My brother David Salazar defends "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" on its mythological aspects. Head over to the second part of this review series.

"Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" is one of the most anticipated films of the year, and without a doubt, it is exciting to see Superman (Henry Cavill) and Batman (Ben Affleck) united alongside Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot). However, if fans are expecting an incredibly original and thought-provoking film, this will be a huge disappointment. You can defend it for its mythological aspects as David does in his review but this movie is a complete knockoff of Christopher Nolan's Batman films, with scenes clearly ripped from the pages of "The Dark Knight," "Batman Begins" and "The Dark Knight Rises."

The film tells the story of Batman, who takes on the Man of Steel while the world figures out what they want in a hero. Meanwhile, Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg) seeks a way to take out the godly hero himself.

Origin Story

From the beginning of the film, it is very obvious the path this movie is heading down. Like in "Batman Begins," Zack Snyder decides to show audiences the origin story of Bruce Wayne and Batman. Bruce's parents are shot and killed, impacting him as a child. He then falls down a mysterious tunnel that leads him into a cave full of bats. He embraces the bats and becomes Batman.

There is nothing interesting or original about this set up, and it is tiresome, as it is completely shot in slow motion, making for an excruciatingly long sequence. The sad truth is that, at this point, that origin story is rather dull and unoriginal. Snyder might as well have skipped it.

The director does try to add a nice twist to it, but it doesn't make up for his tired used of the same slow-mo technique over and over again.

The other issue with opening the film like this is that it sets up Batman as the lead character. But he slowly turns into a supporting role so the Superman story can proceed.

The opening is rather cluttered as a whole, with the sequences jumping from one character to the next for a full 30 minutes, not only creating a sloppy rhythm, but preventing the movie from taking off. That this sequential jump cutting continues for the duration only adds to the overall frustration.

The New Joker

Yes, everyone is excited that Jared Leto is playing The Joker in "Suicide Squad," but writers David Goyer and Chris Terrio created a Joker-like version of Lex Luthor for "Batman v Superman." Not only do Eisenberg's voice, hipster look, hair and laugh resemble Heath Ledger's Joker in "The Dark Knight," but Lex's master plans also seem to follow similar patterns.

There is one sequence in which Luthor kidnaps Martha Kent (Diane Lane) and sets a time limit for Superman to rescue her. The set up is almost exactly the same as a sequence with Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) in "The Dark Knight."

Then there is a sequence where Luthor throws Lois Lane (Amy Adams) from a skyscraper, and the Man of Steel has to fly off to save her. If that does not recall "The Dark Knight," then audiences will have fun with a sequence where a senator is blown up and the Man of Steel is posed as a risk to society. Anyone recall when the Joker blew up a judge and killed a number of policemen in "Dark Knight"? And if Eisenberg's Joker ripoff wasn't enough, Wonder Woman is the new Catwoman.

The New Catwoman

Wonder Woman is introduced in a revealing dress that recalls Catwoman's outfit from "The Dark Knight Rises." Unfortunately, this character is nowhere near as developed as Anne Hathaway's incarnation of Batman's nemesis.

Like Catwoman, Wonder Woman is introduced stealing things from Bruce Wayne, setting up something similar to the clean slate from "The Dark Knight Rises." Unlike Catwoman's clear motivation in the "Batman" movie, Wonder Woman's interest in the item is never revealed at all.

Wonder Woman is again seen in a party sequence, similar to the one where Catwoman steals Wayne's car. Her final decision to join Batman and Superman is unclear, but it is set up in the same way as Catwoman. There are also similarities in two key action sequences.

The Action Sequences

It doesn't help that Goyer wrote "The Dark Knight" series, but to include sequences identical to fights from earlier films is concerning. In one sequence, Batman chases after a truck from which enemies shoot bazookas at his Batmobile. This sequence is identical to the one where the Joker is trying to kidnap Harvey Dent and Batman is trying to stop him. The difference, however, is that in "Batman v Superman," this sequence is filled with so many cuts that it is hard to understand what is going on.

Then there is another sequence where Batman goes after a certain hostage and Alfred is guiding him. Once he gets to the warehouse where the captive is being held, he has to battle a number of thugs before getting to the hostage. This sequence is almost a carbon copy of the final sequence in "The Dark Knight," just before Batman battles the Joker. Again, the quick cutting and bombastic soundtrack make it hard to follow.

The Music

Hans Zimmer created one of the most memorable "Batman" scores in years, and he also created a great "Man of Steel" score. However, Junkie XL seemed to struggle with creating a new theme for Batman. Every time Batman came onscreen it sounded like "The Dark Knight' theme was going to come up. It is hard not to think of the iconic music from that earlier film when the music for "Batman v Superman" was bass heavy and similar rhythms continuously came up.

This film ultimately acts as a setup for the upcoming "Justice League" films, but it is still incomprehensible why certain characters even show up and why they even need to be in the film. It is also unclear why this film needs to be so dreary, without a single comic touch to lighten the proceedings.

Snyder has used the desaturated look on all his films, but in this case it does not add anything to the movie or to the themes of the film.

Finally, that slow motion really needs to go. To use it sparingly would give scenes poignancy or resonance. But to have it show up every five minutes simply bogs down the film. (Why is it so essential to have slow motion when someone visits a grave or Lex Luthor enters the downed Kryptonian ship?).

Ultimately, this movie is sloppy. It may be fun for those who enjoy seeing two of the most popular superheroes ever on screen together, but ultimately it's a ripoff of better films.