Is it just me, or are people just rude and clueless? Both? My brother and I went to see Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice at 4:00 in the afternoon last Monday. I like to sit up high, so we went to those seats, until we were surrounded by, what I can only, people who will be subject to Darwinism. However, that did not address the problem of the moment, which were total asshats playing on their phones and talking. Eventually we moved to one of the very front rows and that put enough distance between us and the social defects, but nothing solved the issue of the crying five year old (apparently mom couldn't be bothered to take the kid out of the theater). Morons. This easily could have easily ruined the movie, but it didn't. That may have been because I didn't have high hopes for the movie in the first place - I thought that director Zack Snyder was trying to cram too much into one movie; it was too soon to reboot Batman; I wasn't sure of Ben Affleck as the new Batman; and DC was trying to out-Marvel Marvel and would not succeed.
After reading my first paragraph, it's a wonder I stayed to watch the movie at all. But, I bought a t-shirt for the occasion (my brother insisted I needed one) and we were there, and I love watching movies with him. And hey, the movie was not terrible. I realize that is not the best endorsement I could give a movie, but I think I am still processing it. I may like it a lot more in a week or so; Cris (my brother) liked it a lot and wants to see it again, so take that for what you will.
The movie opens shortly after the events of The Man of Steel, with Superman (Henry Cavill) performing life saving acts, seemingly without concern for any collateral damage. This does create a backlash, led by Sen. June Finch (Holly Hunter), and some bad feelings from Bruce Wayne aka Batman (Ben Affleck). There is a little bit of a flashback to a young Bruce Wayne and the night his parents are killed, the obligatory shot of bats circling, but otherwise, not much info about the Dark Knight. Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne meet at an event hosted by Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg) where they poke each other about what is happening in the other's city. Meanwhile, Diana Prince/Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) appears and is interested in Bruce Wayne, or rather, his sneaking around (Wayne discovers that Diana/Wonder Woman is a metahuman and gets a glimpse of The Flash, Aquaman, and Cyborg, just a glimpse, enough to tease us). Eventually, Superman and Batman are forced to confront one another, with Batman putting up a good fight, using a little well-placed kryptonite to weaken the man of steel. In the meantime, Luthor has gotten access to the body of General Zod, for research purposes and creates Doomsday, a being more powerful than Superman alone. So, it's a good thing he's not alone, and that Batman and Wonder Woman, and Lois Lane (Amy Adams) are close at hand. Does this all seem convoluted? It does to me. There's a lot going on, and yet, not a lot. I want the action that came in the last forty minutes or so of the movie.
I liked Ben Affleck as Batman; once I got over Christian Bale not being Batman, I just let it go. Affleck was a different kind of Batman (I can't really explain it) and he was good. He also had great gadgets (loved the Bat Cave and the Batmobile). A different Batman needs a different Alfred; nobody could be Alfred like Michael Caine, right? Jeremy Irons is less refined than Caine; he's tough, relentless in his teasing and haranguing of Wayne/Batman, he is also very technically and mechanically inclined, repairing equipment, even donning what appears to be a sweater from the British Army as he remotely helps Batman in a fight. He's kind of like Alfred and Mr. Fox (Morgan Freeman from the Batman trilogy). I thought Irons was fun and brought a little cynical humor to the movie. Jesse Eisenberg as Luthor? I thought this was either bad casting, bad directing or bad writing. Those were my thoughts when I saw the trailer; it seemed like Eisenberg was channeling Heath Ledger as The Joker, which was fine back then, but Luthor and The Joker are two very different characters. I also got very tired of the 'god versus man versus superman' rants. It was as if the writers were trying to teach an intro to philosophy class, and if the audience at my showing is the 'average' audience, they do not care about that stuff. Amy Adams is wasted here, if we're honest. That's what happens when you have two big characters, introducing a third character, four if you include Luthor. I'm guessing she isn't in the Justice League movie because there will already be a full house. I am looking forward to the Wonder Woman movie coming out in the next year or so; saw the preview for Suicide Squad and Cris asked what I thought - I think it looks stupid.
Staying with the superhero theme, Cris has been nagging me to watch the Daredevil series on Netflix. For no particular reason, I have been avoiding it - too many movies and other television shows to watch, I guess, and I wasn't impressed with the first episode. AND (most important) he has not kept up his end of the bargain. Will public shaming work? I doubt it. Anyway, while I was home for a visit, we had some bonding time and watched three episodes. I still don't love it, but I told him I would finish the first season. In case you don't know, Daredevil/Matt Murdoch is a blind attorney who has honed his remaining four senses and developed some incredible fighting skills. He practices law in Hell's Kitchen in New York City and protects the poor and under-served of the community. Vincent D'Onofrio practically steals the show as Wilson Fisk/Kingpin, the socially awkward, but wealthy and powerful enemy of Daredevil. Time will tell.
