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Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, just like its predecessor, Man of Steel, polarized many people, even more so. At the time, I was very disappointed with how it turned out. The film was, at times, going off track from the “Batman V Superman” portion and focusing more on the “Dawn of Justice” subtitle. There were a number of various subplots that ultimately, didn’t need to be there in order to make the payoff work. Zack Snyder doubled down on what I, and a lot of others, disliked about Man of Steel and reinforced it in this film. Superman mostly mopes and does nothing to help the people to understand his purposes and reasons for protecting and serving them, and Batman is way too mean and kills people, with no explanation as to why he’s doing so. The portrayal of Lex Luthor, as well, was absolutely appalling and highly questionable. The film’s tone was just as bleak, depressing and pretentious, perhaps even more so than Man of Steel. Hans Zimmer and Junkie XL’s score, I thought was really bad. Very loud and noisy, especially Holkenborg’s theme for Batman. The Ultimate Edition, while a little better due to fleshing out the plot to be much clearer, still didn’t help out that much.
This edit is a sequel to Superman: The Man of Steel, and seeks to heavily restructure the film, streamlining and focusing the narrative on the important elements within the plot. Many sequences and scenes have been removed to trim off all of the fat. The colors have been corrected and Zimmer and Holkenborg’s work has been replaced with Danny Elfman’s Batman theme, John Williams’ Superman theme and John Ottman’s theme for Lex Luthor. I have decided to keep Zimmer’s Wonder Woman theme, as I feel it was the only new theme that worked well for the character and was memorable. The final act with Doomsday and the death of Superman has been kept to set up the Justice League movie, despite feeling out of place from the “Batman V Superman” plot. This is my take on how Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, could have been presented.
I’d like to give thanks to reeseevans, Mr. Blue and Wakeupkeo for their work on their own edits of this film. A number of ideas comes from their work. Agent 9 also deserves a mention for his edit of Man of Steel, since he re-scored the film to transform it into a more traditional presentation.
The primary video source will be from kk650’s color regrade of the Ultimate Edition, while also color corrected throughout. The theatrical cut is also used in some places.
Re-scored the entire film with Danny Elfman’s Batman work, along with John Williams, Ken Thorne, Alexander Courage and John Ottman’s Superman work. Their work from other films is also used. Hans Zimmer’s theme for Wonder Woman is kept, however.
Moved Bruce’s opening narration and the flashback sequence of the death of the Waynes and their funeral after the battle in Metropolis.
Recut the opening credits sequence to time better with the new music, trimming it down heavily. The titles have also been redone, adding in new credits and a title card, using the Batman/Superman logo from the trailer. VFX will be needed for this.
Removed Thomas Wayne attempting to punch Joe Chill.
Removed Bruce flying in the cellar as the bats swarm him.
Removed Bruce’s narration as the flashback of him as a child ends.
Removed the title card introducing Metropolis and the events.
Bruce’s phone call to Jack cuts off almost immediately, adding in a subtle voiceover that the call has been disconnected.
Trimmed Bruce watching the building collapse, removing Superman and Zod’s fight and Jack’s prayer.
Removed Bruce walking by the teacher leading the kids out, using the theatrical cut.
Trimmed away some lines as Bruce helps Wallace Keefe.
Moved the kryptonite discovery scene in the Indian Ocean prior to the senators meeting Lex Luthor. Removed the text that describes where the scene takes place at. VFX will be needed to remove the text.
Removed the entire sequence in Africa, along with the bullet and journal subplot.
Removed Kahina Ziri’s testimony to Congress against Superman.
Added a new “18 Months Later” card prior to the cops arriving at the human trafficker’s hideout.
Removed the scene of the cops watching football in their car.
Moved the sequence of the cops encountering Batman in the human trafficker’s hideout to after the passage of time card.
Removed the subtitles from the victums speaking to the cops.
Trimmed the cop walking up the stairs, using the theatrical cut.
Trimmed Batman crawling along the ceiling as the cop shoots at him.
Removed the cop’s line, “Jesus Christ! He branded him.”
Moved the scene of Lois arriving at her apartment prior to the passage of time card. The shots of her receiving her mail have been removed. The bloody shirt has now been recontexualized to something she wore during her trip to Zod’s ship in Man of Steel.
Trimmed Lois and Clark’s discussion to be recontextualized as reflecting on the aftermath of the battle in Metropolis.
Trimmed off the end of Lois and Clark’s makeout session, using the theatrical cut, while transitioning to the “18 Months Later” card.
Trimmed away Bruce telling Alfred that they’re criminals.
Removed Lex telling the senators why his father called the company LexCorp.
Removed the mention of the “Metahuman Thesis.”
Removed Lex putting a Jolly Rancher into the Senator’s mouth.
Moved the scene of Clark making eggs while watching the news report to after Bruce and Alfred’s discussion in the Batcave. This is Kahina Ziri’s only appearance in this edit, as the subplot of her return to the city and being killed off has been removed. Her character has now been reduced to a civilian who lost many of their family during the battle in Metropolis and has decided to flee Gotham in fear of Superman.
Removed Perry’s, “Poor son of a bitch.”
Cut Lois out of the Daily Planet staff meeting, ending it on an extended shot of Clark.
Removed the scene of Lois leaving the offices for D.C. as Perry gives Clark a new assignment.
Removed Lex describing Finch’s hearings during his discussion with her, along with his question, “Do you know the oldest lie in America, Senator?”
Removed Bruce’s parademon nightmare, along with him waking up in bed. An exterior shot of the lake house is kept. VFX will be needed to remove Bruce inside, though.
Added a subtle laugh from the Joker used in Suicide Squad as Bruce looks at Robin’s suit to evoke memories of his death.
Removed Bruce taking a shower, using the theatrical cut’s transition.
Removed Clark asking a fellow journalist who Bruce Wayne is. Clark is already aware of him.
Removed Lex’s lines as he’s called up on stage prior to his speech.
Removed the end of Lex’s speech, cutting from Alfred drinking scotch to Bruce walking back upstairs.
Replaced a shot of Clark looking at Bruce after their conversation with one used in the trailer.
Trimmed away Lex’s, “Boys!”
Removed Clark following Bruce downstairs, as well as him watching the Spanish news report.
Moved the montage sequence of people debating on Superman to after the opening credits.
Removed the phone call scene between Clark and Martha.
Removed all of Jenet Klyburn’s scenes, as they are tied with the now deleted subplot with Lois investigating the bullet used in Africa.
Removed the scene of Clark doing research on Batman’s branding being a death sentence for criminals. He still learns this from Santos’ girlfriend.
Used the theatrical cut when Wallace asks Lex what he wants to remove an F-bomb.
Moved the scene of Wallace asking for Finch’s help after Santos’ death.
Trimmed away Wallace telling Finch the details on how the battle in Metropolis changed his life, using the theatrical cut.
Removed the scene of Lois and General Swanwick’s discussion in the bathroom.
Removed the scene of the waiters watching The Daily Show on TV.
Removed the entire Knightmare sequence, along with the Flash coming to deliver Bruce news.
Removed Bruce’s line, “Fourteen hours.”
Heavily trimmed the Batmobile chase sequence to remove Batman killing criminals and shooting the tracker onto the truck. It’s now revealed afterwards that Batman put a tracker onto the truck.
Removed the scene between Lois and General Swanwick under the rain.
Cut the last part of Finch’s line, “The World needs to know what happened in that desert.”
Trimmed away Martha’s line, “You’re not a killer. A threat.”
Removed the scene of Lois and Swanwick’s conversation on a park bench.
Removed the phone call scene between Lois and Perry
Trimmed away Finch chatting with a senator about Kahina Ziri, using the theatrical cut.
Removed Bruce receiving Wallace’s checks, as it feels unbelievable that not a single employee at Wayne Enterprises would bring these up in a year-and-a-half.
Re-dubbed Greg’s line to Bruce as he hands him the envelope with a line from The Siege. An idea used from Reese Evans’ edit, “No Justice.”
Tightened up Finch’s reaction to recognizing the jar.
Removed Wallace’s checks from Bruce’s lake house when Alfred comes in.
Trimmed Lex’s arrival back at LexCorp, removing the possibility that Batman killed the guards.
Removed the balcony scene between Superman and Lois.
Moved Lex accessing the Kryptonian ship earlier to after severing Zod’s fingerprints.
Removed Bruce creating kryptonite gas during the training montage, in order to keep it a surprise when it’s first used against Superman.
Removed Bruce viewing Wonder Woman’s file.
Removed Clark’s mountain journey, as that sequence has been used and recontexualized in Man of Steel.
Moved Lois investigating Wallace’s apartment prior to Batman preparing for his fight.
Removed Lois’ phone call with Janet Klyburn.
Removed the scene of Lex Luthor’s men kidnapping Martha, in order to keep it a surprise when Superman finds out about it.
Trimmed down Lois and Lex’s conversation to remove mention of the bullet subplot.
Removed one of Lois’, “You came back!”
Removed many of Lex’s goofy noises throughout his rooftop conversation with Superman.
Cut the second half of Lex’s line about God to give the first half more weight.
Shaved down the excessiveness of Lex describing his full plan to Superman.
Removed Lex’s excessive “There we go” lines.
Removed Diana viewing the metahuman files on her laptop.
Moved a shot of Batman standing in the rain after Lois tells her pilot where to fly to.
Removed Batman’s line, “Well. Here I am.”
Removed Batman and Superman’s brief exchange, along with a powerful push.
Removed an excessive push from Superman, using the theatrical cut.
Trimmed away some of Batman’s punches to Superman’s face, using the theatrical cut.
Replaced Batman’s lines as he drags Superman with a line from a TV spot. Based on Reese Evans’ edit.
Recut the “Martha” scene. Trimmed Batman and Superman’s lines as the information is given. The death flashbacks have been cut down and rearranged in order to keep focused on the name Martha. A shot from Man of Steel of Clark hugging Martha has also been added, along with a voiceover from Alfred and the Joker’s laugh as Batman reconsiders his actions. This now helps clarify the intended meaning of the scene. Batman is about to become the murderer of someone who also has a family, as he comes to the realization of his poor actions. Removing Batman killing people strengthens this scene further.
Removed Batman firing down on Lex’s men in the Batwing as he approaches the warehouse.
Replaced Batman allowing two men to explode with a grenade with an unused moment from the trailer of him man-handling someone into a stack of pallets.
Used a shot from the theatrical cut when Batman flings a crate at someone to remove a blood stain on the wall, implying he’s been killed.
Removed Batman possibly killing the guy he put a knife into his shoulder.
Added in a shot of Joe Chill’s gun firing to kill Martha Wayne, which prompts Batman to risk saving Martha Kent.
Moved Lois throwing the kryptonite spear into the water prior to Batman arriving at the warehouse.
Trimmed Superman and Lex’s dialogue in the Kryptonian ship.
Removed Anderson Cooper’s line, “Thankfully the work week is over.”
Removed the President asking Swanwick who Projectile 2 is.
Removed the scene of Swanwick telling the President that Doomsday is unkillable.
Removed Batman explaining to Alfred that he needs to lead Doomsday to the kryptonite spear.
Trimmed away Batman firing down on Doomsday.
Removed Batman and Superman’s lines about who Wonder Woman is with.
Lois now gets trapped underwater closer to when she is saved so Superman doesn’t seem as distracted.
Trimmed the fight between Superman, Wonder Woman and Doomsday.
Removed Batman’s portion of the fight with Doomsday.
Recut Superman and Clark’s funeral sequences to have the priest’s words play over them.
Removed the bagpipe music during both funerals.
Removed Lex’s lines in his cell after Batman has left.
Moved Lois dropping the dirt on Clark’s casket prior to Bruce’s conversation with Diana.
Removed the dirt rising from Clark’s casket, as the devil painting is now the final shot of the film.
The name’s Lawson. Noah Lawson.