Batman vs. Superman
Prior to watching this film, there had been many negative reviews with Batman vs Superman that most people I knew already had a preconception that it was going to be ‘long and boring’. My experience of the film was quite the contrary. Packed with lots of action from laser beam eyes to a futuristically armoured bat suit, the film had a poised balance between action and fascinating on set toys like the nearly indestructible bat mobile; every little boy’s dream! The film portrayed a very real struggle in Gotham City with the presence of Superman, who possesses God-like attributes that distinguishes him from the crowd. Centered around the society’s willingness to accept him or lack of were key focal points of the film. The movie does invoke thoughts about where good virtues reside in a person; and if they do, for how long? The length of the film was just right for me. This movie had to build a converging narrative between two titans of power to forge a cohesive and interesting storyline. I felt the length of the movie helped do this. We learned early on that Batman is scarred by the loss of his parents in a fatal robbery that left him orphaned and Superman shares a similar path, being an orphaned child of Krypton on Earth, trying to find purpose with his powers. The weakest part of the film where it lacked substance was where Batman and Superman found middle ground in their battle against one another. A large part of the movie built up to their battle but can a truce really be called in an epic fight on the premise that both superheroes’ mothers shared the same name? From here on, the movie takes a turn to fighting a mutated Kryptonian beast which we all knew how it was going to end. Gotham City is saved but Superman dies… Or does he? Overall, a 3/5 for me. This movie does deserve credit where it’s due. A better climax could’ve been developed but oh well, perhaps the subsequent movies should make up for this if a sequel is produced.
The Huntsman
Though Chicago has been freed from the tyranny of Jeanine’s rule (Played by Kate Winslet), however, all is not well. Our main character Tris, portrayed by Shailene Woodley, desperately wants to follow the message which played after the box was opened- as shown on Insurgent, and now wants to go outside the wall. But it wont be easy for her and her team, although they’ll find a way,even though Evelyn (Naomi Watts) has decided that no one gets to go outside the wall. And when they made it outside the wall, matters beyond the wall won’t be quite what she expects. Tris Prior was yet again being paraded around as “special”. This time, according to David (Jeff Daniels), the head of the Bureau of Genetic Warfare, she wasn’t just divergent, but “pure”. As a result of her genetic purity, as well as the favoritism she received from David, caused a rift between her and Four/Tobias Eaton (Theo James) as their relationship hit a snag. The conflict stemmed from Tris’ trust in David, while Tobias was increasingly distrustful of not only David but also the Bureau of Genetic Warfare as a whole. There was, I must admit, a powerful moment when Tobias urged Tris not to follow David, and Tris looked him in the eye and refused, defiantly going along with David. It revealed Tris’ independence and willpower and despite the fact that she ended up being wrong, we couldn’t help but admire her strong will. The director, Robert Schwentke, has listened to the criticism about Insurgent to some extent. He ameliorates upon the previous installment and the end result is a surprisingly entertaining film. The visual effects department truly outdid themselves on this one through awesome little touches that took some of the effects to a new level. The visual effects and action sequences are well realized and some are quite innovative and refreshing. However, plot-wise there is not much development but it is still an improvement over Insurgent. In terms of characters arc, we have more or less the same people in the beginning and in the end. Tris is still the only person who can save the world through her heroic acts and Four is still the person she’s romantically involved with. Although in saying that, both Woodley and James did a commendable job portraying their respective characters. Allegiant leaves the viewer satisfied but also despondent to an extent. Having seriously diverged from the source material, the film leaves you wondering what will happen in the next one considering there is nothing much left from the book for Ascendant.
