Warner Bros.
The Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice “Ultimate Edition,” which was released today on Digital HD, is indeed a genuinely superior movie compared to the theatrical version that opened in theaters worldwide just over three months ago. It does feel more like a Superman/Batman two-hander, as opposed to a Batman movie with Superman supporting characters filling out the cast. I would go so far as to say that I “liked” this version of Batman v Superman. It more-or-less works as a kind of uber-dark Elseworld that had no place being the kick-off movie for a mega-budget, mass-market cinematic universe.
That also means that I am not going to rant about how Warner Bros./Time Warner Inc. should have released this version into theaters three months ago either. After all, this “Ultimate Edition” is still a three-hour and very R-rated Superman movie. There is no way in hell that Warner would have released this version into theaters, and it’s silly to presume otherwise. This film ironically suffered from the same problem as Zack Snyder’s Sucker Punch. That fantasy (which I like more than you) was an R-rated movie that had to get whittled down into the PG-13 box, leaving a less comprehensible PG-13 theatrical cut that nonetheless felt like an R-rated movie. So it was a lose/lose.
Sucker Punch should have gone out into release in its original 124-minute R-rated version. I am not so stupid to recommend something similar for Dawn of Justice. The mistake here wasn’t in not releasing this superior version of Batman v Superman into worldwide theatrical release. The mistake was in allowing Zack Snyder and friends to make a Batman v Superman like this in the first place. As a would-be universe opener, it is almost hilariously misguided, and that the film only makes sense by the addition of even more violence is a testament to that. But, that’s a “mistake” concerning financial considerations, but not necessarily a mistake in terms of “art.” Disconnected by financial and world-building requirements, this cut is an ambitious three-star oddity that somewhat qualifies as "good."
The new cut feels more like a true Superman/Batman movie. It also makes more sense in an A-to-B-to-C fashion. It does, for better or worse, also hammer home the whole “Lex Luthor was behind everything” bit that I didn’t much care for. The theatrical cut makes more sense if Luthor is not goading Superman and Batman into fighting each other. I still think the “puppet master” stuff is extraneous and it still treats its female characters with general disdain. It still kills off Mercy Graves (Tao Okamoto) and Senator Finch (Holly Hunter), it still imperils Lois Lane at least three times, and it still kidnaps and brutalizes Martha Kent (Diane Lane). And, yes, it still gives Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) all the depth of a C-level Bond Girl before her the brief action pay-off.
It also still has the same problem with the core showdown between Henry Cavill’s Superman and Ben Affleck’s Batman. The title fight is one rooted in puppet-wrangling and misunderstandings rather than a difference in morality/philosophy. The much-mocked “Martha!” pay-off works fine as storytelling (it’s right there in the opening sequence, as is the Excalibur foreshadowing of Superman’s death). It feels so silly partially because A) they keep repeating the word “Martha” as if it's a new vocabulary word and B) the fight itself occurs through false pretenses which could have been avoided had Superman flown out of reach and explained to Bruce just what was going on.
The third act is almost the same, save for more action violence, a longer/better funeral montage, and an unnecessary extension of the Lex Luthor/Batman prison conversation. But the first two acts are frankly much improved, while not taking away anything from the stuff that worked the first time (like Jesse Eisenberg's holier-than-thou Luthor and the crazy dream sequences). Much of the new material involves Lois Lane actively digging up proof of Luthor’s complicity while just giving her more tangential footage. This includes a two-scene cameo by Jena Malone as Lois's lab tech friend who single-handedly allows the movie to pass the Bechdel Test. We also get more screen-time for Clark Kent as he travels to Gotham and does actual journalism concerning the Batman menace as well as slightly more "Superman being Superman."
This material, along with bits and pieces for other supporting characters and plenty of connective tissue, makes the movie better and makes Clark and Lois into more active/interesting characters. While Ben Affleck’s Batman/Bruce Wayne still gets plenty of screen-time, he never feels like he’s taking over the movie, and thus his angry “God-Damn Batman” routine isn’t as insufferable. Superman is more heroic, Batman is less of a monster, but the film still falters in terms of arcs. Superman barely has one (it's the same lesson Kermit learned in The Muppets) and Batman's arc is dependent on the presumption that the Caped Crusader was once a less-monstrous vigilante. And, truth be told, Dawn of Justice becomes a superhero movie where Superman and Batman stand around while Lex Luthor keeps killing innocent people and then creates a big monster at the end for everyone to fight. As a result, none of the heroes’ actions matter since it’s all predetermined from the beginning.
This version is still an entertaining and interesting Superman/Batman movie about Superman’s role in the world where all actions are inherently political actions with unintended consequences. Snyder bites off more than he can chew, and it still would have worked better with less Batman, but I appreciate the attempt. While much of this extra material makes for a better movie or at least a more coherent one, it comes at a cost. A three-hour R-rated Batman/Superman film was never going to fly in worldwide theatrical release. So instead we got a relatively unsatisfying 152-minute PG-13 cut which still feels R-rated and doesn’t make much sense in terms of minute details.
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice “Ultimate Edition” acts as a quasi-defense for its director. It still looks as awe-inspiringly gorgeous and IMAX-friendly as before, and again I would be thrilled to see Larry Fong get his due credit. I'd still love to watch a series of DC Comics movies that mix naturalistic beauty and grandiose visual majesty as well as this one. And however “inappropriate” it may be that an R-rated Superman movie even exists, this version shows that there was a version of Batman v Superman that made basic coherent sense and somewhat worked as a stand-alone feature film on its own complicated terms.
But since the official cut of the movie that forms the backbone of the DC Films universe cannot be a hyper-violent and R-rated carnage-fest, this version merely exists as trivia. If you’re among those who hated Batman v Superman in theaters, this won’t change your mind. If you loved the theatrical cut, then you’ll love this version too. But for those like myself who felt it was an ambitious near-miss, this is closer to what I wanted, especially in terms of not letting Batman take over the movie. I mean, I wanted a straight (and more overtly heroic) Man of Steel 2, but that merely exists on some alternate Earth (perhaps a brighter timeline).
And it is amusing that all three Superman movies that I now like have superior director’s cuts standing side-by-side with the original theatrical version. Maybe in 25 years someone will make Man of Steel Returns which will mandate this “Ultimate Edition” as the official go-to version. But until then, up, up and away!
