July 13--You're going to have to watch the jam-packed "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" trailer a couple times to take it all in.
The three and a half minute trailer recently released at San Diego Comic-Con includes a couple "Wait, was that...?" clips sure to excite comic book fans, including a blink-and-you'll-miss-it shot of Robin's costume covered in, presumably, The Joker's graffiti and what appears to be an underwater shot of Aquaman.
And then there are the Chicago-area scenes.
While there aren't a ton of them and most are hard to identify for those unfamiliar with the shoot, Chicagoans will likely recognize the lit up Aragon Ballroom sign behind Bruce Wayne's father as a gunman approaches. The movie -- which was mostly shot in Michigan -- filmed the famous scene in Batman folklore at the Uptown neighborhood concert venue in November. The use of the Aragon Ballroom name is a pleasant surprise, seeing how movies often times like to rename the venues they use.
Not as recognizable in the trailer: The Yorkville-area cornfield where Superman's mother, Martha Kent, tells the man of steel that "People hate what they don't understand" and the cemetery right around the corner where the funeral scene, presumably for Thomas and Martha Wayne, was filmed.
"Batman v Superman" is a sequel to 2013's "Man of Steel" and focuses on the carnage of Superman's destructive showdown with villain General Zod in Metropolis. Zod's corpse makes an appearance in the trailer, but it's unclear just how much of a role he plays in the film. I was under the impression that Michael Shannon, who played Zod, was not in the sequel and asked him if he was disappointed he would not be returning.
"I'm not disappointed -- no," Shannon said in November at a fundraiser for A Red Orchid Theatre. "I think for someone in my position to be disappointed about something would be foolish."
The trailer is a significant improvement on the one released in April and, at least for this Batman nerd, a sigh of relief. The first trailer was a little too heavy on director Zack Snyder's trademark green screen scenery. And as much as I like dark films, the first trailer was too dark and depressing. The new trailer has more fun action, more nods to the DC comic books (Did I point out the awesome Joker reference? I did, didn't I?) and memorable scenes to geek out about, including Batman and Superman standing on the batmobile having a staredown.
I can finally say what I have yet to say since this film went into production: I'm excited for "Batman v Superman."
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