The Batman (title confirmed by Ben Affleck… though he did say he may change it) is coming (in 18 months if you believe Random WB Exec #52)! Written by an Academy Award winning writer (Affleck) and directed by & starring the director and star (Affleck!) of the Academy Award winning film Argo, The Batman is DC’s best chance at finally knocking a DC Extended Universe movie out of the park! In addition to cinema’s greatest Batman actor (AFFLECK!), we know The Batman features Deathstroke (Joe Manganiello), my favorite version of Alfred Pennyworth (Jeremy Irons), and Commissioner Jim Gordon (J.K. Simmons).
I’ve already made a list of “5 Batman Villains New to Cinema I DO want to See in The Batman” – Part 1 and Part 2 – but now I’ve deemed it necessary to list 5 Batman Characters I DON’T want to see in the film.
5. CATWOMAN
In both the films and the comics, Catwoman is played out. She is not be the only prominent character who’s had more than one cinematic go-around (Harvey Dent/Two-Face has had 3 cinematic incarnations, if you count Billy Dee Williams’ 5 minutes as Dent in Batman), but we have seen her four (4!) times: Adam West’s Batman, Batman Returns, Catwoman, The Dark Knight Rises. Making matters worse, the latest version (Anne Hathaway) was forgettable, incorrectly characterized, and poorly used overall. “Don’t you want to see her done right?” you may ask. “No, not this character.”
In addition to being the most used big screen Batman villain, Catwoman/Selina Kyle has a relationship with Batman/Bruce Wayne far too complex and impossible to shoehorn in unless she gets about half the screen-time. Michelle Pfeiffer had more screen-time than perhaps even Michael Keaton, crushing both identities and her relationship with Batman in Batman Returns. There are much better female characters to use, like Poison Ivy. I hope she shows up eventually!
4. HARLEY QUINN
No, this isn’t a sexist list. In fact, it’s the opposite, as the two female characters are not among the three I want to see the least! The three I really don’t want to see are all total bros.
We’ve seen what was basically a Harley Quinn movie in Suicide Squad. And according to WB, we’re getting a Harley Quinn solo movie down the line, with Margot Robbie returning to star as Quinn, and the possibility of a focus on female characters like Poison Ivy, Catwoman, Batgirl, etc. There is already plenty of Harley Quinn to come in the DCEU, so why waste The Batman‘s running-time with her? Like with Catwoman, do something new!
Most importantly, I don’t want The Batman turned into a bloody Hot Topic commercial. The costume designer behind Suicide Sqaud should be fired.Or given a bigger budget?
3. NIGHTWING / ANY Other “Bat Family” Member
Batman will have spent plenty of time with allies by the time we get to The Batman. He worked with Superman and Wonder Woman in the climax of Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice and he’s just one in a crowd of several more powerful heroes in 2017’s Justice League. He already has the required Gordon and Alfred on his side. While I wouldn’t mind adding Harvey Dent (the DA, not the criminal boss) as a supporting character, I want to see Batman physically fight crime on his own for the first time in the DCEU. Leave the team-ups to the multiple Justice League movies they will make.
I don’t want to see ANYONE from the Bat Family which includes Batgirl, Batwoman, multiple Robins, etc. Among the two most likely to show up, is Dick Grayson aka Nightwing. Grayson was Batman’s 1st Robin, who upon growing up adopted his own title, Nightwing, both striking out on his own and assisting Batman when he needs it. Zack Snyder already confirmed the Robin Costume we see in BvS is Jason Todd’s (more on him next), but in the comics, before Tood came Grayson. The DCEU will hopefully be simplified, eliminating Grayson all together, making Jason Todd the only Robin referenced in these movies.
2. RED HOOD / ANY version of Jason Todd
I just don’t want these movie to get crowded with too much history and complicated relationships!
In the comics, Jason Todd was the 2nd Robin, only to be murdered by the Joker.Through the magic of comic books, Todd came back with a vendetta against Batman, pissed Batman continues to not kill Joker & other villains even though Joker murdered him. He fights crime and wants the Joker’s head, but Red Hood and Batman do not see eye-to-eye; Red Hood using guns to kill villains and Batman usually doesn’t like guns.
In Batman V Superman, we saw Jason Todd’s Robin costume, with “Ha-Ha Joke’s On You Batman!” spray painted on it, memorialized in the Batcave. Suicide Squad delivered a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it Easter Egg confirming Harley Quinn herself may have done the act in the DCEU. Leave it at that! No flash-backs to Todd and Batman fighting crime, and no appearance of Red Hood, who needs a movie dedicated to him alone IF we do ever see him (I hope we won’t). And, for God’s Sake, no weird mash-up character revealing Deathstroke is Jason Todd. Yuck!
1. Jared Letos’ JOKER
I don’t like this version of the Joker, I just don’t. I don’t like the Gangster angle and Jared Leto made the strangest choices. They were brave, like Heath Ledger’s, but it backfired for Leto. Normally I would say the Joker should be in at least one of each Batman Actor’s films, but honestly, I never want to see Jared Leto’s Joker in the DCEU ever again.
Is it too late to recast the role? If we could get Walton Goggins involved, I say we give his Joker ALL the screen time! Just look at the dude laugh! (For examples of him playing a laughing psychopath, watch American Ultra or Vice Principals.)
Best part is, about half the pictures on Google Images are of Goggins laughing.
Consider it, DC?
Strange would work particularly well with Deathstroke. Deathstroke’s origin could be tweaked so he is less a mercenary and more a product of Hugo Strange’s hypnosis and obsession, just like Night-Scourge. Or, if Strange is head of Arkham in the DCEU, he could also be responsible for releasing Deathstroke to do his dirty work. It would be fun to watch a movie where there is the actual threat of Batman’s secret identity going public, and, if Deathstroke had said information it would make him an even bigger threat for the Dark Knight.
The Court of Owls were introduced as one of the first villains in 2011’s premiere of DC Comics’ “Reboot,” The New 52. Created by writer Scott Snyder (not Zack!) and artist Greg Capullo, the men behind nearly all issues of the incredible New 52 run of ‘Batman,’ The Court of Owls are an organized crime group and secret society the likes of which Batman has never faced. Organized crime is nothing new in Gotham, but the Court has secretly controlled Gotham since Colonial times. Made up of Gotham’s oldest and wealthiest families, they have used money and political power to shape Gotham to their liking, having an even greater influence on the city than the legacy of the Waynes. Completely unknown to Gotham’s great protector Batman and his alter ego Bruce Wayne who seeks to improve his city with his fortune, they have bases and hideouts based all over the city, even in Wayne structures. Their existence is but a fairy tale to even Bruce, living on mainly though a nursery rhyme:
Talons are their deadly assassins, basically an army of undead soldiers selected by the Court of Owls over the centuries, kept in a “deep sleep” until needed. When called upon, this army is dangerous indeed, not stopped by bullets, knives, or most of Batman’s tricks, because… well… I did say they were, “basically undead.”
Unlike the Court of Owls, Clayface has been a Batman mainstay for over 50 years. In that span of time, there have been many versions Clayface, but my favorite representation was how he was interpreted for Batman: The Animated Series in the 90’s. Without going into every version of the character, Basil Karlo is a well known actor (often presented as washed up or recently fired) who undergoes an experiment/accident that leaves him in the form of a giant mud monster. The powers that come with such a transformation give him super-strength and the ability to shape-shift to impersonate anyone; Batman’s friends and foes, or even Bruce Wayne himself!
Clayface could be used a number of different ways with Deathstroke. He could pose as a fake Bruce Wayne after Deathstroke takes Batman out of the picture (for a time, Batman obviously comes back and wins in the end). He could be a secondary villain who torments Batman between Deathsroke attacks, or even serve as the villain Batman fights in the opening act, before Deathstroke is on the scene. He could even be an ally to Batman, like in this year’s run of Detective Comics following the latest “Soft Reboot,” Rebirth, becoming Bruce Wayne or Batman to serve as a false target for Deathstroke. The possibilities are nearly endless when the people Clayface can become are.
What humor? You mean the “jokes” you’ve already seen in the trailer? Because other than that, the biggest joke is that Captain Boomerang (Jai Courtney) has a Unicorn fetish, which may have been funny… before we saw Ryan Reynolds jerk off to a plush Unicorn in Deadpool back in February. Sure, this film was shot before Deadpool‘s release, but being 2nd to the Unicorn Orgy looses all the thunder. At least Will Smith as Deadshot is funny enough through attitude alone; Smith hasn’t been this snappy since his 90’s classics like Independence Day and Men In Black. Everything else is bleak as Batman V Superman. Suicide Squad seems like it wants to be more like Guardians of the Galaxy and Deadpool, but it fails, miserably.
Part of the excitement going into Suicide Squad is seeing all these fan favorite DC characters – Deadshot, Harely Quinn (Margot Robbie), Amanda Waller (Viola Davis)
Though his appearance is brief, Ben Affleck’s Batman may be even better in Suicide Squad than in BvS! He moves differently, even more gracefully than than BvS, and seeing him from Deadshot’s POV is damn intimidating. Bruce Wayne even has a bit to do, in one of my favorite scenes in the movie.
The characters that are actually deemed necessary are given flashbacks, which, though quick and also underdeveloped, are the best part of the movie. The movie starts strong with these quick stories explaining their origins (sort of), which also happen to be the only visually appealing sequences of the film. There are too many though, and while the 1st act is the most enjoyable, it does feel like an extended trailer. Some flashbacks are saved for later in the film, which really, really, slows down the story and feel completely unwelcome. So, it’s all downhill from the 1st act.
Just a mess. All the pop-y fun of the 1st act is drained away in favor of poorly choreographed action sequences against the most generic soldiers since Loki’s Chitauri army in The Avengers or Ronan’s “Ninja Turtle” aliens in Guardians. Task Force X’s mission also seems misguided and a little unclear. Like I said earlier, Suicide Squad feels like a Superhero movie from the early 2000’s before Nolan and Marvel Studios figured out how to elevate the genre.
As I mentioned, the “zombie soldiers” Task Force X faces are another example of giving a superhero team an army to destroy without murdering tons of human beings (though these “monsters” were once human, but Flag assures us they aren’t anymore…). The Avengers had the Chitauri army and Avengers: Age of Ultron had a robot drone army. This feels similar, with a less interesting design and no charismatic leader like Loki (Tom Hiddleson) or Ultron (James Spader) to taunt the “worst heroes ever.” These soldiers are literally black blobs, a metaphor for all the bland visuals and fight scenes showcased here.
Is it really rockin’? Full of great songs, Suicide Squad tries hardest to be Guardians of the Galaxy with its Soundtrack. I’m sure it does make for a great Soundtrack, but in the movie this overload of music seems distracting and overbearing; every time we meet a new character (every 3 minutes or so) we get a new song. Sloppy and simply thrown together like the rest of Suicide Squad.
Another giant missed opportunity by DC. Suicide Squad tries hard to replicate the success of team-up movies like X-Men, Guardians of the Galaxy, and even The Avengers, but in doing so feels like a paint-by-the-numbers formulaic team movie, bringing nothing new to the table. The movie doesn’t even commit to its one chance at being unique; the twist that they are the villains, not our traditional heroes.
Let’s build up to the most exciting trailer shall we? (Justice League, duh!). So we’ll start with Suicide Squad, a movie for which we have many trailers already, though the new one still offers quite a bit of new footage. While not going as far as the Batman V Superman trailer that spoiled Doomsday, the villain is revealed more than before in this latest trailer, and there are a lot of new scenes that will wet your appetite. If you are already at footage overload, don’t feel too bad about skipping the San Diego Comic Con 2016 Suicide Squad trailer. The film may feel fresher on August 5th without it.
That’s the poster, obviously. Now here comes the trailer:
Which brings us to the most Marvel-y trailer of all, the 1st teaser for Justice League! The trailer focuses on Batman recruiting the Justice League as Bruce Wayne, always out of the suit, which is a very interesting choice. In fact, because Justice League is still being shot, we’re treated almost entirely to recruitment scenes without costumes or special effects, but it still looks great, despite being handled by Zack Snyder who ruined Batman V Superman.
More Joker (Jared Leto)! More Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie)! And the rest… Aaaaand…. BATMAN (Ben Affleck)! 
If this trailer is any indication we may be seeing more Batman in Suicide Squad than we thought! Half the villains on Task Force X are primarily part of Batman’s rogues gallery, after all.
Suicide Squad hits the States om August 5th.
Relying heavily on Benedict Cumberbatch’s star power (gone are the days of casting no-names like Chris Hemsworth or Chris Pratt, this movie has got a bigger lead than Paul Rudd!), the trailer focuses on the accident that leads him on a journey visually similar to that of Bruce Wayne in Batman Begins (just check out the cut from Stephen Strange in a suit to him in a beard and ratty cloths), continuing into Matrix-esque Training Scenes, with some Inception worthy trippy visuals.
I’m in! Dr. Strange appears November 4th.
The new characters look great as well, from Rebels played by Felicity Jones and Diego Luna! to a wise sage with battle armor portrayed by Forrest Whitaker. Donnie Yen as a Samurai (Star Wars was inspired by the films of Akira Kurosawa)! Ben Mendelsohn as a well armed Imperial Officer with a white cape that would make Thor, Superman, AND Dr. Strange jealous!
If The Force Awakens wasn’t your cup of tea, Rogue One may be the closest thing you’ll get to the original trilogy… including the rumored appearance of a lil’ ‘ole Sith called Darth Vader.
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story lands in time for Christmas on December 16th!
By the time we do get to the long awaited fight it is as glorious as the trailer teased. In fact, it’s one of the more wonderful scenes in an otherwise surprisingly action-lite two and a half hour film. The visuals are still astounding (that Frank Miller inspired “Iron” Batsuit sure looks pretty in the rain) and the strategies The Dark Knight employs against The Man of Steel are entertaining; making you believe Batman really could beat Superman as a brilliant strategist… and with some weaponized Kryptonite gas… and spear!
Gone is the “realism” (as much as could be expected at least) present in Batman and Superman’s fight and other action scenes. Instead, we have characters like Wonder Woman launching themselves across the battlefield (it’s hard to tell how far when everything is on fire…) in what looks like a video game… or a half-assed scene tacked on an otherwise polished movie.
This Batman may kill… and kill… and kill… but what else is new? Batman on the big screen has been a downright serial killer, from 1989’s 
Meanwhile, Ben Affleck’s Bruce Wayne has more depth than any before. He’s not awkward like Michael Keaton or a half assed-cover story for his true Bat Identity like Christian Bale’s version. He’s charming when he needs to be, brooding like any good Bruce Wayne (but not too brooding, another poor choice made by Bale) and… a hero. Even when he’s not in the Batsuit, hidden under the curtain of night, Bruce Wayne is just as much an action hero as his alter-ego, from his heroics at the opening Battle of Metropolis to perusing the criminal underground to steal data from Luthor’s lead henchmen (you know, that Russian Dude).
Everyone else is also just so “Meh.” Henry Lennix is great on NBC’s 
BvS is both better than I expected, yet still a bit of a visually beautiful mess. After all, Zack Snyder is at the helm; the controversial Director behind a horrible film (Sucker Punch), a fan favorite I hate (300), an incredibly average comic book film (Man of Steel), and another beautiful mess that I have a soft spot for (Watchman). Snyder continues to showcase the same weaknesses (plot, story pacing) and strengths (incredibly rich CGI visuals that truly brings comics to life). Luckily, Snyder has help from writer Chris Terrio who has written Academy Award nominated films like The Town, saving BvS from being the complete train-wreck it could have been.
When we saw the funeral, and then the flashback to a family walking out of a Zorro film, yet again, we both sighed. Then something amazing happened… Zach Snyder actually presented the scene in a way we’ve never seen it before with an very creative and bold choice. Instead of Joe Chill (the man who murder’s Bruce Wayne’s parents) ripping the necklace off Martha’s neck, he slips his gun against her throat so that the gun’s hammer holds the necklace tight between her neck and the gun. When the gun fires, the hammer recoils, splitting the pearl necklace and dropping the pearls in a very visual pleasing, surprising, and brutal way.
Visually, things do fall apart in the grand finale, where you have a boring flaming backdrop (EVERYTHING is on fire!) and messily animated Heroes literally lunging/flying at each other over football stadium length for epic punches, even when said characters are not known for flying.
Quick props to Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor and Jeremy Irons as the latest Alfred Pennyworth for both not playing their roles conventionally, yet still delivering satisfying versions (especially Jesse Eisenberg!).
Quite the opposite is true, in fact. The movie is almost too slow, allowing the themes of what it means to be just a man in a God’s world and absolute power corrupting to breath for the 1st two acts. That is, before any theme or reason from earlier in the film is quickly forgotten in favor of “Smashy, Smashy, Punch Time” in the 3rd act.
I’ve always been a fan of his casting, and Affleck still seems perfect as The Caped Crusader and Gotham’s #1 Playboy Billionaire, bringing an intense rage with nuances cementing him as the incredible actor he can be. I almost feel sorry for Cavill having to try to out act the very seasoned Affleck, especially caught in a scene that is sooo not Superman.
Superman’s anger and apparent army are one riddle this trailer offers… Is Supes under Lex Luthor’s (Jesse Eisenberg) control 
Screengabs from the Comic-Con Trailer. He looks angry there too!
Definitely some black eye makeup above…
Ta-Da! It’s…. Gone! Just super intense… and pissed… Ben Affleck!
