Review: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice - A Review of the movie...


Last night (Opening Thursday) I took my two kids with me to see this movie at my favorite spot, Movie Tavern. I have been looking forward to this release ever since I heard about the movie being made. Especially since I hated Superman so much in 2013.

Fans of this blog may remember that when Superman: Man of Steel came out my hubby and I received early release passes and I posted my review and the 'nerd' community ripped me apart for my opinions.

Last night after this movie was over I instantly wanted to hop on my blog and post my thoughts but memories of those cruel comments and attacks on a multitude of websites due to this previous review kept me from reliving that moment. (To read that 3.5 Star review of MOS please click here.)

Well I've woken up from a sleep and my opinions are still on my mind so to hell with all those haters I am going to post what I think!

Please beware this review contains a lot of spoilers and if you wish to not read them please stop at this point. Continuing to read is acknowledging you will not attack me for spoiling things ...

Overall I am also giving this movie a 3.5 Star to match it's Superman brother. Like before I will run through the good, the ehh and the bad. I just ask that everyone please remember this is America and yes I am allowed to express my opinion, even if the rest of the world disagrees with me. So try not to rake me over the coals this time.

Although I will add ... after I posted my review in early June 2013, Kevin Smith came out with extremely similar comments to my review and people still loved him so ... there ya go!

The Good:
The opening of the movie was very well laid out. I enjoyed the 'action scenes' that showed what was going on to Bruce Wayne during Superman and the Kryptonian's fight scenes. Honestly I thought those were the best action scenes of the movie. While I know that it was all CGI, there was very little CGI feel to them. Ben Afleck played a good Bruce Wayne. An aged Bruce Wayne. Now like before my knowledge of the comic core material isn't as sharp as my husbands but my memory of The Dark Knight trilogy is. And I really liked that it appeared they continued on that path that was already set up. Meaning Wayne Manor was still in ruins from when it burned down in a previous movie.

I think Jesse Eisenberg's performance of Lex Luthor was very good. I enjoy the bad guy castings usually in the Batman movies so this did not surprise me. He played an eccentric man who turned crazy quite convincingly.

I did however love that Batman, a human, kicked Superman's ass. (Not the scenes and plot but just that it happened). As I am team Bat this made me extremely happy. It was good to see one wish come true in the movie. So yes, even gods can fall!

The Ehh:

The love romance between Clark and Lois (Played by Henry Cavill and Amy Adams) was not full of heat. It was two actors saying lines. I personally love Amy Adams usually so this was disappointing. I think in the MOS movie she had more emotion than in this one. Some of that could be this movie was split between two leading men so her screen time was cut as a result.

The kidnapping of Martha - I thought Lex's plan was good but the acting delivery, lines, scenes, etc was ehh. Wasn't horrible. This fight sequence when she gets rescued was just alright. It did make me miss the days of Christian Bale as Batman.

The Bat Branding ... I don't know how I feel about this. I LOVE that they show Batman really isn't a 'good guy' in this sense and he does kill people, but the branding? I think in some ways we kinda went to far. But I love that kinda stuff in bad guys so should I really judge it in a good guy? I don't know so it's an ehh...

Lex's file on the 'meta humans' - yeah I just, eh. Didn't like it, didn't hate it. I did however think the person they showed as the Flash looked very blah. Maybe it is because I have been spoiled by watching the TV series and I actually do enjoy that Flash.

The Bad:

Everything else? Alfred was very much a lack luster character. Bruce seemed way more concerned about his employee dying in Metropolis at the start of the movie than any amount of emotion he had while doing scenes with the man who raised him from childhood. 

The dream sequences of Batman - just WTF? I am not sure why they were there to begin with. They did not progress the story much, if any, in my opinion. Especially the one where there was a nod to the Wizard of Oz and flying monkey type creatures (I assume they were supposed to be giant bats) swooped in out of the sky and carried the dead bad guys off. Just what the hell??

The final fight scene with Doomsday left MUCH to be desired. Wonder Woman was hot and all but even she couldn't have saved this scene in my opinion.

I think what annoyed me the MOST was Bruce's line "I failed him in life, I won't fail him in death." You failed him in life? How? That whole three minute friendship really solidified that bond between the two of you, was it just because both of your mothers names are Martha? Please - that was so dumb. I mean I get it, I'm sure it's a line out of the comic Doomsday somewhere blah blah blah but the on screen chemistry between two supposedly BFF's was totally not there for a statement of that magnitude to have been said.

To give you a point of reference on how 'bad' this movie was .... My two kids, 13 and 11, they LOVE The Avengers, can watch it over and over and stay focused. They Love Star Wars, my son has seen it three times in the theater and doesn't talk through it at all. Last night these two kids would not shut up. They talked through the whole damn movie because they just couldn't stay focused long enough to capture their attention.

Except for the final scenes. These were my favorite scenes with the Death of Superman and not just because this horrible character's acting finally stopped. My daughter cried and I felt the tears forming in my eyes. That did pull the emotional response for the first and last time of the movie. It was at this moment that I was very glad to know that I listen to my hubby when he talked about the comic Doomsday so I know what is to come and that gave me reassurance. (Unlike in Civil War where I fear they are going to kill the Captain and then I will weep real tears.)

So overall I give this a 3.5. What bumped this review from a 2.5-3 to a 3.5 for me was the final scenes. Anything that can get a tear to form in my eye means that it did get me to connect and that is worth something in my opinion. I do not think I am a fan of Zack Snyder's directing. I just pulled his Imbd and yeah ... I HATED Watchmen so I think I am going to stick with, I am not a fan of Zack Snyder. His constant stealing of ideas from my favorite films (see MOS Review on this and the Wizard of Oz comment here in this review) annoy me to no end. 

Is Ben Afleck a good Batman? I don't know. We saw him as Bruce Wayne and I can see him being that playboy millionaire type person. I don't think we got to see him truly as Batman long enough to determine. Because his big fight scenes were in a suite made of metal fighting Superman. That isn't a suite I would say "Oh man my hubby would look sexy as hell in that!" (unlike Bale's.) However Afleck did look mighty nice with his shirt off so hey there is that! I think if I had to pick a side today I would say Afleck should leave the super hero career to the men of Marvel because after DareDevil and now this ... I can't see him rescuing anyone really.

So here was my 4 am review of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice ... Remember ... don't hate me for my opinion ... but you are welcome to politely disagree.

Deathly Magic by A. L. Kessler

Title- Deathly Magic Author- A.L. Kessler Release Date- 2-15-2016 Buy Link- Amazon

 

  Zombies... When Abigail Collins heard Nick’s theory on their current case, she knew he had to be crazy, but when a zombie shows up in her apartment she has no choice but to believe him. A renegade necromancer bent on manipulating witches and murdering innocent people runs amok in town and Abby and Nick have to stop them before more bodies pile up. Further complicating matters two PIB agents step onto the scene, claiming a link between their case and Abby’s. To top it all off, blood starved vampires are causing chaos in the city. It’s just another day for PIB Agent Abigail

 Collins, full of blood, monsters, and explosions.

 

 

"Abby?" I heard Nick's voice. I turned to find him standing behind me, also drenched from the rain. "Yeah, what are you doing here? I thought you lived on the other end of town?" "I was out and realized I needed to grab something before heading home." He shrugged. "What about you?" I took the hood of my jacket off. "Apparently I'm taking care of a lost cat until I can find the owner." His eyes widened. "A cat?" "Yes, a Sphinx. You know, a naked one." His eyes got bigger and I laughed. "He was outside in the rain, I wasn't going to leave him there." "Maybe he's your familiar." He said, "But just be cautious." I raised a brow. "He's safe and means no harm." "How do you know that?" "Because I made sure to put up a protection spell on my house last year after the Cult waltzed right in, oh and after Michelle waltzed in too. I decided it was the best type of defense." He pressed his lips together and gave me a disapproving gaze. "You never told me the Cult paid you a personal visit." Aw crap, I'd screwed up. "It doesn't matter. It wasn't any of your business anyways. The point is that they backed off." "You're just a magnet for trouble, Abigail." We walked further into the store and I had no idea why he was staying next to me, but I let it go. "Don't I know it?" I laughed. "You've gotten the mild end of it. Just wait, if Boss Man makes you shadow me much longer you could start to see the really weird shit." "For our sake, I hope we only have to partner until the end of this case. Because it's only a matter of time until your bad luck starts to rub off on me." A shriek came through the nearly empty store. Nick and I both cursed and headed towards the sound. People were running the other direction, one screamed 'vampire' as they passed us. Well, crap. Nick and I drew our guns and continued to where the people were running from. Sure enough, a vampire stood there with his lips sealed to the woman's neck. His red gaze flickered to me. "He's blood starved." I told Nick and we both moved closer. We took aim. "Let the woman go." I didn't have to technically warn the vampire, but I wanted to give him a chance. Reasoning with a blood starved vampire was kind of like reasoning with a toddler, they may not realize what they are doing is wrong and need to be told to stop. He ignored me and went back to the woman. His blond hair fell in front of his eyes and he started to turn. I didn't hesitate. I shot his leg. I couldn't shoot him in the head without risking the woman, so the leg was going to have to do. He snarled and threw the lady away. Nick went to her without me having to prompt him. The vampire turned his gaze to me and rushed me. The problem with vampires was that they moved fast. Inhumanly so. I took two more shots in hopes of slowing him down, but I ended up pinned to the floor. He bared his fangs at me. I didn't have any desire to be a meal. I brought my hand up and slammed the butt of my gun into his temple. He reared back and I scurried away and shot the moment I could. Blood and vampire brains exploded all over the floor and me. The body fell and I wiped the blood off my face and stood. "What the fuck." "Don't put your gun away Abby." Nick called. "Two more!" Seriously, two more? What the hell was going on tonight? Buy two get one free on blood-starved vampires?

A.L. Kessler is the author of Dark War Chronicles and Here Witchy Witchy Series. She dabbles in paranormal romance, steampunk and urban fantasy. Since she was a teenager she's loved weaving stories and spinning tales. When she's not at the beck-and-call of the Lord and Lady of the House, three black cats by the names of Jynx, Jiji and Sophie, training a playful puppy named Zelda, playing with her daughter, or killing creepers and mining all the things with her husband, she's either reading, participating in NaNoWriMo, or writing in her Blog Writing Rambles. For those who like things on the more spicy side, she leads a double life as Alexandra Webb. Links Fan Page Series Page Author Profile You can also find and follow her here: Goodreads Amazon Twitter Pinterest  

COVER REVEAL! Deathly Magic by A.L. Kessler

Title- Deathly Magic (Book 2 Here Witchy Witchy Series) 

Author- A.L. Kessler 

Release Date- February 15th 2016 

Synopsis Zombies... When Abigail Collins heard Nick’s theory on their current case, she knew he had to be crazy, but when a zombie shows up in her apartment she has no choice but to believe him. A renegade necromancer bent on manipulating witches and murdering innocent people runs amok in town and Abby and Nick have to stop them before more bodies pile up. Further complicating matters two PIB agents step onto the scene, claiming a link between their case and Abby’s. To top it all off, blood starved vampires are causing chaos in the city. It’s just another day for PIB Agent Abigail Collins, full of blood, monsters, and explosions. 

About the Author 

A.L. Kessler is the author of Dark War Chronicles. She dabbles in paranormal romance, steampunk and urban fantasy. Since she was a teenager she's loved weaving stories and spinning tales. When she's not at the beck-and-call of the Lord and Lady of the House, two black cats by the names of Jynx and Sophie, training a playful puppy named Zelda, playing with her daughter, or killing creepers and mining all the things with her husband, she's either reading, participating in NaNoWriMo, or writing in her Blog Writing Rambles. For those who like things on the more spicy side, she leads a double life as Alexandra Webb.

Storm Watcher Blog Tour

Title - Storm Watch

Author- Hope Welsh

Buy Link- Amazon

Release Date- November 15th 2015

30 Authors. 30 Shifter Stories.

One Epic Release Day!

http://woodlandcreekseries.com

This is a stand-alone paranormal romantic suspense.

Synopsis

Running for her life during a blizzard, Storm Reynolds only knew that she had to get as far away from New York as she could. She discovers her guardian angel is more than she's bargained for. Is he her salvation or will Luke Steele lead the killer right to her?

Luke is an ex-SEAL and a shifter...and thought he was prepared for anything...other than a woman who claims her life is in danger from the man who hired him to locate her.

Excerpt-

“Your boyfriend is worried about you, Storm,” Luke said quietly. “He hired me to look for you.”
Storm looked around the Jeep frantically. Did she have any chance if she jumped out? Had he been hired only to find her, or was he her executioner as well? She’d been a fool. It was clear that she’d have been much better off taking her chances with the storm and abandoned the car.

About the author

Hope Welsh writes romance fiction. Her first love is paranormal. She's also currently working on book three in the Prophecy Series. Books 1 & 2 are available now. Her current works in progress also include two young adult paranormal stories she hopes readers will

She's been writing since she was in third grade and has never looked back. She's also published some of her more steamy stories with various e-publishers using a pen name. You can find her steamier works, coming soon as HS Welsh. (She is using the new name so she doesn't offend her readers that like her less-steamy romance)

Currently, she lives in the southern US. Hope enjoys creating characters that come alive on the pages! Her goal is always to provide an entertaining read that her readers will love.Hope is available on Twitter @HopeWelsh and her blog is at hopewelsh.blogspot.com -- be sure to check her blog often, as she loves to run contests for her readers. You can email her anytime at hopewelshwrites@gmail.com

You can join her mailing list here: http://eepurl.com/xtu1b (Only sends when there is a new book)

http://www.hopewelsh.net

http://hopewelsh.blogspot.com

http://www.goodreads.com/hope_welsh3

http://www.twitter.com/HopeWelsh

http://www.facebook.com/hopewelshwrites

http://www.facebook.com/authorhopewelsh

http://www.instagram.com/hopewelshwrites

http://www.pinterest.com/HopeWelsh

http://www.amazon.com/Hope-Welsh/e/B004FRT66I

http://www.youtube.com/HopeWelsh

https://www.youtube.com/user/HopeWelsh1

The Night It All Became Clear....

The Night It All Became Clear.....

I have intentionally not blogged at all in the past few months because what’s going on in my house right now is extremely private and very hard in so many ways. When I started the adoption journey I had some idea of what to expect but I was still extremely clueless on certain aspects.

Last night, October 28^th, was most likely one of the best nights of my life. And that’s saying a lot.

 

It wasn’t the finalization of the adoption, nothing of major importance happened, but, it was a major moment in my heart.

 

I’ve been sick for about a week now and when I got home I was feeling majorly weak. Work had worn me down, and I had a headache. The moment I walked across my threshold of my home the dogs started barking, the kids were noisy and my husband looked like he needed a break. My brother and his wife had been out of town for a week so we had been babysitting my puppy-nephew Parker. Whom is the most adorable puppy ever. So Ry already told me he would be stopping by the house to pick up Parker so I knew that soon my house would be crowded with more bodies.

 

(I’m not going to say the kiddos names so lets just call them A & S.) I quickly got my son, A, and asked if he wanted to help me make dinner. We had grilled chicken over salad. He of course said yes because he loves helping me cook. Maybe one day he will be a chef! We had started cutting up the lettuce and carrots when S came into the kitchen and told me she wanted to make her daddy a necklace. After explaining that daddy probably won’t wear a necklace she decided she would make it anyway. So there she is, sitting at the kitchen table putting beads on a string when the doorbell rings.

 

The dogs go crazy and so do the kids. Everyone but Tony and I run to the front door to welcome the aunt and uncle in. The kids go wild, Parkers barking and jumping and Toto and Doogie were running crazy.

 

Life was perfect.

 

My sis in law, we will call her Mar, comes up to me and hugs me and then tells me how much she and Ry missed the kids and how they talked about them non-stop with her family. And its only been 96 days (today) with the kiddos and already everyone is attached. She then tells me how they are always thinking how they should get this or that for the kids and how they ARE coming over Saturday to spend Halloween with their niece and nephew. And of course Tony and I! How easily we are forgotten it seems lol.

 

Once they leave its just the 6 of us again. Life calms down and A and I finish cooking, well preparing a salad. We all sit down to a family dinner where the kids talk about their day, we laugh, say our prayers and go about having a wonderful family dinner.

 

Now its time for Dad to go to bed, which normally is an uneventful experience. Except tonight … S breaks the news … the night I thought the television was possessed by a ghost it was really Dad playing a trick on me with an app on his phone … and now its on.

 

Tony and the kids then precede one at a time to laugh and play and goof off for a good 15 minutes. It was so loud! My head was KILLING me. But it was the best moment of my life. I sat at the table watching Tony play with each of the kids. Chase them around the house. Watch the kids jump on him, punch him and tease at him.

 

And it was in this moment that I ‘knew’ everything will be okay. Everything that we’ve had to learn to grow through, cope with and learn to manage was worth this moment. Because this is family. This is what its like….being a mom.

 

And there is absolutely nothing more exciting or important to me than being a mom.

And since I can't yet post pics of my kids here's a pic of the dogs!

Sunday Review: Sage Blog Tours Presents: The Cypress Trap: A Suspense Thriller by JC Gatlin

Title: The Cypress Trap
Author: JC Gatlin
Source: Given in exchange for an honest review
Purchase: AMAZON

Blurb

What if your spouse was not who you thought he was and you got caught up in murder mystery you had no control over? This best-seller suspense thriller draws you in to not only Rayanne and Owen's failing marriage, but also their nightmarish last ditch getaway on a Georgia lake. It is a heart-thumping story of betrayal, brokenness, and horror where the protagonists do all they can to stay alive. 

Check out this stand-alone story in a murder mystery series that will make you think twice about going on a camping trip. 

Review

What an interesting book! It was a very different mystery and I always love different when its one of those books you just can't stop reading.

This cover made me question my sanity on reading. I usually look for something more catching but I was just curious on what on earth a Rabbit could have to do with a mystery.

Stand alone stories are always my favorites because it pulls you into the authors style but doesn't over play the characters.

If you like stand alone mysteries, or mysteries in general I think you will like this one.

While I'm only giving it 4 stars that isn't really for anything other than I just felt like a few things could have been more tight in the writing and story. It is a very solid book and I don't think anyone should pass it up if mystery is your thing.

Enchanted Book Promotions Presents: Halloween Fires by Val McMurray

About the Book

Title: Halloween Fires

Author: Val McMurray

Genre: Historical / Supernatural Thriller

The time: 1340

The place: Swan village, the estate of Sir Hubert Longhurst, on the banks of the River

Severn, and the city of Bristol in the south west of England.

The story:

On All Hallows Eve, a satanic mass is held in the forest across the river Severn.

A girl is sacrificed and a young boatman dies.

A suspicious priest, Father Simon, the Sheriff of

Bristol and three Dominican Monks hunt the “Satanists”.

Their evil leader is the Dominus.

The Dominus is quite mad and plans revenge. The villagers will suffer.

In Bristol devil worshippers are tortured and burned.

The Dominus murders his partner and kidnaps a girl.

A black mass takes place. There is torture and death.

A battle is fought.

The Dominus flees.

The Lord of the manor holds a Manor Court to investigate the frightening events.  Prisoners must be taken to Bristol for trial by the church.

They, and a rich treasure, must be escorted to Bristol.

Satanists in Bristol, plan to fight for the treasure.

There is a battle on the road. Many are killed, the treasure is lost.

 A blacksmith and a small boy assist the Sheriff in an attempt to regain it.

Perhaps Evil has been overcome; however, Devil worshippers in Bristol plan another  mass.

The Sheriff is lured away.

In the Glade of Stones the Devil may yet triumph.

Author Bio

As a child in England I loved to write stories. I have lived in Sydney Australia for over forty years. My children and grandchildren live close by. I worked as a trained nurse until retirement. Sadly, then, my husband needed nursing. Now I live alone and needed to follow my own interests. First a Book Club (all writers need to read), and I love it. Our discussions are lively and I have read many books that I would never have picked but for the club. It really widened my horizons. I also joined a Writers Group in Liverpool and have found great enjoyment and satisfaction in learning from the very different people in the group. I have been pleased to see several of my articles in print. We contribute to Freexpression Magazine (www.freexpression.com.au), which is edited by Peter Pike. His unfailing encouragement and that of Michael Norris, who read the first draft of this book (and believed in it) has been the impetus needed to goad me to finish it. The research was daunting, but I have always been interested in history, and I soon became immersed in the 14th century. How the people lived and their deeply felt superstitions and customs held me enthralled. There are, inevitably, mistakes. Please forgive them. I set out to write a rollicking good yarn, set in the south west of England, I hope that you enjoy it.

Links

Bookpal: http://bookpal.com.au/portfolio-items/halloween-fires/

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Halloween-Fires-Val-McMurray/dp/1742845304

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/545821

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/ca/book/halloween-fires/id1000016336?mt=11