Having “Batman v. Superman” released on Good Friday is no coincidence. You can say that it was faith because Superman (Henry Cavill) has always been considered a god who came to Earth not to be served but to serve joy, hope, truth, justice, and the American Way. Batman (Ben Affleck), though, doesn’t think so because he believes the angelic Man of Steel will one day become the most powerful tyrannical dictator in the world, as his “Mad Max”-like nightmare illustrates. Batman, nevertheless, has served the people of Gotham, but now thinks of himself as the criminals he’s fighting for almost two decades. Why? Because Batman is technically a criminal: a vigilante, in which Superman agrees.
If the Son of Krypton/Man of Steel is a god, then does that make the Son of Gotham/Bat of Gotham a “devil”? Batman – and the world – are worried of the potential danger that Superman can represent ever since his arrival that led to mass destruction and millions of lives loss in the aftermath of the Man of Steel’s battle with General Zod. So, Superman becomes the hunted to the masked manhunter called Batman.
But who’s the saint? Who’s the sinner? What real truth that hasn’t dawned on Superman and Batman yet is the real devil lurking underneath: Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg), who we really hate yet love in promoting and setting up this big superhero fight between yin and yang … but the real darkness is called Doomsday.
“Dawn of Justice” gave us an angel in the form of Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) that Superman and Batman finds intriguing – especially Batman, the dark avenging angel that is definitely living the billionaire playboy decadence as Bruce Wayne. If Batman is the father, if Superman is the son (though Superman came out a year before Batman, and maybe older than Batman), then Wonder Woman is the spirit of this trinity who will one day bring the Flash (Ezra Miller), Aquaman (Jason Momoa), and Cyborg (Ray Fisher) together to become a light of the world. That light is called the Justice League.
“Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice”? Not a complete yawn.