BvS: Dawn of Justice (2016)

June 23, 2017 can't come soon enough after seeing Wonder Woman (precisely who I went to see) in all her resplendence and force today (March 24). The Dehradun theater full of some extremely well-versed crowd (comic book nerds as yours truly!) clamored with whistles and applauds!  I wish I could watch all my DC-Marvel flicks in Dehradun instead of yet-to-catch-up NCR!


 
Good days are coming for DC! The promising Justice League is taking shape too. If nothing else, Suicide Squad (read Margot Robbie aka Harley Quinn) will ensure that :)
 
About the film, how can a comic book nerd not enjoy a movie featuring the big three with Flash, Cyborg, and Aquaman! Went in without reading any reviews and enjoyed it thoroughly.

Not a perfect film (but a Zack S film never is, you either love his style or don't), but it achieves enough to brush aside the flaws.

Recommendations:
1) WATCH in 2D
2) Work through the first half patiently, second half more makes up for any deliberations.
3) REMEMBER - Superman and Batman become the heroes that we know today after this film's conclusion. Supes "sacrifice" and Bats (un)brand of justice for Lex Luthor are powerful scenes that subtly bring forth the real heroes to the world.

Finally, with all the overtly critical reviews doing the rounds, I rest my case with the below image that sums the situation neatly.



Image source 


8.2/10

Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox (2013)

Director: Jay Oliva
Story: Geoff Johns

Plot: Flash, rather a powerless Barry Allen, wakes up in a dystopian world nearing apocalypse—due to the warring Atlanteans and Amazonians wrecking havoc everywhere. Most all superheroes have been affected in this altered reality. Batman exists but he is not Bruce Wayne, Superman almost doesn’t exist, Aquaman and Wonder Woman have their horns locked, though Hal Jordan is unaltered—he is cocky as ever but sans the ring.

Barry Allen must regain his lost power, figure out who the culprit is, and correct the fault in timeline.

A good onscreen adaptation of DC’s Flashpoint (by super-writer Geoff Johns), some comic-nerds might argue it’s too short at 80 odd minutes, but the length seemed alright to me, especially considering the comparatively mammoth content of the original 5-issue series. Anyways, it’s high-time DC starts catching up with Marvel in the live action field too. Otherwise, I too would have loved seeing some more time given to character development and exploring the emotional connect.   

 

7.2/10

The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

Chris Nolan does it again, nails third Batman film in a row and every single person involved—cast and crew—chips in. Comparisons with previous films are bound to happen and TDKR, of course, hasn’t bettered the prequels but considering how sequels usually run out of steam, this is a pretty neat wrap up of the franchise.    

Tom Hardy’s Bane looked epic—a massive improvement from the mindless thug of earlier ‘Batman and Robin’ film. Here, he is rightly portrayed as a superior physical and intellectual match for Bats and takes him through a journey full of ‘pain’. However, the impact that ‘fear’ and ‘chaos’ left in the minds of audience in ‘Batman Begins’ and ‘The Dark Knight’, respectively, is not matched again. Bane starts off as a fearsome leader but seemed more like a puppet by the end. This should have been avoided; he is an intelligent fellow, a thinking person, and would have fared better if portrayed as an equal partner instead.   

  

Anne Hathway looked pretty damn hot as Catwoman. Looks apart, her role wasn’t as meaty as that of Michelle Pfeiffer though she does well in what little she had. Pfeiffer was her own Catwoman, crazy and wild, and still remains the act to beat. Michael Caine, as Alfred, is again a pillar of strength for Batman even in his leaving him, and he is the reason we get to see something completely unexpected in a restaurant in Florence! Caine delivers again in a significant short role. Morgan Freeman too has a short role but there isn’t same scope for him as in previous film though he had to be in it. Marion Cotillard has an eventful role as Miranda. As for Joseph Gordon-Levitt, we all know he is the guy to look out for.         

Overall, TDKR is a complete package with thoughtful references to previous films. But unlike ‘Batman Begins’ and ‘The Dark Knight’ there aren’t many dialogues or sequences that stand out and will remain with you forever. 

One thing that Nolan does in the film for Batman (and for the ardent fans who have been praying for it forever!) is give him the ending he fully deserves. In DC universe it is very hard, almost impossible, to accomplish but in a film you can just leave it at the happy ending. Take a bow Chris Nolan. Thank you from heart’s bottom :)

Chris Nolan is well known to leave subtle clues for the audience. The sequence where Blake and Batman rescue the trapped policemen is quite exciting; it drops the audience first hint toward the eventual ultimate! 

One sequence in the film left me a bit unsettled, perhaps, Nolan did it on purpose. In DC universe Batman restores himself—after Bane’s plundering—by supernatural means, and it still took him years. In the film, his healing process has been sped up dramatically. Once Batman breaks out of the holed-in jail (Jodhpur fort, where the shooting for film started) camera does steal a glance on some greenish, small pond quite close to the underground jail; most likely, Lazarus pit but nothing conclusive is shown. In comics, ‘Lazarus pit’ is a secret Batman has kept from most, so, probably that is the reason Nolan choose not to be explicit about it in the film either. Instead, he drops a few hints for the comic book purists instead of showing use of magic so late in the franchise. Unlike, say, Wolverine; Batman has no super-healing even though he possesses a will of steel, I am sill assuming, some essence of Lazarus pit use to seep into the water/food supply of the underground prison inmates.     

The film concludes as it should have. Clearly, Nolan didn’t ended the film in this manner to ensure a future safety-measure for himself but if ever—highly unlikely—he runs into a bad patch then you know where he can start up again, along with Gordon-Joseph Levitt!  

Finally the trailers! The Campaign trailer looked extremely promising, hilarious actually, with Will Ferrell, Zach Galifianakis locking horns—two of current generation’s comedy superheroes. Just hoping, trailer dialogues aren’t the only ones that tickle your funny bone.  

Man of Steel trailer didn’t showcase as much but we do get to see the Supes in air once more, in almost full glory! My favorite flying of Supes, till date, still remains the one where Superman turns the time backwards to save Lois, please jog my memory for any other!

I’ll definitely watch TDKR again on my laptop with headphones plugged in; helps me feel a film more intimately!

8.2/10

Justice League: Doom (2012)

Genre: Animation

Based on ‘Tower of Babel’ arc, this is one movie many DC fans were/are eagerly awaiting.

DC has been making some very good animated films off-late and a good script for big-screen adaptation has been one reason of their success in the genre. Doom, however, seems a little compress-scripted with too many characters and too little time. In the end, you are left with a want for more--especially if you are a DC nerd.

The film also deviates from the original comicbook. Some notable changes are:

•          Vandal Savage is the main villain instead of Ra’s al Ghul
•          No Aquaman or Plastic Man
•          Hal Jordan is the Green Lantern instead of Kyle Rayner
•          Superman is rendered powerless with a green kryptonite in place of red and he doesn’t become transparent

Even with all these modifications, film is a decent watch but should have been more detailed and definitely lengthier.

7/10

The Batman vs Dracula (2005)

Director: Michael Goguen

Genre: Animation

Another good Batman animated feature. It boasts of Batman's arch-nemesis: Joker and Penguin, both of whom are merely the side kicks this time around, as the mighty Count Dracula has awoken.

7.4/10