Interstellar movie review (originally published in November 2014)

From the only superstar Director of this generation

INTERSTELLAR

DIRECTOR- he he…as if I have to tell you who directed this

CAST- Matthew Mc Conaughy, Anne Hathaway, Michael Caine, Jessica Chastain, Matt Damon and others.

Well, if you have ever seen a stock broker give financial advice on TV, they are actually asked to declare in the end, whether they have any personal stake in any of the analysis given, in case they don’t end up giving biased advice. In the same vein, let me declare outright, that if you even remotely know me, you already know that am a huuuuge Nolan fan and as much snobbish as it sounds to say it, but I actually was a fan of him even before The Dark Knight trilogy. You’ll find me quoting his movie references, his name and style etc. in almost every third review I write on this blog. So let me tell it to you, fair and square, am gonna like this movie more than most people did.

I could go on writing about how Nolan is what Spielberg, Coppola, Kubrick, Hitchcock, Orson Welles etc. were in their respective generations. Directors, who through their cinematic genius and marketable yet intelligent story-telling yielded influence over the ever money hungry movie studios. It is so much so, that Nolan can pretty much walk into a studio with an idea and walk out with an approved budget. Christopher Nolan is a marketable name in itself now-a-days, thanks to the success of the Dark Knight Trilogy and Inception.

So, I imagine when Nolan proposed the idea for a movie about quantum mechanics, Theory of relativity and String Theory, space travel and an apocalyptic future…based on the theories of renowned physicist Kip Thorne, He pretty much got free reign. He did fuck up your brain nicely with a reality based psycho-thriller like Memento and light sci-fi elements in Inception…imagine how much of a mind fuck he can be with all of the above elements.

And that he does successfully to some extent…without doing this in Nolan’s signature non-linear style…let me go through this review in a straightforward manner.

The story goes that somewhere in the near future, the earth is a fucked up place. Over-population and constant wars have kinda led not to a total breakdown of society but certainly a weird regression. Most of technology exists but engineers and soldiers are not needed so much. The world is dying of hunger and all it needs is farmers. Ex- NASA pilot Coop (McConaughy) is now a farmer living somewhere in America and trying to get by. As they very nicely establish it, this is not a generation of explorers or inventors but a care-taker generation, living austere lives. However all is not what it seems, as weird dust storms and diseases are wiping out the crops too.  Humanity has to look for an alternative planet to move to. And that is precisely what they have planned. Also, there are some mysterious forces helping them along the way.

Well, that’s as much as you get to know without actually revealing more of the story. Nolan does a great job of establishing the relation between the Coop and his family…especially his daughter…and one could say that in a movie filled with infinitely complicated scientific theories….that is the soul of the movie. All the actors…I repeat ALL the actors, even the child actors (who are normally very annoying ) act really well.  Nolan even manages to make you care about a metal box like robot. Even if you don’t understand the movie completely, it is this emotional connection that will keep you invested with the characters enough to care for what happens next.

What most of you might not know , is that Nolan has never been a big fan of Special Effects (SFX), he avoids as much as he can. He is old-school amongst a new breed of digital directors, where he prefers shooting on 70mm Cinema reels than digi-cam and also using practical effects and miniatures whenever possible. He had to use SFX for the space scenes here obviously….but its all shot so well, the visuals are so sweeping and magnificent that you can really feel the emptiness of space and the journey of the characters. You can see Nolan’s special touch when the explosions in space do not make any noise because they don't in real life either. Add to that the ever so spectacular music score of Hans Zimmer and you have possible got the best space visuals since 2001: A Space Odyssey. This movie was shot and is meant for the IMAX screen and I strongly suggest you watch it one if possible. 

The sweeping shots, the travels through a higher dimension…a lonely tiny spacecraft against the vast infinite backdrop of space are all obviously influenced by 2001: A Space Odyssey. This movie was is and will be compared to 2001: A Space Odyssey time and again…not only because of the similarity in visuals but also because Nolan is often compared to Kubrick in terms of film making skills and Nolan himself cites him as one of his inspirations. However, don’t get your hopes up yet. 

Now, even though being a big fan, let me tell you that in my opinion, this is perhaps the least ‘tight’ (there is no better word for it) script written by the Nolan brothers. There are several convenient moments and unlike Inception or any of Nolan’s other movies, it doesn’t really build up well to a intense climax due to weird pacing issues.. I mean it does have its tense moments but still length seems long at almost 3 hours.. Also, some of the dialogue seems a little corny at times. One more drawback could be that some of the events are so complex that even if the movie tries to continuously explain what is happening, it would do you good to have read a bit of physics. Concepts like singularity, event horizon etc. are difficult to understand even as it is, let alone in a movie. I don’t mean that as a real drawback, but it is the truth that most people just won’t understand it. If you thought driving home after Inception was difficult coz you were still pondering over it in your mind, then prepare to either be so thoroughly mind fucked that either you’ll wanna watch it again or just plain fucking give up. 

An actual negative I felt was that, the third act of the movie is full of conveniences. I wouldn't have expected a Nolan movie to have so many of them. Things just happening at their most convenient time is a liberty a story is allowed to take but not when everything has been so carefully built up. But then, I feel I must have missed something. See, the fact about Nolan is that he is like (to use a cliché) a magician…he likes using misdirection, twisting narratives etc . to keep you on track while yet taking you for a ride. One of the few film makers that can still surprise you. I had frankly figured out the twist well in advance even though the journey to it was entertaining. Maybe, am expecting too much from this movie just because I like Nolan…or maybe I did miss something…some clue here or there. This, I think, has been and will continue to be Nolan’s greatest strength. The ability to keep you wondering and making you watch the movie again and again.

I pop up any of Nolan's movies anytime am bored and I can watch them from absolutely any point on wards. But even though it has its moments, I don’t think Interstellar will fall in that category. Having said that, watching this movie is like watching Sachin Tendulkar score a 50 even when he wasn’t in form. It  still was better than watching some others score a 100. Nolan’s average work is still better than other’s best.

This movie is- Total Timepass

PS- I remember when The Dark Knight Rises was going to release, I was hoping that it wouldn’t be bad. Because a) third movie parts are usually very very bad and b) Every director rather every human being goes through a cycle when he must fail. I wont say he has failed here, just wasn’t in full form. 

Classic movie reviews : Casablanca (originally published in September 2017)

Of all the classics and all the love stories in all of world cinema, I had somehow never walked into…

CASABLANCA

DIRECTOR- Michael Curtiz

CAST-Humphrey freaking Bogart, Ingrid freaking Bergman and others

Yeah yeah…go ahead and shoot me, I had never watched Casablanca before. How can I not have watched what has been termed perhaps the greatest movie of all time in many lists over the years? Well…I wish I had the Bogart charm of shrugging my shoulders and looking classy while denying what would seem like the most common thing to a layman. Blame it on English movie channels which would rather play Fast and Furious Part: who gives a shit, than cinematic classics like they used to play when they initially started in India. AXN, TNT, Star movies actually played movies like Psycho, Casablanca, Vertigo etc. Guess they don’t give a shit these days.

You can also blame this fear of classic movies and books which I have…in that they are either very lengthy sometimes for no reason (yes Mr. Kubrick we get it…satellites rotating in space are cool…can we stop seeing 20 mins of them rotating to classical music?)…or are sometimes a tad bit outdated with melodramatic acting and effects. Although I had gotten around to watching what is considered in those aforementioned many lists as the other greatest movie ever – Citizen Kane- I was not enough impressed by it for it to be considered ‘greatest’. Great certainly…but just not greatest in my opinion. However, Casablanca…is a whole different story.

I mean the movie and its legendary lines (Play it once, Sam....here’s to looking at you, kid…of all the gin-joints…Round up the usual suspects…yes Casablanca’s dialogues have inspired other movie titles) have been parodied, paid tribute to and referenced in so so many movies, TV serials etc. that it just carries this aura of greatness with it. It’s a bit like Sholay in India. If you haven’t watched it and liked it, there is immense pressure upon you to like it when you actually do get around to watching it. (But seriously if you haven’t watched Sholay yet, why are you even reading this?!) So, when I finally got a weekend free and decided to make full use of my monthly Netflix subscription to finally get around to watching movies I had only heard about, I saw Casablanca and immediately started watching it. And as you might have guessed, it does stand the test of time for me.

Test of time is intentional choice of words (pun alert!) because the movie doesn’t clock more than a 1 hour 45 mins. My second choice was Laurence of Arabia which is like 18 days long. I mean Bhagwat saptaha are shorter than that. (ok jokes apart its’ like 4 hours). I agree that length of a movie isn’t that important if the story justifies it. I mean one of my favourite movies – The Dark Knight Rises- is almost 3 hours…but as a matter of personal preference it does matter to me. A revered classic starring my beloved Bogey that’s less than 2 hours? I had to watch it. 1 hour 46 mins later, I had to write about it.

Casablanca falls into my favourite kind of genre- Film Noir. An antihero protagonist with a troubled past, a femme fatale who has broken his heart…sleek snappy lines…a sense of resigned cynicism and renewed hope running throughout the film…twists and turns and all this shot in glorious black and white…that’s Film Noir for you. (Noir is pronounced as NO-AR…that’s French for you).  But instead of being the usual detective thriller, Casablanca is a love story.

Based originally on an unproduced play called ‘Everybody comes to Rick’s’, it is set in French occupied Moroccan Town of Casablanca. It’s the early days of the world war and Paris has been overrun by the Nazis. Refugees wanting to escape to the US can only go through Lisbon in Portugal. But the direct way to Portugal is not safe and the best way is to go to North Africa i.e. through Casablanca then to Lisbon. Casablanca technically is a French territory and still unoccupied by Nazis. Hitler is yet to set his sights towards North Africa and hence the town is a bit of neutral territory. Which of course means that it’s full of refugees looking for escape, smugglers looking to make a buck, corrupt French police officials trying to take advantage of the entire situation, German Commanders trying to exert influence and patriotic French-man trying to run a underground revolution from there. All these creatures meet at one watering-hole – Ricks Café. Richard played by the cigarette toting, drinking and pure embodiment of black and white class- Humphrey Bogart- is a cynical but practical man who doesn’t take sides in all the conspiracy games that go on in his bar. He doesn’t drink with customers and offers not even the VIP’s any credit in the bar.  But as his friend and local Police Chief Louis often tells him, that he can bet that inside he is a very sentimental man. One fine evening, in walks Ilsa with her French Rebel husband Victor Laszlo…She sees Rick and it seems they share a past connection.   

The best part about the story is that the emotional parts are treated with depth and weight without making them sappy. To say that Bergman and Bogart share chemistry on screen is to say that Sachin is very good with a cricket bat…. They literally define cinematic chemistry in all its glory. In one flashback, you get to see the intense connection they have and how it now affects their present. Both of them perform really well without ever letting it look melodramatic or forced. As it neared the climax at the airport, for the first time in many years, I actually teared up a bit in a romantic scene.

All the cast performs well, and well…sorry to hammer this for the umpteenth time but I think I have always had a man-crush on Bogey. The way he speaks with a cigarette in his mouth, the way he infuses the weakness of love in a hardened man, the way he toasts when he says ‘here’s to looking at you, kid…’ he is as the cliché goes the man that every man would want to become and the man every woman would want. Ingrid Bergman is gorgeous in all her Nordic glory and acts equally well. All the supporting cast do really well too.

It’s a movie set during the Second World War, with conspiracy and escape plans and Jazz music…and it’s also a love triangle consisting of betrayal and sacrifice and a climax at the airport…in short it’s for every man and every woman out there. If you haven’t still seen Casablanca, please do so.

My rating for this movie can’t be anything else, as this movie is the very definition of the word – Classic

PS- Sorry I am stuck in Mahad and there won’t be an IT movie review yet.

To Sholay with Love (Originally published in March 2014)

Best Indian Movie ever...This is Sholay and any of your arguments are Invalid ab initio

If Sholay had boobs, I would probably marry it...that is how much I love this movie. I mean even after the customary national anthem was played...what really got my heart beating and made me feel  proud to be an Indian was when the Sholay theme started playing ( yes I almost had tears in my eyes, coz it was such an overwhelming moment for me) . Damn, I had been waiting sooooo freaking long to watch this in a theatre and finally got a chance to do so. Sholay is the very definition of iconic, classic and any other adjective you can think of. India got its independence on 15^th August 1947 and on the same day in 1975 we became enslaved again to entertainment and awesomeness. Movies would never be the same again. Even though it initially did not receive much acclaim but slowly it every woke up to it..and it became a blockbuster...India’s first blockbuster...and shut up about Mughal-e-Azaam being the first ....It was a superhit....but not a blockbuster.

And as for those who  are even thinking of comparing Sholay’s Ultimate blockbuster status to DDLJ...please stop...as Loki says in The Avengers- “The ant has no quarrel with the boot”..and Sholay steps over each and every Indian movie ever made...shit even Surma Bhopali...forget about that, even Dhanno the mare, is a more famous and well developed character than any other in DDLJ. A little challenge if you can remember 5 characters from DDLJ in under 20 seconds...ok how about 5 dialogues?...still no?..good..hope that settles the debate forever. Anyways, I consider myself lucky to have been born in a family which worships movies in general...and of course Sholay is the One True God of the pantheon...I mean people in my family could tell you what was Gabbar’s father’s name (it’s Hari Singh by the way) or what Ahmed’s (character played by Sachin) mamu (barely mentioned in a letter) does for a living (his name is Muaqat ali and woh Jabalpur mein beedi ke kharkhane mein mulazim hai). But even though not to such fanatical extents, but we all love Sholay...it’s parodied in movies and ads...it’s dialogues and references used in day-to-day life...much like our epics, this epic has become an essential part of our culture. If India had to have a national movie, there would only be one choice. Hence, this is not so much a review as much as it is a love letter.

But apart from all the love,  for those of you who are still sceptical and/or unlucky enough to have been born in an era where the movie is only unquestionably worshipped...you might not understand the reason for all the hype. Well, there is one thing you should know about classics...especially true classics like Sholay...unlike the Blockbusters of today (Dhoom 3..gimme a freaking break) they don’t need hype to be a hit...they are loved because well...they are just that good. See, I have always said that a good movie is a good movie regardless of anybody’s opinion...if it effectively manages to tell a story...it’s a good movie regardless of whether I like it or  not...and even for the fact that I love Sholay..it still is a good movie. And this is why-

5. Technical Brilliance

 You could literally take notes on how well the story is told on screen.  The scenes are well paced and the flow is seldom interrupted. Not only that, but it is also well shot.  Any modern day techniques that you can name jump-cuts, slow motion, shaky cams, screen-freeze etc (particularly the Thakur family massacre) are all thereIf am not wrong the Train sequence has almost 8-10 cameras. Many bollywood action movies even today (go to hell Race 2) can’t manage to shoot action sequences as well as Sholay did 39 years ago. . The movie continuously engages you visually, even if nothing particularly exciting is happening on screen.   Even the sound effects right from the horse hooves, to the sound of ominous winds to the clink of the coin are all amazing. Seldom had attention been paid to sound effects before.   Ramesh Sippy is a brilliant technician and hence a good storyteller. Also, one of only two awards Sholay won at Filmfare (if you are outraged and surprised, even I still am. But don’t worry, coz Deewar got most other awards) was to M S Shinde for Editing. Even though the movie borrows its tone and style of Spaghetti western movies (For a Few dollars more etc etc) it still remains a landmark for Indian movies in technical brilliance

4. The Music

R D Burman is the best Indian music director ever. And please take note I said best music director. Every one before him (including his dad) were music composers. They made good melodious songs but that was that. RD not only brought many many many many many (and many more many’s) new styles and genres to film music but also for the first time we had a director who put effort into the background music. Although, this might have been because he got to work with good directors like Vijay Anand, Nasir Hussain, Ramesh Sippy etc. Still he gave thought as to how music could be used to accentuate the story and not as filler between two songs. Remember the famous weird ominous sound when Gabbar is around...or a single tabla is used when Basanti is being chased to create tension...and of course the soulfully brilliant mouth organ tune that Amitabh plays. Plus, Movies seldom had title instrumental themes (at least not memorable ones) before RD came onto the scene.

3. The Cast

Sholay has some of the most iconic..ok sorry...the most iconic characters ever...big or small...they were all portrayed by highly skilled yet popular actors. They share amazing chemistry on screen. For example, Jaya and Amitabh’s love story has got to be the most subtle love story ever portrayed in bollywood, they hardly speak more than 10 lines...but you can sense the tension, the silent love smouldering between them. All major characters are just so well portrayed but even minor ones like Mausiji or Kaalia or Imam Chacha are so well developed and well written that they stay in your mind even after the movie is done. Even the cameos make an impact. Helen was probably 36-37 years old, but she does a belly dance way more graceful and sexier than any 20-somethings even these days.

2. Gabbar Singh

Well if you are not watching this movie for Gabbar Singh then you are watching the wrong movie. Keep in mind; this was Amjad Khan’s debut performance. I mean his delivery, his stance, his maniacal laugh...fucking amazing! Psychotic killers who torture and kill people are common in movies these days, but it was Gabbar Singh who changed the rules of the game. Until then villains were a character for the hero to beat down. Here was a villain around whom the events actually happen. He killed and tortured without mercy...women, children...it didn’t matter to him...and he actually enjoyed the process. Kinda like the Joker, he simply likes to watch the world burn (yes!!! TDK reference in a Sholay article! Double whammy!!!)   Amjad Khan was menace personified in this role and actually has the most interesting dialogues in the movie. He brings about tonnes of badassery to the movie.

1.       The Heroes

No am not talking about Jay and Veeru..yes yes their bromance is the benchmark for all others in bollywood, but am talking about the real heroes. As much as credit goes to Ramesh Sippy for the movie, the real heroes are of course Salim-Javed. Hats, pants, dupattas anything off to those two for writing such a watertight brilliant script....and of course the dialogue. Even when the action on screen slows down, its the iconic dialogue that keeps it interesting. There is never a dull moment. It’s tragic when it needs to be, comic when it needs to be and badass when it needs to be. I remember seeing old cassettes of Sholay’s dialogues at my mama’s place. I was told that these cassettes sold huge back then..of course it makes sense as to why they did. And seriously if I need to tell you how awesome Sholay’s dialogue is...then stop reading this right now.

Everybody has their favourite Sholay dialogue but my eternal favourite is – Gabbar ke taap se tumhe ek hi aadmi bacha sakta hai....khud Gabbar!. (soo fucking badass!) Seriously, if it hadn’t been for Salim Javed (Sholay, Shaan, Deewar, Don,Zanjeer...and many more) bollywood would not have been what it is today. They knew how to strike a good balance between classes and masses...of telling a story entertainingly yet intelligently well.  I was so happy that when I was watching the movie in Mumbai (well, I said in Mumbai bcoz ofcourse am gonna watch it 5-6 times more in Pune and Aurangabad) there was actually clapping and hooting when Salim Javed’s name came on screen.

So there you have it...Oh I forgot about the 3D part you said...well I ll say the same thing to this as I said in my review of Jurassic Park, they could have put this movie in 35 mm black and white and silent and I would still watch it. But having said that, even though the 3D adds a lot to the action scenes its of course not gonna be as good as Avatar or Gravity. But the only slight problem I have with this version is that although the re-mastered soundtrack does wonders for the background music and effects..but it sorta drowns down the vocals during songs so it sounds a bit weird. That’s the only thing I wish they would fix with the 3D version. As for the movie in itself, all I can say is if movies themselves had lifetime awards...Sholay would be the only one to get it. Don’t miss it at any cost.

PS- Sherlock season 3 finally here!!!!!   

Justice League movie review (originally published in November 2017)

All my favourite DC characters in one movie?... Stop right there, I am in!

JUSTICE LEAGUE

CAST- Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Gal Gadot, Jason Momoa, Ezra Miller, Ray Fisher, Amy Adams, Diane Lane, Ciaran Hinds, JK Simmons and others (Oh you’d be surprised with the others)

DIRECTOR- Zack Snyder (completed finally by Joss Whedon due to Snyder bowing out because of a personal tragedy)

If you have been preparing to watch a movie all your life, you are so overwhelmed when you finally watch it that inevitably when you start to write about it, you are staring at a blank screen. This happens more so if the movie happens to be freaking awesome. Even though my inevitable 25 other viewings might change how I feel about the movie, but for now it is a completely satiating experience for a true DC fan like me.

Justice League is the coming together of all of DC’s main characters including the Holy Trinity – Superman (oh come on, we all know he ‘died’ at the end of BvS…but you have got to be ten kinds of stupid to believe he won’t be back in DC’s biggest superhero ensemble), Batman and Wonder-woman. The others being Aquaman, Flash and Cyborg. Although unlike Marvel, they didn’t have as much time to give every hero his own movie before bringing them together, they still did a good job setting them up through cameos and dialogue in the previous movie. Even if you aren’t a fan and missed those, this movie does a great job establishing them. Without extensive flashbacks and/or forced expository dialogue, you are given enough back-story about characters like Aquaman, Flash and Cyborg to give you just enough of an idea about where they are coming from and also intrigue you about their future.

After Superman’s death in Batman Vs Superman, the world is in chaos. Without a heroic, God-like beacon of hope to believe in, people have lost their moral compass. This goes to show the amount of work Zack Snyder and Chris Terrio have put in the script. The whole long-drawn arguments we had in BvS about Gods and Men and the effect it has on the world, were building up to this. The sudden disappearance of such a powerful and polarizing being would certainly affect humanity adversely and Snyder through a Watchmen-like opening montage shows us exactly how it would look like. Set to the famous Leonard Cohen ‘Everybody knows’ (performed here by Sigrid), Snyder’s music director talents shine through in just a matter of minutes he takes you to world painstakingly created through 3 other movies (Man of Steel, BvS, Suicide Squad).

As teased at the end of BvS, an alien threat is about to invade earth and without its most powerful guardian, it’s up to Batman to gather other Meta-humans to help stop it. By this time, before walking into a superhero movie, you are mostly accustomed to the flow it would take. But the movie is so structured that it balances emotion, action, humor and intrigue in a perfect way yet takes the kind of flow you wouldn’t expect. There are enough easter-eggs and fan service moments to have the geek in you screaming.  There is one particular scene which without spoiling, I’ll just say that the Flash freaks out that had me actually scream ‘Holy Fuck!!!’ at the screen. Zack being the God of Slow motion was the perfect director to director Flash’s action scenes.

If you have in the past seen the Justice League cartoon, or any of the animated movies you probably know the characters like this-

Batman- brooding and dark. Not at all a team player

Superman- Righteous, perfect, always in control

Wonder Woman- Powerful, lovely, Naïve sometimes.

Cyborg- Young and intelligent

Flash- Funny, awkward and Fast

Aquaman – Strong and talks to fish (seriously that is all he mostly ever did)

But how about a Flash that is funny yet afraid to fight because he has never fought before? An Aquaman who is bitter and a loner because his mother had left him as a child? A Batman who is dark and brooding and has suffered a lot…yet wants to redeem himself by trying to bring together a team in the absence of an alien who made him realize his own humanity. A Wonder-woman who is smart, very powerful yet still disturbed by the memories of her first love? This, my friends, is why I love DC movies. This is why I love Zack Snyder. Often being panned for just being a visual director or just being a flashy action director like Michael Bay…Snyder has much more depth than that. He understands comic books better than most other story-tellers and still brings his originality to the movie. Unlike most super-hero movies, this one starts with a crude video shot by some teenagers talking to Superman. It is not only unconventional but for a grand epic movie with such hugely popular characters, it serves to ground the movie emotionally.

All the performances are to the point. Everyone does well and I mean everyone including cameos like JK Simmons as Commissioner Gordon is done well. The standouts for me have to be Ben Affleck and Henry Cavil. (Come on it’s not a spoiler! Believe me even if you know Superman is going to come back…the way they do it is actually the best part of the movie.)

However, the only drawback I can see with the movie, is may be because Snyder had to leave the Post production stage of the movie and Whedon (Of Avengers fame) had to complete the movie, you do not get to see the trademark Snyder-esque touch to the story. The movie has much more humor however some scenes feel like they are going the Marvel way (being funny for being funny’s sake). The difference for me between DC and Marvel has been difference between creating to express and creating to impress. DC (thanks mostly to Snyder) has always been about expressing their art, their stories. Here that seems to have taken a back seat in favor creating more of a popular movie. There are many scenes which were maybe cut out to make the movie more ‘appealing’ post the polarizing reactions to BvS, but they appear in the trailers and not in the movie. The movie seems a bit rushed at times which actually stops us from realizing the full weight of the actions and consequences involved. For a run-time of 2 hours the movie feels shorter than most other DC movies and for an epic story like this, nobody would have minded a few minutes more. Let’s hope as usual we get an extended cut for the DVD release.

Also, the other weak point has to be the villain here. DC has always had the best villains out there. Hence they have always had more compelling story-lines. Other than Ares from Wonder-woman, this has to be weakest DC villain yet. Weakest in the sense of being very generic, world- conquering villain that is as common to comic book movies as is to any other action movie. But somehow I get that at this point, DC’s main goal was to get all its signature characters out there in order to commercially compete with Marvel. Their chemistry and interaction is the focus of the movie and not necessarily the villain. However, a tease in post credit scene {yes there is one. And it again had me saying ‘Holy fuck nuts!’ (Deadpool reference inside a DC movie…so meta that Deadpool himself would have been proud)} which definitely tells us that interesting villains are definitely around the way.

The music by Danny Elfman is digestible but you obviously miss the great Hans Zimmer. Zimmer+ Snyder+ DC was such a great life equation (yes that is also a DC comic book reference) that any change to it seems sacrilege. Elfman is too common for out of the way movies like the ones DC is attempting to make.

Even if Justice League is DC’s most blatant attempt to be more popular in order to compete with Marvel movies, it still does have a lot more depth to offer than your standard super-hero movie. You can see them trying to set up the other arcs we might see in the future movies and also the dialogue particularly where Bruce Wayne talks about how much more human Clark Kent was than himself is thoughtful without being too heavy.  There is enough nerdy stuff in this for comic book fans like me and also enough fun and action for non-comic book fans. While BvS was a treat for geeks, it maybe didn’t do well with people who didn’t know about the decades’ worth of comic book back-stories. JL just might please these people. Maybe the whole of it won’t go down well with all true DCEU and Snyder fans but it isn’t a complete let-down as most would feel. Also, we all know from Watchmen and BvS that Snyder’s movies are better understood in extended cuts on DVD. So let’s just wait for that. 

I am too much in love with DC characters to rate this movie in one sitting. As I said to my Wonder-woman, they could have shown these characters getting haircuts and ordering coffee and I would still rate this as a freaking CLASSIC!!!

But keeping my feelings aside for a moment, most people will definitely enjoy this movie. Its Total Timepass!!

PS- Please do wait for the mid-credit and post-credit scene. It’s so fucking difficult to write a spoiler free review for this! So So much to discuss!        

Listless Wednesdays My Favourite 5 superhero movies of all time (this was before Bvs. Sometime in 2013 June)

I know...I know, what most of you who know me are gonna say..come on Ambarish..just tell us number 4 and 5..we know that The Dark Knight trilogy will feature on the top 3,so lets just get this over with..well to be honest..3 of my favoritest (yes that's a word)  movies of all time are NOT the top 3 movies in this list...hmmmm...in the words of Leonardo Di Caprio from Django...I think I had your curiosity..and now I have your attention..So in pure comic book style lemme say..Shall we begin..

First of all lemme apologize for being too lazy to have not posted a list since last few Wednesdays coz honestly even though I had good ideas..nothing was really getting me fired up..and now that I can hardly wait for Man of Steel to release on Friday..I think this list would be a nice build up to it..

First of all-

Honorable exceptions- Even before Nolan entered the game or we saw the Sam Raimi Spiderman and the X-men movies...in 1989..Warner Bros. gave a young Tim Burton a chance to make a movie based on the Caped Crusader...many of you wont know or remember or have probably seen it on TV but the 1989 Batman was actually a hit...the second superhero movie to strike gold at the box office...(first was Superman in 1978..starring Christopher Reeve..and the script was written by Mario Puzo btw)..the movie starred Jack Nicholson as the Joker and Micheal Keaton as Bruce Wayne/ Batman..did you not read/care/understand a word after I typed ‘Jack Nicholson as the Joker’... for anyone who actually cares or disagrees with me..if you have seen this movie then let me tell you...Micheal Keaton was a douchebag...look at him-

In what way does he appear even capable of being one of the richest most powerful man in the world and also a secret vigilante who beats up criminals at night ( ok he did a better job than Val Kilmer or George Clooney who later on almost killed Bruce Wayne)..even though the movie is not bad...even in retrospect after watching the Nolan trilogy..it still is kinda boring...not only because choosing an aging unfit not even slightly intimidating Michael Keaton in the lead role..it’s also because honestly Tim Burton (in case you don’t know..thats the guy who made the new Alice in wonderland or Charlie and the Chocolate factory...or any weird dark comic movie starring Johnny Depp in a weirdly funny role)...is not that good a director..he has made some good movies..but honestly I don’t think making a superhero movie is his mainstay..the only reason the movie doesn't suck is of course Jack Nicholson as Joker..its Jack Nicholson in the role of a psychopathic violent criminal..there was no way Nicholson was gonna mess this up...he probably didn't even know he was being filmed. Anyways, Batman was a good movie...certainly better than the Joel Schumacher rape of batman called Batman Forever and Batman and Robin which would almost kill the franchise in the years to come...but certainly not good enuff to be in this list.

Another movie or set of movies that were good but not good enuff are the original Superman movies..lemme say before someone gets started about how good they were...just because you are nostalgic about something doesn’t mean its actually good..its just that you share a memory with it thats all...nothing more need be said.

Superman spinning the earth in the opposite direction to revive a dead Lois Lane is just dumb..I mean even as a kid I thought it was dumb..that being said..these are not bad movies..its not like its Phantom or the Erica Bana/Ang Lee Hulk. The movie had some great actors first and it was the first time you saw Superman on screen..even though the movies suffered from lack of SFX technology...it still had its heart in its place at least until the first 2 parts...and also it had the iconicSuperman theme by John Williams.

Honorable Mentions- Now that the honourable exceptions are out of the way, let me get to the honorable mentions..movies that cudn’t make it to the list because its a Top 5 list and not a Top 10 one- Xmen 1 and 2..Thor..and I would reveal others but that would mean revealing all other superhero movies except my top 5...so here it goes.

#5- Spiderman

It was when I was probably 10 or 12 and I remember watching Spiderman in theatre...The Spiderman movies starring Tobey Maguire and Directed by Sam Raimi probably gave birth to the modern Superhero blockbuster movies. Seeing Spiderman swinging from webs for the first time on screen was a wonderfully entertaining experience. Although 2 and 3 were progressively uninteresting..the first one was a pretty fun movie...especially the comic moments...the thrilling action scenes...and ok fuck that..as a teenage kid the best thing you remember about this movie is –

 Jokes apart it was a pretty decent movie...may not be a great work of art..but it has to remembered as the first superhero movie of the modern era.

#4 The Avengers

Marvel comics took almost 5 years to build up to this gigantic never before seen concept of a movie...Marvel actually created their own cinematic universe..starting with Iron man 1..then Captain America..Incredible Hulk (not the Eric Bana one..this one is entertaining... its the one starring Ed Norton)..Thor and finally Iron man 2.  Every movie left a clue for the next one in a post credits scene for the next movie to come...which has now become a Marvel Trademark and was an interesting gamble which paid off for fans and the company.

Bringing 6 superheroes on-screen together could have been a disaster if not for the brilliant direction of Joss Whedon...Whedon not only kept the characters relevant but the tone of the movie had trademark Whedonesque humour.. who doesn’t remember the scene where Hulk tosses around Loki like a Dhobi washing clothes on Dhobi ghat.

If not for anything else, the movie is worth the final showdown in Manhattan.

#3 X-men First class

Just to quell your confusion..no this is not the first part of X-men trilogy starring Hugh Jackman and others. This movie might come as a surprise entry to many people...X-men first class tells the story of how mutants and humans struggle started through two characters who would later decide the fate of the X-men universe...Professor Charles X Xavier and Eric Lensherr aka Magneto.

The movie has a good layered storyline as to how humans would deal with the discovery of mutants amongst them. It is set in the 1960’s and the political scenario of the cold war serves as a crucial backdrop to the story. The movie is very emotional and allows time for character development but is never boring and has a some pretty thrilling action sequences. Also, the soul of the movie is the bromance (honestly thats a word) between Prof Charles and Magneto...best of friends who would later stand on the opposite sides of a war merely because of their conflicting philosophies. If you haven’t seen this movie yet..please do..its a great introduction to the X-men universe.

#2 Watchmen

No its not Watchman...its Watchmen...I get it if you don’t know this movie..it wasn't that big in India..am not sure if it was even released here. Watchmen is based on a graphic novel of the same name by one of the greatest comic book writers of all time Alan Moore. Once you have watched all kinds of superhero movies, you have got to watch Watchmen. It is the ultimate de-construction of the whole concept of a hero and the price we are willing to pay to save people. The depth of the characters and the story is astonishing.

People tend to criticize Zack Snyder as just a flashy stylish director who made 300 and Sucker Punch style movies. But Watchmen was the real test of his skills coz Watchmen was originally written in the 1980’s and was for many years thought as unfilmable. Snyder through his style keeps the movie interesting yet manages to make you think about the basic concept of the word –hero. No wonder he was given a chance to direct Man of Steel.

#1......

Did you for a moment really think that any movie from The Dark Knight trilogy will not feature in this list?...how could you?!!...I promised the movies are not the top 3 movies..coz (not to sound like a cop-out)..they are all at number one. Actually they deserve a separate rating-

Batman Begins- best superhero origin movie ever

The Dark Knight Rises- Best conclusion to a trilogy ever.

The Dark Knight – Best movie ever. (sincere apologies to Don Vito) 

No discussions no debates..I could go on about all these 3 movies forever.. I can honestly write a thesis on these movies (and am gonna...) the Dark Knight Trilogy is just the best...for the sheer vision of bringing the whole concept of a leather clad guy in a bat mask relatable to the point of praying like little kids for him during the third movie...for the sheer balls of turning the superhero concept into a work of art...for the buzzing intensity that Nolan brought to the very concept of superhero.

The acting...the cast...the script...the dialogue...Hans Zimmer’s awesome music score...it’s just magnificent.

It’s no secret that am a Nolan fan-boy..but the greatest compliment I can pay to the Dark Knight Trilogy is that as a kid I was of course a Superman fan...as a teen I was a Spiderman fan..I had never liked Batman too much..he was always too boring..and this was true for many people..and now he has become a benchmark..a blue print on which we judge all other superheroes. 

Man of Steel (originally published in June 2014)

This is gonna be a long review because its the most awaited movie of the year

Director -Zack Snyder 
Cast- Henry Cavill, Michael Shannon Amy Adams, Kevin Costner, Diane Lane, Russel Crowe, Lawrence Fishburne and Others
Soundtrack by - Hans Zimmer (have to mention the guy specially)

Did you know that scientists have recently discovered that under some rocks on the distant moon of Saturn called Titan, there actually lives a species of bacteria..and that this bacteria might some day evolve into complex organisms..and also that when these bacteria reproduce the first thing that their little ones want to be is Superman...really long joke I know..but you get the point. If you have ever been a kid in the last 70 years then you have surely wanted to fly or shoot lasers out of your eyes or have X ray vision (come on, you definitely wanted that!)..we owe all this to Superman.
Superman is the great grand daddy of all superheroes..I mean the very concept of a man who could do something more than the ordinary..the origin of the word 'super'- hero is Superman. There have been many heroes before him and many after...Spiderman is your teenage superhero...Batman is the adult favorite (thanks also majorly to the Nolan treatment)...but good ol Supe's is for all ages..you might have an old uncle who may think Batman was a man with Bat-like powers, but show him an 'S' in the diamond-like shape and even he will recognize it.
Having said all that, we have never had a Superman movie which did equally awesome justice to the character. The first Superman movie (1978) was actually not so bad..but you do have to recognize the technical restrictions of those times and also that Chris Nolan and Zack Snyder were kids back then. Yes my friends...happy with the success of the The Dark Knight Trilogy, Warner bros/DC comics kinda made Chris Nolan the creative head of all their superhero movies..a bit like how Joss Whedon is the godfather of the Marvel movie universe after The Avengers. So when I heard that Chris Nolan is about to be the executive producer of a reboot of Superman.I was like yeah!...then I heard David Goyer (the guy who worked on the scripts of TDK trilogy with the Nolan Bros.) I was like yeah!!..and that Hans Zimmer (the composer for the TDK trilogy and the sherlock holmes movies and many more) I was like YEAH!!!!..and then I heard that Zack Snyder (director of 300 and Watchmen..my second fav director of the modern generation) was gonna direct it..then I was like..when do the bookings open?!!!..and I waited for many many months more so than any movie that I have waited for since TDKR and is it worth it....
Of course it is!..see the basic problem with Superman is even though he is a recognizable character world over its hard to tell his story..'cause you know...he is Super..he is perfect...he is the ultimate strong man and good guy and stories of guys this perfect kinda tend to be boring. Now, Spiderman has his growing up issues..Batman is a hero who basically finds his origins in trauma and psychological issues...the Hulk has anger-management problems..Tony Stark has money women and all kinds of gadgets..therefore they are relatable..humans with the same problems like us but who do extra-ordinary things...The problem with Superman is that he is not human..he is an alien.and hence even though its fun to see him do the things he does its difficult to relate to him through an entire story..as there is no internal conflict. Am not saying that an alien who can fly and who grew up among us should have a deep identity crisis because it would rob the fun out of him..but it would make him much more relatable as a character to see if he also problems like we do..even if can lift a truck, he also has issues to deal with. And for all the fans of the old Superman movies, this was what was lacking in them...so who better to do that than the man who specializes in taking fantastical concepts and bringing them to a believable level..coupled with a man whose visual style and artistic flair is unparalleled in current cinema. You have the right mix of seriousness and fun there.
And boy does the mix work well...if any of you don't know the basic Superman lore yet..this is the movie to watch..the movie begins on the doomed world of Krypton (Kal-el/Superman's original home)..when Kal-el is just a baby..Now I wont spoil the plot for those who dont already know (duh!)...but Kal-el ends up on earth and is raised by Jonathan and Martha Kent..who later on discovers his powers..also he finds out that he is not the only Kryptonian alive.
Hats off to script writer David Goyer, Nolan and Zack for showing us that growing up as a kid with super-powers isn't as super..learning that you have X-ray vision or enhanced senses isn't exactly a pleasant experience...Also I love the part where Clark learns to fly..he grew up on a farm in Kansas..its not like he is gonna get it right in one go. Kevin Costner plays Kal-el/Clark Kent's father and he is Clark's voice of reason. The moments between him and Clark are really very heart-warming..especially the way he tries to understand Clark and also guides him about using his abilities. Diane Lane as Martha Kent does a very good job too. The best part about Clark's growing up is that its shown in flashbacks..so that it doesn't really mess with the pace of the story nor does it cut short the really humanizing aspects of the story. And on the same point, the only gripe I have about this movie is the pacing..it kinda feels like the emmotion is in the first half and action in the second..I said kinda but not exactly...at a moment when Kal-el discovers his powers..you are left wondering as to where the movie would go now..I mean wondering not in a good way..you are kinda clueless...but then comes the now famous-creepy message from General Zod (played psychotically well by Micheal Shannon) 'You are not Alone'.

Lois Lane played by Amy Adams..does really well..and contrary to many reviews I found her chemistry with Kal-el to be pretty good...their chemistry does set up to develop nicely in the second part. Russel Crowe as Jor-el is great and you can see how Kal-el develops his strong moral code in presence of  father figures like Jonathan Kent and Jor-el. And the cherry on the cape (no that's not a misprint..it might be a misfired pun)..is Henry Cavill..he kills it as the Man of Steel...the right amount of vulnerability..controlled aggression..almost saintly way of looking at normal humans..he might not be as heart warming as Christopher Reeve..but he does add real depth to the character ...and in a movie trying to be an intense re-boot, it was what was desperately needed.
And if you have noticed..since I started actually talking about the movie and its plot...I have hardly used the word 'Superman' to refer to the character. You know why, its because the name is hardly mentioned in the movie..and this is the Chris Nolan/David Goyer touch. This is the kind of realistic touch they can bring to an otherwise fantastical concept. If you happen to remember, the character of Anne Hathaway in TDKR was actually of Catwoman from the comic books..but she was never referred to by that name. Batman only adopts that name because he wants to become a symbol, an idea. Merely by not referring to a character by its comic book name brings the character closer to reality. They did the same thing with Superman..because if you think about it..if you were an alien and you were dead serious on saving the world by trying to be as quiet about it as possible..you certainly wouldn't name yourself something as gaudy as 'Superman'..it would be a title someone else gives you. and this works in this movie as well. Also, another Nolan/ Goyer touch you might have noticed is that the movie wasn't titled Superman..just like the The Dark Knight..it was titled Man of Steel..to show that its much more than a mere comic book movie.
And where does the Zack Snyder touch come in...well...firstly you must know Zack Snyder is a very visual director. He deals with action in a very very stylized almost poetic manner. 300 is a great example...he even made an entirely movie out of elaborately poetic action sequences called Sucker Punch...he made owls..yes owls look badass fighters in The Owls of Ga'hoole (really underrated movie..great for kids too..please watch it)..Zack Snyder can make anything look badass..yet imbibe it with spirit as well...Do You remember the climax of Matrix Revolutions where Neo fights a kazillion Agent Smiths in an epic finale..which has them blowing through buildings..and do you remember the invasion of Manhattan from the Avengers where 6 superheroes come together and one of them is a Hulk (of course you do)...well, those sequences look like a trailer to what you'll encounter in the last 40-45 minutes of this movie. I mean this is an answer to all those people who say Nolan-like movies lack action and fun.
I picture it like this..Chris Nolan and David Goyer said to Snyder.."Look Zack, we are gonna allow the first half for character development and setting up the story...and in the last act...just do what you love...go crazy"...and crazy he goes..each punch each thrown car..Superman's sound barrier breaking flight..all the action its just so epic!! Though for some people it might be one action sequence too many..believe me..even if you don't care about the movie or the depth or the acting or Zimmer's awesome awesome awesome (again not a typo) background score..this movie is just paisa-vasool even merely for the action.

My Rating is - Its Superrific!! ( as if it was gonna get anything less than this)

PS- ok here is a riddle for you- A child sent from the heavens by his father to bring hope to humanity..he is raised by parents who are not his actual parents..the child learns that he can perform miracles..and is scared and terrified..he roams the earth for many years gaining wisdom.. his fathers spirit tells him of his true destiny...and he comes back a Messiah for his people..who am I talking about...Jesus or Superman?...if you are surprised to note the similarities then you are not alone...Parallels are often being drawn between Jesus and Superman..just search the net..damn fun to read.

PS 2- WARNING MILD SPOILERS- had to get this one in..because as much as you are hoping to see a Marvel comic movie like post-credit scene that might lead to a Justice League movie or a special appearance from the Batman..sadly its not there..but there are two clues about the sequel to Man of Steel..one being that in a scene you can see a Lexcorp building (Lexcorp being the corporation headed by Superman's human arch-enemy Lex Luthor) and also even though I didnt notice it..A satellite destroyed by General Zod belongs to Wayne Enterprises. Lets just hope to good we get to see Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent share screen space at least for a second in the sequel.

Batman V Superman :Dawn of Justice (originally published in March 2016)

Yeahhhhhhhh!!!!!! oh God Yes!!!!!!!!! Fuck yeah!!!!!!!! Freaking amazing!!!!! Woooooohhhhhh!@#!$!!!

That was my reaction just when the movie was announced 2 years ago, so you can pretty much guess how excited I was for the movie itself. Ever since I was a kid and discovered how movies were filmed etc. I had said one thing to myself “So you are telling me that someday in the future I am gonna be able to see Batman and Superman fight on screen?” Yes, 25 or so years waiting for a dream to come true. So if you are expecting a small review, this is the time to walk away.

See there are two types of rivalries, one are the really intense ones like India V Pak or Batman V Joker etc. but here, give or take a few instances, you clearly support one side over the other even though it’s so much of fun to watch these. Then there are rivalries where the sides are so subtly split, the odds so evenly matched, that whichever side you support it is very difficult to define a clear winner or loser. These are the rivalries which become the scope of endless debate and actually valid arguments from both sides- Shiva Vs Vishnu Left Vs Right, Kishore Vs Rafi, Asha Vs Lata, Marvel Vs DC, Stone Cold Vs The Rock and of course, Batman Vs Superman. It is just very difficult to convince any non-fans about how important that last argument is. Because if you have never had a playground debate over who would beat who, then your childhood was a waste of time. People with elder brothers would better understand what I am talking about.

But boyhood debates apart, is it really an argument? A superhero who can burn through steel and survive in space without breathing Vs a billionaire with the most advanced gadgets but a brilliant tactical mind. But it is this very principle of a determined human being fighting against an almost immortal god that makes this eternal debate most interesting. Comic book writers being little boys at heart themselves, have obviously tried to capture this dilemma in multiple storylines but none did it more famously than Frank Miller’s 1986 Batman- the Dark Knight Returns. And this movie borrows heavily from that comic.

Personally, I have only lately become a bigger Batman fan thanks to a certain Mr. Nolan. He made Batman more than just a gadget toting billionaire. He made the Batman stand for something any mature mind can relate to. But think of an 8 year old kid….what does he dream of…the first time any little boy has ever dreamed of becoming a hero…he imagines putting on a red cape, being able to fly freely in the skies…standing with his arms on his waist...proudly bouncing off imaginary bullets….having the strength to punch a monster into the skies…being polite and simple as he fights for truth and justice…I didn’t even have to mention the word Superman there, but your mind filled that in yourself. Superman is so ingrained into our minds, he is the literal grand-daddy of all the superheroes out there. Though there were others before him- Phantom, Flash Gordon, etc. but the very concept of a man who can be more than what we are, is just so linked to Superman since your grandfather’s time that now he is a part of our cultural consciousness. He is a messianic figure, a Jesus metaphor and a symbol of pure hope. An ideal we must all strive to be. And that is why I supported Superman for he is first love for any fan out there. Besides to add it, if he really wanted to, Supes could rip Batman in half and no amount of Kryptonite can help you if someone can drop a comet in the city that you live in :P

But having said that, the reason we love Batman, is because he is human. Because he went through tragedy like most of us and is trying the best he can to deal with the crimes around him. We like him because in a fight against an almost immortal God, he will still take his chance. He will give it a shot because that is what he believes in and hence he earns more respect. 

Taking this deliciously complex and iconic rivalry to the screen was an enormous task on Zack Snyder’s shoulders. Zack Snyder is one of my favourite comic book directors and I do feel he is unfairly criticized at times. The guy has amazing vision and the skills to bring breath-taking visuals to life plus he does action and melodrama well. He is born to direct comic book movies. But because he appears to bring a Hyper real quality, particularly to his action scenes, I believe many mainstream critics don’t take him seriously, criticizing him for apparently lacking substance (whatever the hell that means). After watching Man of Steel, I was convinced Snyder might do a great job with this and when after a few changes, Ben Affleck (a good director and screen writer in his own right) introduced Chris Terrio (screen writer for Argo) to the script writing team, I was thinking to myself that even though DC appears to be in a hurry to introduce all of its Justice League heroes in one movie to catch up with Marvel, this movie might just be good.

Man of Steel was primarily criticized for the civilian damage Superman’s fight with General Zod must have caused when they almost destroy half of Metropolis, although the same is the case with any Superhero movie. The stroke of genius that DC pulled was to take that real life criticism and work it into the movie by having Bruce Wayne being around when the climatic fight in Man of Steel was on. Gotham and Metropolis are almost twin cities and Wayne witnesses one of his offices in Metropolis being destroyed and his employees dying as collateral damage in a fight between two super aliens. This becomes the source of Bruce’s enmity against Superman.

Also, what I loved about the movie’s take on Batman is that they have actually toyed with the idea that Bruce Wayne might have some serious anger management issues. Holy God, if you think the Nolan Batman was dark, this one is fucking demonic. I loved how they really focused on the one aspect of Batman which Nolan movies only hinted at. It is that Batman is out trying to compensate for his anger at not being able to save his parents as a kid. He puts fear into the hearts of criminals, attacks them mercilessly, brands them with his symbol and uses lethal force if necessary to achieve his goals. 20 years of crime fighting in Gotham has made him a ruthless vigilante. Kudos to Ben Affleck for bringing a different violent, volcanic intensity to Batman and to Bruce Wayne.

Jesse Eisenberg as the psychotic but calculating Lex Luthor is actually quite good. In the trailers, I had thought he would go overboard with the psychotic acting, but he just manages to stay in line and shows depth to his character in more than one scene. All the supporting cast including Amy Adams as Lois Lane, Jeremy Irons as Alfred and Diane Lane as Martha Kent are quite brilliant in their roles.

 I must specially mention Gal Gadot portraying Wonder Woman. Now Wonder Woman has got to be the most famous female superhero and even after all these years, we had never ever seen her on screen. Gadot is primarily a model and there were doubts whether she could portray the role well..but wow! does she do really well. What I loved about her short but intensely badass role was that she isn’t portrayed as most other female heroes are- waifishly thin, usually with non-contact powers like magic or something and also being overtly sexualized. There is not one scene, where Wonder Woman is objectified. Also, they took care to get her to have a toned, heavy built. She looks like she could take down 3 or 4 guys easily even without superpowers. Without revealing too much, let me tell you that her fight scenes got an almost bigger roar than Batman or Superman.

Coming to Superman, Henry Cavill takes his role from Man of Steel forward brilliantly and we actually see him becoming Superman we all know gradually. The story is well written to finally portray something which I felt had never been done on screen before- to convey the weight of problems on Superman’s shoulders. To show us that even having all the strength and immortality in this world can’t solve all the problems. It does well to show the politics behind power and how people's perceptions of messianic figures affects our daily lives.

The story moves at a brisk pace and does not have any ‘blank’ moments whatsoever. Although some of the other Justice League references to the Flash (mild spoilers) Aquaman etc. look kinda forced but they are very intriguing, DC doesn’t wait for any post credit revelations like Marvel, they freaking dropped those in the middle of the movie itself. I think personally that's an awesome idea rather than aping Marvel.  Its hard to believe the number of events and the kind of story arcs they managed to cover in a two hour forty minutes movie without it appearing too bloated. This may also be due to the crisp and quotable dialogue. 

Zack Snyder has always been a very visual director and he often uses dream sequences and visions to convey the plight of the characters more than dialogue. Although they are one too many here sometimes, but still they are very aesthetically done. It almost elevates the movie to the kind of superhero movie you have never seen before. Even when the titles open, there is almost no fanfare or highlight when the title of such a big budget movie appears on screen. It just comes and goes non-challantly as if telling us that we know what you came for and the story is more important.

Having said that, don’t worry the action junkie in you will leave thoroughly satisfied. I am a huuuuuuuuuuuge fan of the Nolan movies, but I must admit that the hand to hand combat scenes were not that well done. But that’s not the case here, the action is brutal yet spectacular. There is a fight scene with Batman and some goons in a warehouse which I am telling you is straight up inspired from the Arkham Games. Also, the main fight, the money shot, the central conflict- the Batman v superman fight is just so satisfying. Although it ends the way you would expect it to, but still it is all your money’s worth.

And finally, just have to say that Hans Zimmer and Junkie XL give some of the most epic tunes you will ever hear. A battle as epic as this can only be made more effective through Zimmer's music. 

So all in all, great story, great acting, great music and great action, it is the kinda movie you'll immediately wanna watch again – My Rating is Superrific!

 BATMAN VS SUPERMAN:DAWN OF JUSTICE

DIRECTED BY ZACK SNYDER

CAST- BEN AFFLECK, HENRY CAVILL, GAL GADOT, JEREMY IRONS, AMY ADAMS, JESSE EISENBERG, LAURENCE FISHBURNE, ETC. 

PS- Although, I would love to do a list of easter eggs and references, to reveal any would be to spoil the movie. Just let me tell you, there is a lot of fan service in the movie to satisfy all your nerd urges.