sequence in the film. Then there’s Lex Luthor, another camp version of a beloved villain that should be so simple to get right, yet seems so hard to do if these films are anything to go by. He’s such a transparently evil character that it’s amazing that he isn’t continually breaking the fourth wall so that he can wink at the audience.

With so much going on in this convoluted mess of a movie you still have a whole series of supporting characters that are under-utilised and ultimately forgettable. You have Holly Hunter’s Senator Finch who’s one-woman crusade to make Superman accountable for his actions is never resolved or acknowledged once she has left the screen. There is also Tao Okamoto in a thankless role that is almost exclusively silent and pointless. We have Australia’s Callan Mulvey as generic villain number 2, you have Scoot McNairy as who gives a f*ck. We have Diane Lane and Laurence Fishburne back as Superman’s mum and Clark Kent’s boss respectively; Diane Lane is there for the sole purpose of giving out the worst advice the mother of a superhero can possibly deliver and Laurence Fishburne seems to be playing a completely different version of Perry White from when he played him in Man Of Steel. Then there is Jeremy Irons, probably the best thing in this movie. He’s completely underused however his brief back and forth between himself and Affleck’s Bruce Wayne are a real highlight of the film and something that makes me even more eager for the solo Batman movie.  

There are some good elements to the film: the visuals are often beautiful, Batfleck is a dependable Batman with some real potential, the fight sequences are well orchestrated and highly stylised, but one of the most important things missing is context. Quite often there is no explanation for what people are doing, or how they got there, or why they are doing what they are doing. The film just expects you to buy in to a lot of material with very little to connect a lot of it together.

You know, I don’t know who this movie is for? It’s not for kids because it’s far too dark and brutal. It’s not for general audiences because they have too many alienating references to very specific mythology from the comics without feeling the need to explain any of it. And I really don’t think it’s even for Batman or Superman fans, let alone the hardcore DC fans because Zack Snyder just plays loose with the characters to the point where he’s almost showing complete and utter contempt for the audience and the characters. Seriously, the guy claims to love comic books, but I think he may be confusing the word love the same way an abusive husband confuses the term love. He presents Superman in a way that is so distant and disengaged from humanity that it’s a wonder that he bothers saving anyone at all. I don’t think that Snyder doesn’t understand Superman, I think he just downright despises him. 

Zack Snyder is great at adapting comic book movies, just look at the painstaking recreations that went into Watchmen and 300, but here that has proven to be his downfall because instead of doing a straight adaptation of a single story, he has cherry picked moments from two of DC Comics biggest storylines. The first is obviously The Dark Knight Returns and the second I will not mention because this would truly spoil a large element of the film, however if you’ve seen the trailers, you can probably guess. The big issue with cherry picking elements from beloved stories means that you can never have the same impact as the original story because you are lacking the context and other essential elements that make those classic stories complete. For example, the recreations of keys scenes and dialogue from the infamous fight from the end of The Dark Knight Returns loses all impact because we don’t have the 40 year relationship that Batman and Superman that gives reason to such a brutal fight. This film delivers a very flimsy pretext for the two coming to blows, I mean sure we want to see them fight, but not when the fight could have been resolved through a 30 second conversation. 

Snyder should be applauded for his visual flair and pushing for some great costumes lifted straight from the comics, but he has once again proven himself to be an all style/no substance kind of guy. On top of the very jumpy and jarring narrative, Snyder also feels the need to, well not explain anything. Look, I agree that we should never just spoon-feed an audience but there are huge plot holes the size of the hole that was left in Metropolis from the first film. Plus, if you’re one of those people who were hoping Snyder would have taken on board some of the criticism thrown at Man of Steel, then you’re sure to be disappointed. The opening sequence tries to contextualise the destruction of Metropolis from Bruce Wayne’s perspective, but this seems completely unnecessary. Personally, I can buy in to Batman not trusting Superman based on the events of the previous film, he didn’t need to be in Metropolis on the day to come to this conclusion. Plus for those of you unhappy with Superman’s penchant for killing, then Superman’s first scene in the movie is like a big middle finger from Snyder to those critics. You’ll know the scene when you see it, the only thing missing was Zack Snyder popping up on screen and saying “Sorry folks, I didn’t learn a thing.”  

Overall, I really did want to like this movie, but there are so many poor narrative choices that all the pretty visuals cannot save. Disliking this movie does not make me a DC hater, but as a fan of comics in general, DC, Marvel or otherwise; all I can say is that I am disappointed. With plot holes everywhere, storylines that are dropped and forgotten about and a director who seems to be trolling us when he says he understands the characters and is staying true to canon; I just hope that something can be salvaged from the DC Cinematic Universe. In a year when DC released Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman on the big screen, it just may be the Suicide Squad that redeems the DC brand. 

Batman V Superman: Dawn of the Kitchen Sink… I mean Dawn of Justice gets Two out of Five angry, mopey, bitter battling orphans. 

NETFLIX DAREDEVIL SEASON 2: SPOILER-FREE REVIEW:

You know my favourite part about this latest season of Daredevil was hearing this tune and seeing those hypnotic crimson visuals knowing that when they were over that i would be seeing brand new content. Thirteen hours of back to back binge-watching later, and I had instant buyers remorse because I know I have another 12 months until I see something new again. 

The Man Without Fear is back for his second season and Netflix do not disappoint as they crank the show all the way up to f*cking eleven by being more bloody and brutal than the last season. With the Kingpin in jail, the other gangs and criminal empires fight to try to gain a monopoly over Hell’s Kitchen. Daredevil has managed to keep most of the gangs in-check, however things are about to get a whole lot more complicated with the arrival of The Punisher; a vigilante who would rather put a bad guy in the ground than see them spend a second behind bars. Borrowing some of the themes and progressions of Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy, we can now see that the actions from season one have lead to more extreme measures being invited into the world of the series. 

Season one was honestly one of my favourite shows of last year, admittedly I am rather biased because Daredevil is one of my all-time favourite characters just behind Spider-Man. This season just does everything all the more confidently. Charlie Cox is more confident and comfortable in his role as Matt Murdoch and his vigilante alter-ego, to the point that sometimes he looks like he’s been lifted straight from a John Romita Jnr panel. The fight sequences are even more complex than before with two new and completely different hallway fight scenes that will leave you completely slack-jawed come the end of each nail-biting sequence. 

Of course it goes without saying that the Punisher is the real standout of the series. Sure some people may think that he looks like a hick with an army jacket, and admittedly it took me a little while to get Shane from The Walking Dead out of my head, but Jon Bernthal brings the intensity that makes this the closest realisation of The Punisher to date. The show drip feeds his origin story to us whilst each episode is elevated by his presence. Whether it be stabbing a hundred prisoners with a shiv, blowing rock-melon sizes holes through gangsters, to taking a power drill to the foot like a champ, and debating Daredevil about his methods that actually makes you want to take his side in an argument, Bernthal delivers. And Bernthal is Punisher now. 

The first season had essentially one key story thread running throughout, however this season really focuses on world-building, not only the Daredevil Universe, but also the extended Defenders Universe. As a result we have three to four different storylines running throughout, if this was a movie it would feel very cluttered, but it’s all balanced pretty well to the point that when all the stories merge towards the third act you don’t really realise or appreciate just how many balls they had juggling in the air. However the one thing you can definitely credit this season for his how well it develops character’s story-arcs to the point where everyone, main or supporting, are moving in new directions as we head into the third season. The showrunners have confidently set-up for the third season and the inevitable Punisher spin-off series. 

The show continues to build both the action scenes and the crime procedural elements, including the law aspects; something that was definitely missing from the Affleck Daredevil film, but once again, that's the opportunities afforded to a television series. Matt Murdock's character is developed just as much as his crimson alter-ego however, it does make you wonder how he is even considered a "competent" lawyer, let alone a "good" one. His commitments to beating the living bejeezus out of everyone even remotely affiliated with crime sure must be a great workout, but the poor guy is late for everything and misses really important things such as opening statements for Nelson and Murdoch's court cases, along with cross-examinations, closing statements, etc;

For lovers of the first series, you'll be happy to know that almost all of the supporting characters from season one are back; sometimes for brief cameos, sometimes for even longer running times than the previous season. Regardless of any supporting character's duration on screen, each one serves an incredibly important purpose to the story which once again reinforces how tight the scripting for this show is. Some may complain about the pacing for Daredevil being uneven, but I would argue that the pacing is exactly what it needs to be. Without the quiet, slower moments in the series you would suffer from sensory overload, especially if you are a maniac like myself who watched every episode back to back without a break - including toilet breaks. 

I always felt that the first season was pretty much perfect, and even though season two is an incredible step up from the its debut, it isn’t perfect this time. Without giving too much away, there are one or two loose ends that really should have been tied up this season. One character’s fate is almost spelt out in the last episode of the season, especially if you know that character’s mythology, so that felt a little predictable. And the final Punisher reveal was a little underwhelming, especially considering some of the promo material that featured him in full costume, but that isn’t to discredit all of the awesome Punisher moments throughout the season.

The weakest link is probably Elektra. Don’t get me wrong, Elodie Yung is stunning and physically capable of the action scenes, and she’s 100 times better than Jennifer Garner’s interpretation of the character, but she still doesn’t quite feel like Elektra. Her motivations at times feel flimsy and instead of the cold, calculating silent assassin, her appearance here is more of an impulsive spoilt brat who gets off on killing. Once again, it’s an improvement on Garner, but was the one character that easily needed the most development.  

Overall, with new costumes, new heroes, new weapons, new enemies and new threats, this is the part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe that excites me the most. While film often glosses over the finer details of a story due to time constraints, it’s the Netflix series that prove that they can flesh-out the characters and situations, yet still keep it as entertaining, if not more thrilling than it’s cinematic counterparts.  

Daredevil Season 2 gets Four and a Half well deserved, but bloody and beaten Stars. 

THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS: REWIND REVIEW:

With Batman V Superman Dawn Of Justice just under a week away, I thought that I’d bust out a review of the story that Zack Snyder is about to pull apart like a cherry-picking ADD-riddled child in a sundae factory: The Dark Knight Returns. 

Based on one of the most critically acclaimed comic book series of all-time by none other than comic book legend Frank Miller during the peak of his power, we find Bruce Wayne donning the cape and cowl one last time (providing you don’t include the lackluster follow-ups) as he brings order to Gotham, unites the gangs, kills the Joker and pisses off the American government to the point that Batman and Superman have the most epic throw-down to end all epic throw-downs. But how does this two-part animated movie live up to one of the most beloved graphic novels of all time? 

Pretty well actually. The designs both mimics Miller’s style and improves on it visually for the animated medium, whilst the writers have done a brilliant job of fitting in all the necessary elements that make up this complex story along with managing to tell a story that was quite often being narrated by the Dark Knight himself throughout the graphic novel. The writers managed to take some of the most iconic lines from the series and incorporate them into the dialogue between the characters despite being written inside inset boxes within the comic pages. 

The DC Animation Studio have consistently produced high-quality animations built from some of DC Comics greatest stories, just look at All-Star Superman and Batman: Under The Red Hood. However, often the short running times has meant that the narratives have been cut short or simplified to the point that as a fan, you can feel a bit short-changed. One of the smartest things the creators of this film did was splitting it into two parts. Doing so has afforded them the opportunity to fully realise all the aspects that made this such a memorable comic book run. Any other way would have been a disservice to the fans and the source material. 

The fights are beautifully choreographed and carry weight. From Batman versus the Mutant Leader, to Batman versus The Joker, to Batman versus Superman, you feel every punch, you cringe at every cut and you smile when you see Batman swing a wrecking ball into Superman’s face. One of the most important things that make each of these fights worth the 152 minutes of your life is the fact that the films take the time to establish the gravity of the situations by providing context and real stakes. Even if you’ve read the graphic novel right the way through to the end, you can’t always be sure if Batman is going to survive each onslaught.

Although I’m sure some fans were hoping for veteran voice-actor Kevin Conroy to reprise the role of the Dark Knight, I’m confident that almost all of them would be happy with the delivery of so many iconic lines from the original Robocop, Peter Weller. His gravelly voice just adds such gravitas to each line he spits out as he teaches a young Carrie Kelly or remind Clark that he will always be the one man who beat him. The rest of the voice cast is stellar, admittedly I wasn’t originally sold on Michael Emerson’s effeminate take on The Joker, but it really grew on me and made him all the more sinister come their final battle in the Tunnel Of Love. 

Director Jay Olivia, the man behind Justice League: War, Justice League: Flashpoint Paradox, and Batman: Assault On Arkham does an amazing job of adapting the 224 page tome and does not scrimp on the violence or any of the brutality that made the original graphic novel such a dark and brooding masterpiece. The series is lovingly adapted as closely to the original as humanly possible, which is great for a comic book fan, but does make some of the original references feel very dated today. However that is honestly the closest thing I have to criticism for this adaptation. 

Overall, this is one for every Batman fan who has ever picked up a comic. The characters, fight choreography and detail that has gone in to this adaptation honestly makes me believe that this stellar two-parter will be better than Zack Snyder’s attempt to shoe-horn in as many Dark Knight Returns references as possible, despite failing to have the proper ground work to do such a story justice. Although in less than a week, we will know for sure. 

The Dark Knight Returns gets Four and Three Quarter Stars out of Five (or Four and Three Quarter cherry-picking Zack Snyders getting slapped upside the head by Frank Mother-F*cking Miller) 

MAN OF STEEL: REWIND REVIEW

It was the 2013 cinematic  return of the spandex-clad Christ metaphor with dreamy good-looks and abs of steel that make Hugh Jackman look out of shape. Granted it was a very divisive return to the big screen but in this review-rewind we need to ask the big question: was Zack Snyder's take on the Man Of Steel up to its metal? 

Well, yes and no. There is a lot of good in this film, but also, there's a lot of criticism that at times can be warranted. 

The story itself is a straight-forward Superman origin story, you know the one: the last son of Krypton is sent to earth, became a fisherman, worked in a few bars, saved a bunch of kids in a school bus as a child, didn't save his dad from a tornado as a teenager, finds his space-dad in a spaceship hidden under the ice and dons a perfectly tailored spandex suit despite it being made for him centuries before he arrived on Earth... Ok so maybe it wasn't so straight-forward.

The film does a lot of stuff really well. The origin elements of the film have all the strength and validity of Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins. Sure some people may complain that we spent too long on Krypton, but if you want to do a like for like comparison with the classic Richard Donner original we actually spend more time on Krypton back in 1978 than we did in 2013. 

Although some may complain about Amy Adams, at least we were given an age-appropriate Lois Lane for once and the film made the bold choice to have her discover his secret identity before he even had a secret identity. This makes her a far more accomplished character than previous incarnations which couldn't see the forest through the f*cking glasses. 

Another great element to the film is its commitment to the theme of steel. From opening title cards, to the Kryptonian technology, to the costumes, to the colour-grading to Hans Zimmer's steel-drumming  score. 

But is the film perfect? Oh definitely not. The second half of the film is where you really feel like Christopher Nolan's influence went off to make The Dark Knight Rises and Zack Snyder went full-Snyder (and you should never go full-Snyder.) In the usual Snyder fair of style over substance we are inundated with some amazingly beautiful visuals and sequences that I've always wanted to see in a Superman movie. But honestly, it went on for too long, I didn't know I'd get bored of watching buildings fall down. Naturally in a world filled with Avengers, Transformers and the normal benign blockbuster destruction, Superman had to step it up, but maybe it just stepped it up too much. 

Now as a comic book fan, I don't have an issue with Superman killing Zod, I know a lot of fanboys are up in arms about this scene and say that Superman would never do this, but they seem to be so quick to forget that Superman did the same thing in Superman II, and back then Superman had de-powered Zod before throwing him off a cliff. So I really have no issue with Superman killing because it has happened in the past and it worked for the conflict that was presented. 

Of course getting back to the whole "style vs substance" thing, you can say what you will, but two super-powered dudes throwing themselves through buildings certainly looks cool, but a lot of people probably died in the process and for me, that's easily my biggest gripe about this movie: Superman makes no effort to save anybody, unless you're in the army, Hell, Superman even saves Lois Lane one time while she's wearing army fatigues. Surely amongst all of this choreography of carnage Snyder could have included one of Superman's core values and shown him trying to save people in between fighting Zod. Ultimately I feel that this all boils down to Snyder pulling a Michael Bay and thinking "this will look cool" without thinking through the repercussions. There's nothing wrong with that, but he needs to own it instead of constantly defending this choice, because believe me, he was not thinking straight when he went "full-Snyder" 

So despite these complaints, I feel the Man Of Steel made some great steps towards establishing a shiny new franchise, even though there may have been a few missteps along the way. Will Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice make up for these missteps or just create a whole new hot-mess to deal with? Only time will tell.

Man Of Steel gets Three out of Five Stars (or Three out of Five complex dreams about a shirtless Henry Cavill that I probably need to talk to my wife about)