Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is a film that serves as a sequel to 2013's Man of Steel. It's the second film to star Henry Cavill as Superman and the first film to star Ben Affleck as Batman. Man of Steel quickly became one of the most divisive films in superhero history. Did adding Batman as a co-protagonist help the sequel avoid the same fate? No. Batman v Superman is yet another film that got very mixed reactions from audiences. Most critics didn't like the film, but other people were split on it. Some people thought it was an amazing continuation of what was started in Man of Steel, but other people thought that the film was a confusing disaster that failed to give justice to the two titular heroes. In fact, some people consider Batman v Superman to be one of the worst superhero films of all time.

I believe that Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is a film that has a number of good elements. Like in Man of Steel, Henry Cavill proves that he is full of charm and presence. Ben Affleck had a lot of great actors to live up to, but he proved himself as an actor capable of playing Batman. Jesse Eisenberg's a lot of fun as Lex Luthor. In a film that's so dark and dour, Lex Luthor provides a lot of entertainment, especially in the scene where he's playing around with Jolly Ranchers. Jeremy Irons gives an excellent, scene-stealing performance as Alfred Pennyworth. Like in the previous film, the action scenes look amazing. Superman and Batman's big fight scene is one of the most exciting battles in superhero film history. Zack Snyder proved that he knew how to deliver fantastic action scenes for Superman. This film proves that he can do the same thing for Batman.

Man of Steel did a very good job when it came to delivering an exciting tale of good vs. evil, but it was lacking the warmth and optimism of Superman. Batman v Superman continues the trend of this reboot lacking the morality of Superman. One of the first scenes in the film shows that Superman's fight with Zod from Man of Steel caused several innocent people to lose their lives. Superman's recklessness did a lot of damage, so Batman starts to believe that Superman is too dangerous to live. Superman is known for being one of the most inspirational, likable superheroes of all time. The original George Reeves series, the Christopher Reeve films, and various cartoons all prove this, but Batman v Superman does not. This film's Superman is a massive brooder. He sees lots of bad things going on around him. Instead of being proactive, he spends a lot of time making gloomy expressions. Superman has a limited amount of dialogue in the film, because he spends a lot of scenes looking displeased. When he does speak, he doesn't have very uplifting things to say. Superman is known for standing for truth and justice, but this film's Superman has dialogue like this:

"Nobody stays good in this world."

"I'm taking you and breaking you, which is more than you deserve."

"Stay down! If I wanted it, you'd be dead already."

There's also this awkward exchange between Superman and Batman:

Superman: "The next time they shine your signal in the sky, don't go. The bat is dead. Buried. Consider this mercy."

Batman: "Tell me. Do you bleed? You will!"

Batman, a character who is known for not murdering people, decides to steal Kryptonite from Lex Luthor, so he can build a Kryptonite spear and stab Superman to death. That might sound like something Batman would never do. The real Batman would never do something like this. However, this film takes Batman is a cynical, dark direction. Batman usually tries to avoid killing criminals, but this film's version of Batman is about as reckless as this film's Superman. Batman leads several criminals to death. He even causes a guy with a flamethrower to burn to death. Also, Batman starts branding his symbol on criminals. This starts being used as a death sentence for criminals.

It has been pointed out that Batman used to carry around a gun in his early comics. However, when Bill Finger realized that kids were reading the comics, Bill Finger re-tooled Batman into a more selfless hero that could be a positive role-model for the readers. This film directly goes against what Bill Finger was trying to do. He wanted to make Batman a character that kids could look up to. This film's Batman is a violent, destructive, toxic person. This film was actually the first live-action Batman film to give Bill Finger credit for co-creating Batman. I certainly appreciate Bill Finger getting some credit, but I believe that he would not be happy with how the film turned out.

Clark's Earth father, Jonathan Kent, was a terrible role-model in Man of Steel. Even after dying, he continues having a toxic influence on his son. In a dream sequence, Jonathan tells Clark a story about how he once tried to do something heroic, but it ended in failure. His story serves as a warning about the dangers of trying to do the right thing. His story is the opposite of a speech of wisdom. Instead, it's another excuse for this reboot's unlikable version of Jonathan to give more terrible advice. Clark's Earth mother, Martha Kent, is also bad at giving Clark words of motivation. Instead of telling her son to go out and help people, she tells him that the people of Earth don't owe him anything. Most of the characters in Batman v Superman act toxic. The only ones who don't are Wonder Woman, Lois Lane and Alfred Pennyworth.

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is a film that's packed with some of the most exciting action scenes in the history of superhero films. It's a very well-acted film that's also a lot of fun to watch whenever Lex Luthor is in the film. However, the film makes both Batman and Superman look like reckless, violent anti-heroes. It's too bad that we never got a Batman/Superman team-up film that starred Adam West and Christopher Reeve. A film like that could have been the wonderful, heroic crossover that Batman and Superman deserved. When it comes to thrilling visuals, Batman v Superman succeeds in stylish fashion. However, when it comes to representing the moral values that Batman and Superman stand for, this film falls flat. If you want to an action-packed spectacle, this film is worth a watch. However, if you're looking for an inspirational, uplifting film, I recommend going back and watching older Superman and Batman films.