Review Detail
9.7 22 10
Overall rating
9.0
Audio/Video Quality
10.0
Audio Editing
10.0
Visual Editing
10.0
Narrative
7.0
Enjoyment
8.0
So first off, I have to say that this is technically super well-executed. If I hadn't seen BvS in both it's offical forms several times, there are some things I might not have missed, they were so well excised. The two cuts which I "felt" was during Lois and Lex's conversation on top of LexCorp Tower and when Batman shot KGBeast's flamethrower.
From the beginning, I knew I wasn't going to be rating this edit 10/10. Batman v Superman is actually my favorite comic book film of all time, so clearly, I wasn't going to be 100% on board with some of these cuts. However, I am always interested to see a new perspective on a favorite film, so I was glad to get into this. I went into this looking for simple continuity of character and plot. As with every film I watch, I intentionally tried to watch it without expectations; to take it on it's own merits and not force it to live up to something I've imagined beforehand.
Overall, I would say wakeupkeo has done a fantastic job cutting out the elements of the film that distracted many people from seeing the good, solid superhero movie that was always part of BvS. In general, most of the edits are fantastically chosen to give the story a laser focus on, as the title says, "Batman v Superman." We have pretty uncomplicated and clear reasons both Bruce and Clark disapprove of each other, and a straightforward plot that brings the two of them into conflict. Lex's most egregious odd behaviors and some of his manipulations are cut, providing less distraction from that core of Bruce and Clark's disagreement. Audio and visual edits recontextualize teasers for later films and remove time-travel continuity now fated never to come to pass.
By cutting out everything not related to Clark and Bruce, their development throughout the story is more clearly seen. As in the official cuts, Clark is struggling with not only whether or not he is accepted as a citizen of Earth, but uncomfortable with how he is deified. Clark's worried whether or not the unintended consequences of his interventions are worth it, and disapproves of Batman's violent methods. Bruce is simply enraged at those unintended consequences and equally terrified that Superman might end up turning on humanity. The infamous Martha moment is replaced with multiple flashbacks to the Thomas and Martha Wayne's deaths throughout the film, really driving home Bruce's PTSD and how it's affecting the way he's reacting to Superman's existence and actions. (The footage is from Batman Begins, presumably because the footage of the Waynes' murder from BvS had this movie's title credits in it.)
All of these choices are extremely effective in making Batman v Superman into a good solid superhero movie. I really enjoyed seeing this focus on the BvS plot and loved seeing Bruce and Clark's unfiltered and direct character development. It really reminded me how much I love these actors as these characters. Unfortunately, wakeupkeo's editing robs both Lex and Lois of their character depth and arcs, also reminding me how much I love those actors as those characters, but through their absence.
By removing Lex's character moments, especially in the benefit speech scene, a whole layer of Lex's motivations and manipulations are lost. Everything which made the character interesting or gave him motivation is gone - his history as a survivor of abuse; his frustration that all his intelligence, which gave him power in human society, is meaningless next to Superman's raw physicality; his hatred for God both as a concept and represented in the person of Superman. While Clark and Bruce retain their character-driven storylines in this cut, Lex completely loses his. He just hates Superman for some unknown reason and, like the Joker, he just "does things." Not "this happens because of that" but "that happens, then this happens."
Similarly, removing the Africa sequence and Lois's investigation relegates Lois to the status of a background character, a plot device with none of her own drive or purpose, only to be put in danger multiple times in order to manipulate Superman. That's consistent with many depictions of Lois over the years, but Snyder/Goyer/Terrio/Adams' version of Lois Lane is the best version of her we've ever had on the big screen - compotent, fierce, and a true journalist. This Lois Lane as seen both in MoS and the BvS: UC is unwilling to abandon the pursuit of truth even when it puts her in danger. This is different than other depictions of Lois where she blithely disregards her own safety, apparently because she's a moron. Losing that depth is a true loss to the film. Losing the vision of Jonathan Kent and the "hero cake" story is also a loss, as is the Knightmare fight sequence. Just as a pet peeve, it felt like the Batman Begins footage for the Wayne murder flashback was overused.
By making Batman v Superman into a good solid superhero movie, I feel wakeupkeo has cut away what made Batman v Superman transcend superhero movies and catapult it into true mythmaking, the things that made it into a great film. As originally produced (and in Ultimate form), BvS is a Shakespearean superhero revenge tragedy crossed with the best of DC's Elseworlds. Watching it in the theater was the closest I've ever felt to reading through classic Bronze and Steel Age DC stories like The Dark Knight Returns, the various Crises on various Earths, Red Son, Grant Morrison's runs on JLA and Batman, Knightfall, Cataclysm/No Man's Land, Death and Rebirth of Superman, etc. Like no other comic book movie, BvS in it's theatrical cut felt like finding a treasure trove of comics, discovering exciting characters anew. There were all these cool hooks into and out of other stories. Zack Snyder was promising all of these things would fit together eventually, and his filmmaking was so masterful and confident that I believed him 100%. It felt like a massive crossover collection missing some of the tie-in books, and having to fill in some of those blanks for myself, but wow was it going to be just about the greatest thing ever when all the books came out, or I found them all in the back issues of the comic book shop! And in addition to all of this, it seemed to reach for something greater and deeper than just being another superhero punch-em-up, going beyond even the deepest Marvel or prior DC movies to resonate themes and tones I had never seen in a superhero film before or since besides ZSJL.
wakeupkeo's cut is a very good, nearly great, superhero movie, and if I had seen this version in the theater, I would have given it a 7/10. 8.5/10 if it didn't cut Lois and Lex's most important moments. It probably would have done somewhat better financially than the theatrical version, as it fits many of the things people seemed to be expecting when they originally went to see BvS. Shooting this script would have been substantially less expensive for WB, too. It seems to be getting fellow comic geeks to re-evaluate my favorite comic book movie of all time, and see the good that was always there. For that, despite the fact that this will probably not be the cut I watch ever again, unless I'm showing it to a friend, I give it my absolute highest recommendation.
From the beginning, I knew I wasn't going to be rating this edit 10/10. Batman v Superman is actually my favorite comic book film of all time, so clearly, I wasn't going to be 100% on board with some of these cuts. However, I am always interested to see a new perspective on a favorite film, so I was glad to get into this. I went into this looking for simple continuity of character and plot. As with every film I watch, I intentionally tried to watch it without expectations; to take it on it's own merits and not force it to live up to something I've imagined beforehand.
Overall, I would say wakeupkeo has done a fantastic job cutting out the elements of the film that distracted many people from seeing the good, solid superhero movie that was always part of BvS. In general, most of the edits are fantastically chosen to give the story a laser focus on, as the title says, "Batman v Superman." We have pretty uncomplicated and clear reasons both Bruce and Clark disapprove of each other, and a straightforward plot that brings the two of them into conflict. Lex's most egregious odd behaviors and some of his manipulations are cut, providing less distraction from that core of Bruce and Clark's disagreement. Audio and visual edits recontextualize teasers for later films and remove time-travel continuity now fated never to come to pass.
By cutting out everything not related to Clark and Bruce, their development throughout the story is more clearly seen. As in the official cuts, Clark is struggling with not only whether or not he is accepted as a citizen of Earth, but uncomfortable with how he is deified. Clark's worried whether or not the unintended consequences of his interventions are worth it, and disapproves of Batman's violent methods. Bruce is simply enraged at those unintended consequences and equally terrified that Superman might end up turning on humanity. The infamous Martha moment is replaced with multiple flashbacks to the Thomas and Martha Wayne's deaths throughout the film, really driving home Bruce's PTSD and how it's affecting the way he's reacting to Superman's existence and actions. (The footage is from Batman Begins, presumably because the footage of the Waynes' murder from BvS had this movie's title credits in it.)
All of these choices are extremely effective in making Batman v Superman into a good solid superhero movie. I really enjoyed seeing this focus on the BvS plot and loved seeing Bruce and Clark's unfiltered and direct character development. It really reminded me how much I love these actors as these characters. Unfortunately, wakeupkeo's editing robs both Lex and Lois of their character depth and arcs, also reminding me how much I love those actors as those characters, but through their absence.
By removing Lex's character moments, especially in the benefit speech scene, a whole layer of Lex's motivations and manipulations are lost. Everything which made the character interesting or gave him motivation is gone - his history as a survivor of abuse; his frustration that all his intelligence, which gave him power in human society, is meaningless next to Superman's raw physicality; his hatred for God both as a concept and represented in the person of Superman. While Clark and Bruce retain their character-driven storylines in this cut, Lex completely loses his. He just hates Superman for some unknown reason and, like the Joker, he just "does things." Not "this happens because of that" but "that happens, then this happens."
Similarly, removing the Africa sequence and Lois's investigation relegates Lois to the status of a background character, a plot device with none of her own drive or purpose, only to be put in danger multiple times in order to manipulate Superman. That's consistent with many depictions of Lois over the years, but Snyder/Goyer/Terrio/Adams' version of Lois Lane is the best version of her we've ever had on the big screen - compotent, fierce, and a true journalist. This Lois Lane as seen both in MoS and the BvS: UC is unwilling to abandon the pursuit of truth even when it puts her in danger. This is different than other depictions of Lois where she blithely disregards her own safety, apparently because she's a moron. Losing that depth is a true loss to the film. Losing the vision of Jonathan Kent and the "hero cake" story is also a loss, as is the Knightmare fight sequence. Just as a pet peeve, it felt like the Batman Begins footage for the Wayne murder flashback was overused.
By making Batman v Superman into a good solid superhero movie, I feel wakeupkeo has cut away what made Batman v Superman transcend superhero movies and catapult it into true mythmaking, the things that made it into a great film. As originally produced (and in Ultimate form), BvS is a Shakespearean superhero revenge tragedy crossed with the best of DC's Elseworlds. Watching it in the theater was the closest I've ever felt to reading through classic Bronze and Steel Age DC stories like The Dark Knight Returns, the various Crises on various Earths, Red Son, Grant Morrison's runs on JLA and Batman, Knightfall, Cataclysm/No Man's Land, Death and Rebirth of Superman, etc. Like no other comic book movie, BvS in it's theatrical cut felt like finding a treasure trove of comics, discovering exciting characters anew. There were all these cool hooks into and out of other stories. Zack Snyder was promising all of these things would fit together eventually, and his filmmaking was so masterful and confident that I believed him 100%. It felt like a massive crossover collection missing some of the tie-in books, and having to fill in some of those blanks for myself, but wow was it going to be just about the greatest thing ever when all the books came out, or I found them all in the back issues of the comic book shop! And in addition to all of this, it seemed to reach for something greater and deeper than just being another superhero punch-em-up, going beyond even the deepest Marvel or prior DC movies to resonate themes and tones I had never seen in a superhero film before or since besides ZSJL.
wakeupkeo's cut is a very good, nearly great, superhero movie, and if I had seen this version in the theater, I would have given it a 7/10. 8.5/10 if it didn't cut Lois and Lex's most important moments. It probably would have done somewhat better financially than the theatrical version, as it fits many of the things people seemed to be expecting when they originally went to see BvS. Shooting this script would have been substantially less expensive for WB, too. It seems to be getting fellow comic geeks to re-evaluate my favorite comic book movie of all time, and see the good that was always there. For that, despite the fact that this will probably not be the cut I watch ever again, unless I'm showing it to a friend, I give it my absolute highest recommendation.
User Review
Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched?
Digital
G