I haven’t run the numbers on this, but I suspect there are currently only two kinds of people in the world: the people who liked Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and the rest of us, who wanted to like it but simply had to deal with the fact that we didn’t.
It is that second camp of people that Warner Bros. seems to be courting most passionately with the new trailer for the Batman v Superman Ultimate Edition, an R-rated cut of the film that runs 31 minutes longer than the theatrical cut. (That’s a whopping 182 minutes total.) Some of that additional material makes an appearance in the trailer, which premiered earlier today at Collider, and it’s leaving many of us scratching our heads, wondering if the movie really will be better or if somebody just cut a pretty good trailer that emphasizes different aspects of the film.
Also: Max Landis Helps Review ‘Batman v Superman’ (Exclusive Video)
The theatrical film was dour, portentous, and forced Batman and Superman to pontificate about each other without actually interacting for most of the film. It was full of plot holes and bizarre scenes involving jars of urine, not-so Jolly Ranchers and two heroes bonding over the fact that their mothers had the same first name. It digressed from the plot repeatedly in order to set up future films in the franchise, whether or not that detracted from the rest of the film we were currently watching. And yes, Batman was an unapologetic murderer, and yes, Zack Snyder shot Jimmy Olsen in the head.
It seems a bit unlikely that a longer cut of Batman v Superman with an even more “mature” rating will solve a lot of these problems, but history has taught us time and again that extended cuts can be vastly superior to the theatrical release. Sometimes that’s because the studio meddled in the production, ruining the film in advance (see: Blade Runner, Legend and Kingdom of Heaven, because Ridley Scott had to deal with this a whole lot), and sometimes it’s just because films need some space to breathe. Having some more time to process what you’re watching, instead of swiftly bounding to the next big thing, can make some films play better. Heck, sometimes they even feel shorter.
We won’t know if the Batman v Superman Ultimate Edition is a significant improvement on the theatrical experience until it comes out. It arrives on Digital HD on June 28, and on the other formats on July 19. But before you get too jazzed about this trailer, it may behoove you to remember that if Batman v Superman taught us one thing, it’s not to get our hopes up. If the film is better, that will be awesome. But if it has the same old problems, you probably shouldn’t be surprised.
William Bibbiani (everyone calls him ‘Bibbs’) is Crave’s film content editor and critic. You can hear him every week on The B-Movies Podcast and Canceled Too Soon, and watch him on the weekly YouTube series Most Craved, Rapid Reviews and What the Flick. Follow his rantings on Twitter at @WilliamBibbiani.
The 20 Best Superhero Movie Posters
Top Photo: Warner Bros.
The 20 Best Superhero Movie Posters
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3 Dev Adam
Also known as That Turkish Ripoff Film Where Captain America and El Santo Team Up to Fight Evil Spider-Man. The film is at least 70 times more spectacular than anything cooked up by Disney, and this poster reflects that.
Image: Tual Film Arsel
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Ant Man
To assure viewers that Ant-Man was tied in the The Avengers series, the marketers released a series of posters showing our tiny, tiny hero to scale with his future teammates.
Image: Disney
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Batman (1966)
Camp was the word of the day in 1966, and this is still perhaps the most enjoyable Batman film of them all.
Image: 20th Century Fox
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Batman (1989)
It may be difficult to describe just how huge Tim Burton's 1989 film really was back in the day. To tease us, the posters only displayed the Batman logo.
Image: Warner Bros.
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Batman: Mask of the Phantasm
In its own personal continuity, the animated Batman feature had an appropriately stylized poster.
Image: Warner Bros.
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Batman Returns
While there have been numerous iterations of Catwoman over the years, this single image has become the defining image of the character in the minds of many.
Image: Warner Bros.
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Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Although the film has been largely panned, it cannot be denied that these street art renditions of the two title heroes are pretty cool.
Image: Warner Bros.
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Darkman
Sam Raimi's over-the-top vigilante movie came from the era of hand-painted posters, when they all looked way cooler.
Image: Universal
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Deadpool
The snarky, self-aware superhero comedy film faked you out with these Nicholas Sparks-inspired romance posters. Surprise! It's an R-rated comedy!
Image: 20th Century Fox
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Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance
The best thing about Ghost Rider is the way he looks like a living tattoo. This poster highlights that to an amazing degree.
Image: Columbia
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Guardians of the Galaxy
Although it is just a few glory shots of the team, a graphic designer thought to add some color. It certainly catches the eye.
Image: Disney
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Hellboy
This poster, painted by the legendary Drew Struzan, wasn't used in the U.S. Our loss, I suppose.
Image: Columbia
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Mystery Men
One of the funniest of all superhero movies, the clever Mystery Men took not-too-impressive superheroes (like The Shoveler and The Spleen) and made them look epic.
Image: Universal
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Spider-Man 3
Non-fans see a moral conflict. Fans see a glimpse of an evil alien blob that takes the form of a costume. Either way, good choice.
Image: 20th Century Fox
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Supergirl
Often jeered, this goofy Superman spinoff has a poster that outdoes most of its peers.
Image: TriStar Pictures
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Superman III
This hand-painted poster was only used in international markets, but the images and the colors translate all over the world.
Image: Warner Bros.
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The Amazing Spider-Man
No one asked for this reboot, but this image did lend an air of mystery to a story we already knew from a few years before.
Image: 20th Century Fox
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The Dark Knight
The kid gloves are off, and buildings got blowed up. The image became iconic. Question: Did Batman burn that building in a bat shape, or did the Joker do it to discredit Batman? I always saw it as the latter.
Image: Warner Bros.
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The Shadow
I loved how shiny and glossy blockbuster posters were in the '80s and '90s. This image became a logo for the film, and the colors are still unique to this day.
Image: Universal
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X-Men: Days of Future Past
X-Men 7 was when they started to mess around with alternate timelines in earnest, and the posters let us see the overlap.
Image: 20th Century Fox
