By now, it has become fairly well established that Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice divided fans and critics right down the middle. The Ultimate Edition release has somewhat softened opinions on the overall movie, but plenty of people still consider Dawn of Justice a substantial disappointment compared to what we were promised. This particular superhero smackdown never had a chance of living up to our sky high expectations, and that's exactly what the Honest Trailer for the Batman V Superman Ultimate Edition endeavors to get across. Check it out below.
Most of you have likely become familiar with the overall format of a Screen Junkies Honest Trailer, which means you know that this one's pretty damn brutal. Easily the biggest criticism that they have with this film is the way in which it completely mishandles Superman (Henry Cavill). Although Kal-El has developed a reputation for being one of the (literally) sunnier superheroes in all of comics, Zack Snyder's version does little outside of brood, doubt himself, and listen to really bad pep talks from his loved ones. In their own words, it feels like a good Batman movie stuffed inside a bad Superman movie.
They additionally point out that Jesse Eisenberg's Lex Luthor absolutely sucks throughout this movie, acting less like the super villain we all know and love, and more like a cartoon character who simply doesn't belong in this take on the DC mythos. A good 15-20 seconds of the entire video is simply devoted to highlighting the odd, twitchy noises he continuously makes whenever he's on screen.
Of course, despite how brutal this Honest Trailer is for Batman V Superman, the Screen Junkies have a reputation for even-handed criticism, and as such they still manage to point out the strengths of the film. In particular, they are quick to note that Ben Affleck completely shines as The Dark Knight, and easily represents the highlight of the movie by stealing whatever scene he happens to be in. They even go so far as to remark that every critic who assumed he would do a terrible job as Batman has been definitively proven wrong. Additionally, they take a quick moment to also address how awesome Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) is in the film, but her contributions seem somewhat diminished by how tacked on she feels to the whole affair.
At the end of the day this Honest Trailer pretty much echoes the sentiment of most people who saw the movie -- there's some good ideas and performances, but it's all largely undercooked. We will have to wait and see if the DCEU can correct course when Suicide Squad hits theaters next month on August 5.
For now, make sure to pick up the Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice Ultimate Edition, which is currently available on Digital HD, Blu-Ray, and DVD.
