Having just returned from watching it, I ponder the question, “Is Batman v Superman appropriate for kids?” You’ll have to answer that for yourself, but here’s some information to help you decide whether you and your kids should see it on the big screen, wait for home viewing, or skip it altogether.
So here are the causes for concern:
Sex: Supes (Superman for non-comic book fans) gets a different kind of action in this movie. This was the one area of the film I thought didn’t fit in. Here’s the scenario: Lois Lane is sitting in a bathtub and Clark Kent enters. Lois almost shows her full breasts, but strategically placed water and movement hides her nipples. Then, after a few minutes of banter, Clark gets in the tub. Sex is not seen, but the implication is pretty strong. The scene wasn’t necessary.
Language: I only remember one curse word and if you have seen the trailers, it is where Batman drops the line, “Oh, shit.” Other than that, the language is pretty clean.
Violence: Well, it is a superhero movie and there’s plenty of violence. What separates this movie from other DC movies, though, is the violence is more intense. A lot of people get shot in this movie, and in some cases, the gun shots are close up. However, you do not see blood or gore. Buildings are also torn down with people inside. Explosions are a plenty and many people die in this movie. And of course, there’s a lot of fighting. It wouldn’t be a superhero movie without fight scenes.
I took my 11-year-old son and 9-year-old daughter to see the movie and they were both fine with the content. The bathtub scene was the only scene I was uncomfortable with. If your kids have trouble watching people in peril, then you might need to skip this movie. If you have issues with your children getting early lessons on the birds and the bees; when you see Lois in the tub, take a bathroom break. I have a 4-year-old and it will be several years before he sees this movie.
And now here are my thoughts on if Batman v Superman is good.
The movie is getting some bad reviews and has a 30% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. I disagree completely with the critics. I actually really liked this movie. I’m a big comic book fan, and there were a couple of things I did not like about the movie (such as the tub scene and a plot issue I won’t get into because this is a non-spoiler review), but all in all, I liked it.
About Batman. I thought Ben Affleck did a great job playing the Dark Knight. Every Batman fight scene was thrilling to watch and Affleck brought a more jaded outlook on life to the role and it worked.
About Wonder Woman: Every scene with Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman is right on. My daughter loved watching Wonder Woman in action. There’s one scene in particular where she uses her bracelets to fight off the powers from Doomsday. My daughter was on the verge of cheering from her seat.
About Superman: I liked Henry Cavil’s performance in Man of Steel and once again he gives another fantastic performance. I said over a year ago that he should have more Superman movies under his belt before producers begin adding additional superheroes, and I still stand by that. But, he does a great job in the role. I wish we would have seen more of him in Batman v Superman, but I understand Zach Snyder (the director) probably wanted to relaunch Batman for the upcoming Justice League movie.
So, in a nutshell, go see Batman v Superman if you love superhero movies. Don’t listen to the critics or those that love to rip movies apart. I enjoyed my time watching the movie and might even go back for another viewing. But, if you do see it with little ones, be ready for one sex scene, one bad word, and lots of fighting.
There are no post-credit scenes, so no need to wait around.
Now for little kids 🙂