Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

This is the version WB should have released in theaters. Snyder delivers yet another gorgeous movie with a compelling story. Ben Affleck's Batman is easily the best Batman yet and his arc in this movie is fantastic. A political thriller with imperfect heroes. Underrated masterpiece.

Surprisingly, Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice Ultimate Edition manages to fix a lot of the problems with the original version with only half an hour of extra content. It's able to recontextualize the central conflict of the title with added depth and fixes a lot of the plot holes.

It also comes to a more satisfying conclusion due to great callbacks to previously unseen characters and is allowed to be more mature by being able to show more of the violence rather than hide from it or edit it out. Additionally, seeing more of Henry Cavill's Superman saving people is always welcome.

Not all of the problems are fixed as the unnecessarily destructive third act is obviously still present as is the forced franchise set-up that still feels very clunky. Ben Affleck's portrayal of Batman is still excellent but the increased violence makes him killing even more distracting.

Thank God this is up for rating. Avoid the theatrical cut. This is the director's intent. I still remember being in the theaters waiting for a World's Finest movie. I got something so much more. I'd have to wait for this edition however to come out on blu-ray but it changed all the issues I had with the theater cut experience. The reason we got the Snyder cut movement was because of this. We knew the studio tampered with an epic vision. If you want the true Ultimate experience watch this back to back with Man of Steel and Zack Snyder's Justice League.

After I saw the original theatrical cut opening night, I was conflicted. I knew I still liked it but couldn't tell how much. So I watched it again that weekend. Upon my second viewing I realized I liked it a lot and gave it an 8. Still a great, although misunderstood, film. It made me think, feel, and had my favorite Batman and Superman in it (with an awesome Wonder Woman too).

When this Ultimate Edition came out though, I had to buy it and watch it right away. I was blown away. It was actually better than the theatrical cut! And seeing it several times over the years, this film has become even better than the day it released. In my opinion it is one of the most interesting, thoughtful, emotional, and beautiful superhero movies ever created. I can honestly say it changed my life, and I will always defend it.

No idea why this page still has such bad reviews, even after we have the extended cut. The theatrical cut really doesn't do it justice. Absolutely loved the movie, beautiful cinema!