BvS Jesse Eisenberg IS Lex Luthor - Part 8

[Boy Scout]

I agree with this, its why he was great at being the young Lex.

Definitely. I would've supported a more morally ambiguous Lex going forward. It would've made his relationship with Clark - and eventually Superman - really interesting. It's a shame they didn't really go in that direction.

 

[GreenKToo]

Also, wearing a terrible wig and dressing like...that might be a simple, yet effective way of making people underestimate him.



He gets a bad rap, but I think Hackman's Lex was a lot of fun. Nothing close to the Lex Luthor I grew up with, mind you, but that's never bothered me.

THIS is what i'm hoping we're seeing here, an intentional bad look on LL's part to make himself look weak. Maybe it's a scene with a rival ceo, or maybe it's a scene with Bruce Wayne. Lex wants to look weak.

 

[DOBSON10]

LOL. I can only say the same thing I said about the new Joker look, I honestly can't believe they looked at this and said "Looks good, we're done". He looks ridiculous and nothing like Lex Luthor. This does nothing to ease my trepidation about this casting choice, in fact it just makes me question it even more.

 

[Lencho01]

Rosenbaum could've been great if 1) the writing on SV had been better and 2) if he weren't so likable. He excelled, more often than not, when he had to portray Lex as a morally ambiguous character. He just wasn't as good when he had to be outright evil.

Lionel felt more like the end-game Lex to me. Never really got to see Rosenbaum do that. But, there was Onyx Lex (I think he's generally referred to as Alexander) and he was so fun to watch.

 

[rockandrollsoul]

LOL. I can only say the same thing I said about the new Joker look, I honestly can't believe they looked at this and said "Looks good, we're done". He looks ridiculous and nothing like Lex Luthor. This does nothing to ease my trepidation about this casting choice, in fact it just makes me question it even more.

Eisenberg's gonna wreck it. I'll bet dollars to donuts that a year from now, you'll be singing his praises or at the very least admitting it's a great performance though not the interpretation you would have preferred.

 

[Astro13Zombie]

There's really no point in *****ing about his hair since we know for a fact that it's not a permanent look.

 

[Astro13Zombie]

*travels back to 1977*

That looks nothing like Lex Luthor.
Hair?
They don't know what they're doing.
Who okayed this ****?

 

[rockandrollsoul]

There's really no point in *****ing about his hair since we know for a fact that it's not a permanent look.

I know, right? Honestly, I'm not so sure it's meant to be wig. It doesn't look any more obvious to me than the wigs worn in most films / shows other than we know Eisenberg's hair looks nothing like that. Regarding the look, they are clearly going for a more modern interpretation of Lex. This Lex looks like he would fit right in with our modern tech moguls.

I can understand if some prefer the classic Lex look (I certainly am ecstatic they went with a classic Batman look), but what we're getting doesn't bother me. In fact, I prefer it to the imposing look he's traditionally portrayed as it implies his actions and characteristics must be very well defined if he's to be believed as Superman's arch-nemesis and one of the most dangerous people on Earth.

 

[MrsKent26]

I'm not worried about Jesse, regardless of his look in the photo. Perhaps it's because I know he can act.

 

[rockandrollsoul]

I'm not worried about Jesse, regardless of his look in the photo. Perhaps it's because I know he can act.

Bingo. Then again, Spacey and Hackman are great actors...

 

[MrsKent26]

^ The acting from those two didn't bother me, but the character portrayals were ill-conceived IMO.

At least we know we'll get something different this time since we're out of the Donnerverse.

 

[matt47]

There's really no point in *****ing about his hair since we know for a fact that it's not a permanent look.

It's not the look of the hair though, it's just the fact that they're going to go with the route of him losing his hair. I dunno, I just don't like it, I wished it wasn't gonna be an issue.

 

[rockandrollsoul]

^ The acting from those two didn't bother me, but the character portrayals were ill-conceived IMO.

At least we know we'll get something different this time since we're out of the Donnerverse.

That's what I was referring to and, yes, can't wait to see something different. Eisenberg is inspired casting.

 

[ThePhantasm]

LOL. I can only say the same thing I said about the new Joker look, I honestly can't believe they looked at this and said "Looks good, we're done". He looks ridiculous and nothing like Lex Luthor. This does nothing to ease my trepidation about this casting choice, in fact it just makes me question it even more.

 

[Bruce Malone]

It's ridiculous when we see Spacey playing Frank Underwood and thinking of the decision they made for him as lex luthor.

 

[DOBSON10]

*travels back to 1977*

That looks nothing like Lex Luthor.
Hair?
They don't know what they're doing.
Who okayed this ****?

I thought Hackman and his interpretation of Lex Luthor were awful in those movies. So that "point" holds no bearing with me. Granted, I didn't watch those movies as a child, I watched them fairly recently, so I don't have nostalgia to influence my experience, personally, I didn't really like anything about those movies.

But as expected, the White Knights come rushing on this site whenever you DARE to say anything negative about the DCU. Sorry that I don't love every single tiny little detail of the DCU. There are plenty of things I like, a few I don't, this is one of those things. That is allowed despite you and your buddies rushing to the rescue.

I'm not worried about Jesse, regardless of his look in the photo. Perhaps it's because I know he can act.

Just because you are a good actor, doesn't mean you fit every single movie role. How he looks is not my main factor for not liking the casting choice, it's one of very many reasons, but it doesn't help that he also looks ridiculous in that picture. Overall I'm quite positive about this movie, Jesse as Lex however is the one thing that really worries me.

Eisenberg's gonna wreck it. I'll bet dollars to donuts that a year from now, you'll be singing his praises or at the very least admitting it's a great performance though not the interpretation you would have preferred.

Nothing would please me more than for this to be true, I certainly don't want him to fail because it will hurt a movie that I personally hope will be incredible but I'm not holding my breath. I simply don't see any scenario where he pulls this off that will be convincing for me. I have no doubt that alot of people will love his performance, possibly even the majority of people who watch the movie, I just don't think I'll be one of those people.

 

[MrsKent26]

Just because you are a good actor, doesn't mean you fit every single movie role. How he looks is not my main factor for not liking the casting choice, it's one of very many reasons, but it doesn't help that he also looks ridiculous in that picture. Overall I'm quite positive about this movie, Jesse as Lex however is the one thing that really worries me.

I agree and I'm aware that even good actors can mess up a role. His skills just give me more confidence in him than if he were an untested actor; they don't cause me to assume with 100% faith that he'll be good. There are elements in his previous performances that I think would fit Lex. Also, as long as this Lex is a truly threatening villain, I'm not against deviation from the classic (to some extent).

 

[DOBSON10]

I agree and I'm aware that even good actors can mess up a role. His skills just give me more confidence in him than if he were an untested actor; they don't cause me to assume with 100% faith that he'll be good. There are elements in his previous performances that I think would fit Lex.

Hey, fair enough. I never said everyone should share my concerns.

Also, as long as this Lex is a truly threatening villain, I'm not against deviation from the classic (to some extent).

This is my biggest concern regarding Jesse as Lex. The word threatening is something that never enters my mind when watching Jesse Eisenberg. And that goes far beyond just his looks or physical stature, I'm talking about his entire acting skill set as well. He's never shown that type of screen presence to me and having seen about 10 of his movies (including The Double, Now You See Me & Social Network for those itching to tell me to watch those to see his darker side), I don't think he's capable of it either. But I never asked anyone to agree with me on that, more power to you if you think he can pull it off, I just don't see it happening. I'm not saying that this role requires an actor's greatest performance to pull it off, but in this case, for Eisenberg to pull of a convincing villain, it's going to take his greatest performance for me to find it believable.

 

[Astro13Zombie]

It's not the look of the hair though, it's just the fact that they're going to go with the route of him losing his hair. I dunno, I just don't like it, I wished it wasn't gonna be an issue.

Who says that's what they're doing though?
How do you know it's not a wig?

 

[Wise]

It's kind of odd how Corey Stoll in Antman who isn't playing Lex resembles Lex way more in dress style and general appearance/age than Jesse who is actually playing Lex.

Love Stoll's work. It's a shame Marvel grabbed him and will probably only use him in one movie.

 

[rockandrollsoul]

It's kind of odd how Corey Stoll in Antman who isn't playing Lex resembles Lex way more in dress style and general appearance/age than Jesse who is actually playing Lex.

Love Stoll's work. It's a shame Marvel grabbed him and will probably only use him in one movie.

Just seeing what could have been makes me really happy with what we got.

 

[MrsKent26]

This is my biggest concern regarding Jesse as Lex. The word threatening is something that never enters my mind when watching Jesse Eisenberg. And that goes far beyond just his looks or physical stature, I'm talking about his entire acting skill set as well. He's never shown that type of screen presence to me and having seen about 10 of his movies (including The Double, Now You See Me & Social Network for those itching to tell me to watch those to see his darker side), I don't think he's capable of it either. But I never asked anyone to agree with me on that, more power to you if you think he can pull it off, I just don't see it happening. I'm not saying that this role requires an actor's greatest performance to pull it off, but in this case, for Eisenberg to pull of a convincing villain, it's going to take his greatest performance for me to find it believable.

It really is interesting how people can see things so differently. There's a certain clip I'm thinking off, from The Social Network, that is very Lex and subtly threatening, but I reckon you probably already know which one that is given that you've seen that movie. To me, he had presence there, albeit in an odd sort of way. I guess that type of villain appeals to me because it's realistic (I know, I know. That's a dirty word anywhere south of 2008).

We've had our share of James Bond type villains with their crackpot schemes and lots of "take over the world/universe!" warlords, but none of those seem like threatening, and more importantly entertaining, villains anymore. If they play into some of Eisenberg's strengths (and frankly, typecasting), they might be able to make something special. I'm pretty sure that I'd enjoy a fusion of a new age Zuckerberg/Jobs-type "nerd with power" with some classic Azzarello Man of Steel hatred and philosophies.

I understand your concerns and I'm not trying to talk you out of them. I just think it's interesting to see why some people are optimistic and others are skeptical.

 

[Wise]

It really is interesting how people can see things so differently. There's a certain clip I'm thinking off, from The Social Network, that is very Lex and subtly threatening, but I reckon you probably already know which one that is given that you've seen that movie. To me, he had presence there, albeit in an odd sort of way. I guess that type of villain appeals to me because it's realistic (I know, I know. That's a dirty word anywhere south of 2008).

We've had our share of James Bond type villains with their crackpot schemes and lots of "take over the world/universe!" warlords, but none of those seem like threatening, and more importantly, entertaining villains anymore. If they play into some of Eisenberg's strengths (and frankly, typecasting), they might be able to make something special. I'm pretty sure that I'd enjoy a fusion of a new age Zuckerberg/Jobs-type "nerd with power" with some classic Azzarello Man of Steel hatred and philosophies.

I understand your concerns and I'm not trying to talk you out of them. I just think it's interesting to see why some people are optimistic and others are skeptical.

I don't think Jesse ever came across as threatening in Social Network. Brash and awkwardly arrogant maybe, but never threatening.

 

[MrsKent26]

I don't think Jesse ever came across as threatening in Social Network. Brash and awkwardly arrogant maybe, but never threatening.

The arrogance was part of it, IMO. He came off like someone who knew he could get away with certain things and to me, that constitutes "threatening."

At any rate, I don't expect Jesse to just play Zuckerberg again. I just think he has what it takes to be an atypical type of threat with the right script. A villain who possess the intelligence and ruthlessness to destroy someone behind closed doors, but at other times, appears to be a non-threatening weakling would make for an entertaining threat. I think Jesse could do that.

 

[ThePhantasm]

Lex isn't supposed to be physically threatening. He's supposed to be intelligent.