Batman v Superman Released 10 Years Ago Today – 3 Things That’ve Aged Like a Fine Wine & 3 Aged Like Milk

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Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice debuted in theaters on March 25, 2016, and here are three things that aged like fine wine since its release, and three things that continue to look bad and have aged like milk over the decade since.

6) Batman’s Blind Aggression Aged Like Milk

There are several fans of Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice who love the idea of a grim-dark Batman murdering bad guys without a care in the world. However, seeing Batman just straight-up killing people has never been a good look, and it really goes against everything he has ever stood for. Yes, this was a version of Batman from a world where he had almost given up, but it is in no way the heroic Batman from DC Comics.

However, even worse than Batman killing bad guys without a care is Batman deciding that he needs to murder Superman, who has done nothing wrong. The idea of Batman deciding that an alien deserves to die just because he isn’t from here, and just because he has powers, is a terrible look. That blind idea that he has to kill Earth’s most honorable hero “just in case” has aged like milk. Batman is a pure villain for most of this movie.

5) Wonder Woman Aged Like Fine Wine

Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice was the first appearance of Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman in the DCEU, and it was a fantastic entrance for the warrior. When Wonder Woman showed up to the fight, she came out with her sword and her fury and stood tall beside the two DC megastars. In some ways, she outshone both of them.

While Superman spent his debut movie, Man of Steel, trying to figure out his place in the world, and Batman spent his first appearance in this movie trying to murder another superhero, Wonder Woman showed up as the beacon of what a hero is supposed to look like. This led to her solo movie, which remains the best movie in the DCEU, and Wonder Woman’s debut is as great today as it was a decade ago.

4) The Bloated Movie Aged Like Milk

Forget about all the problems of the storyline in Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice. The biggest problem in this movie, and the thing that has aged the worst, was that it was over-bloated. This movie didn’t tell one story; it squeezed two giant DC stories into one movie’s running time, and that didn’t allow either of the stories to shine at all. This film was Batman vs. Superman, and it was also The Death of Superman.

The movie spent a lot of time leading up to the Batman and Superman fight, but then it clearly had to end so they could go fight Lex Luthor and save both Lois Lane and Martha Kent. However, it then squeezed in Doomsday into the ending and had that climactic battle, which saw Superman sacrifice himself to save the world. This movie shortchanged Doomsday like no other, and it completely ruined the Death of Superman storyline. This should have been two separate movies, but seeing what happened after Justice League might explain why Zack Snyder crammed everything he could into one movie.

3) Superman’s Sacrifice Aged Like Fine Wine

While the battle with Doomsday and the Death of Superman storyline should have been a second movie, when it happened was still satisfying. Batman had spent much of the movie trying to kill Superman for being a threat to the planet, despite having no evidence that this was anywhere near the truth. Superman wanted to save everyone he could, which was his main story arc since Man of Steel.

When Superman knew he had to make the ultimate sacrifice to save Batman, Wonder Woman, and everyone he loved in the world, he didn’t hesitate. Superman’s death was an emotional moment and one that worked well to end this movie. It might have been even better if it had happened in an actual Death of Superman movie instead of shoehorning it in here, but it was still a quality moment.

2) Jessie Eisenberg’s Lex Luthor Aged Like Milk

Jessie Eisenberg is a great actor, and he has proven that in several roles over his career. However, he was severely miscast in Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice. Eisenberg was over the top, completely unhinged, and delivered a fun performance in the movie, but he was not Lex Luthor. In the end, it is unclear who he was supposed to be because this wasn’t Lex from the comics or the world of movies and TV.

Gene Hackman was nothing like Lex Luthor from the comics, but he was still closer to the character than whatever Eisenberg was doing here. Michael Rosenbaum was a perfect Lex Luthor, and more recently, Nicholas Hoult really delivered a brilliant performance of a young Lex Luthor, channeling a lot from Rosenbaum’s performance. Eisenberg’s Lex Luthor curdled like old milk the second the movie hit theaters.

1) Batman Realizing He Is The Villain Aged Like Fine Wine (Although ‘Martha’ Is Still Groan-Inducing)

Batman trying to kill Superman for being a superpowered alien was a terrible story decision. The entire scene where Superman said “Save Martha” and Batman demanded to know why he said that name was cringeworthy in all the worst ways. However, while that scene was terrible in the movie, it did something that actually worked very well. The “Martha” moment is when Batman realized he was the villain in this story.

Batman realized when he heard the name and understood that Superman’s mother was also named Martha that Clark Kent was as “human’ as anyone else there. It was an important moment because Batman realized he had become a murderer and almost stepped over the line that would make him no better than Joker, Bane, or any other villain he had fought to stop over the years. “Martha” was a poorly done scene in Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice, but it was a massively important moment in Batman’s character arc, and aged like fine wine because it forced him to become a hero once again.

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