Batman v Superman: No Justice

As the ratings to the right of this review spell out, I really can't simply comment on the work as a whole, rather I need to break it down into the key categories that go into making a truly great fan edit. In terms of technical quality, this edit is inarguably tremendous. 1080 quality is every bit as good as my official digital copy. The edits - both visual and audio - are spot on, with no real jerkiness or quick cuts. This could easily be a professionally edited work, and that's tremendous.

Ultimately I found myself having two issues with the film. Firstly, I'm not a fan of changing the endpoints of a film, conceptually. That this version of the film will never be able to naturally flow into Justice League or any other future film is a bit disappointing, and while I understand the intention thematically (of reducing the film to purely the battle between Batman and Superman), there are other considerations that I feel were ignored (Superman's character arc that ultimately leads to his death, for instance).

However, I understand most of those reservations are personal preferences and arguably a bit finicky on my part, so I went into the film trying to be open minded and, for the sake of the review, being more positive towards the intent and concept behind this edit. Despite that, I did find I didn't enjoy the movie quite as much as I expected I would. The pacing and structure of the film is actually quite strong - better than the original certainly - however by leaving out many of the additional storylines of BVS, the movie feels very...heavy. I wouldn't say it's confusing, but having the vast majority of the movie dedicated to Luthor's machinations ultimately left me feeling kind of overwhelmed and exhausted by the movie. In my opinion, BVS needed less of the complex and multifaceted intrigue, not more.

Overall, it's still a VERY good edit. I would definitely recommend it, and I wouldn't be shocked at all if you come away loving it far more than I did. I just wouldn't go as far as saying this is my preferred version of the movie, or head and shoulders above the original cut.

I just finished watching this. Wow, did reeseevans cut the crap out of this. And by that I mean all of the garbage that kept making you facepalm and let out a big Charlie Brown "UGH!" is nowhere to be found here!

If you're a big Bat-fan like me, or Super-fan, you'll have seen the original a few times and know there are some big pieces missing. But do not let that sway you into not watching this. If you're going to watch this, DO NOT look at the cut list beforehand. You DON'T want to know what is missing, because even though a lot is gone, this works so well that you will not be disappointed by the cuts. There will be a moment or two where you'll think, "Aww, I wanted to see that", but believe me, after you watch this to completion you will be happy for the cuts.

So as you can see from that paragraph, I enjoyed this fanedit A LOT.

There were a few issues that I had with the cut, though. First, when Supes saves Lois after Lex pushes her off the top of the building, Lois says to Supes, "You came back. You came back." With the way this fanedit was done, I didn't feel like he was even really gone. He left the courthouse, visited Martha, and then saved Lois in a fairly short span of time. Second, I felt like Lex's plan to pit BvS against each other was not as strong as it could have been. But to be honest, I don't know what even could have been done to add to this cut to make Lex look like more of a mastermind, so I'll let that go for now.

Superman's ending: a big chance, and I think it worked. I don't want to spoil that, but it is not what you're expecting at all. It's one of those endings you need sit and think about for a minute right after the scene ends, and if you reflect on what you saw and not what your brain is telling you that you saw, you can appreciate it.

The editing: SMOOTH. I don't think I noticed one single flaw in the video OR audio. Everything blended incredibly well.

Even with the little issues that I had, there weren't enough to take even one star away in any category.

The original BvS is a FALSE GOD. Kneel before this version. reeseevans, you should be proud. Thank you for this.

simply amazing. if this was the official version it would have reshaped the dceu

Really a phenomenal edit, the type that you wouldn't even notice had you not seen the movie before. Transitions are professionally done both in the sound and shot selection. No story loopholes created by the editing, and brighter visuals than the original. I will say that as for the movie itself, its just good enough to be considered ok to decent and this is no fault of the editor as he only has the finished product to work with. Without the editing however, the original is a massive train-wreck in story telling and its amazing how much better it is when its cleaned up a bit. I think its safe to say the critics would not have been nearly as harsh on this film had it been released in this form.

P.S.
Would love to see Reese edit a short film (10-20 minutes) that would bridge the gap between his edit and Justice League. Perhaps, it begins with a cold intro that explains a leftover fragment of the kryptonian ship had a super weapon inside of it and then cuts right into the beginning of the battle with Doomsday, afterwards showing supermans funeral and Bruce's pledge to form the League or even the few scenes introducing Diana at the museum or something. I do agree with his decision to leave this out of his final product however, I'd be cool if he could find a way to bridge his edit with the rest of the DC movies.

This a fantastic edit based on a terrific idea to reduce the convoluted and nonsensical plot of Batman v Superman.

Unfortunately, so much of the problem with this movie is the source material -- it's too bad Reese couldn't shoot new scenes, LOL. The core problems with the original cut remain -- there's a sense of tedium to everything that isn't an action scene. Superman comes across as mopey and uninspiring. Batman seems hateful and mentally unstable. Gal Gadot was one of the highlights of the original cut and while it makes sense from a story perspective to cut her scenes to focus on Batman and Superman, her scenes remain the most entertaining part of the movie, so losing them makes the entertainment value of BvS suffer.

That said, this was a terrific fanedit. If I never saw BvS before and you told me this was the original theatrical release, I would have believed you. All the fault lies with the film-makers, not with Reese and the amazing job he did here.

The most effective parts are where Reese gets really creative and cuts the Martha flashbacks into that scene of the movie. He helps make it feel a lot less ridiculous, so very well done.

I wouldn't mind seeing an edit that gets rid of the dream sequences and JLA easter eggs while keeping Wonder Woman and Doomsday in the film.