Written by Chris Terrio and David S. Goyer, and directed by Zack Snyder, Batman v Superman was a fairly contentious movie when it was first released, inspiring deeply polarized responses from those who either passionately loved it or hated it.

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Those that found themselves enjoying the movie certainly found a lot to love within it, with almost every moment being detailed with some kind of nod to the pasts of the two main characters or to any of a number of other sources, ranging from biblical and mythological to political. Let's take a look at 10 of the most memorable, most thought-provoking, and all-around best quotes that the movie delivered.

“That’s how it starts, sir. The fever. The rage. The feeling of powerlessness. It turns good men cruel.” (Alfred Pennyworth)

Alfred Pennyworth looking serious in the Batcave in Batman v Superman

Where would Batman be without Alfred Pennyworth? The Caped Crusader's trusted confidant has been by his side through thick and thin, and Jeremy Irons so perfectly captured the character's softly nurturing and guiding influence.

In a more serious moment between the two, Alfred begins to show his concern over Batman's increasingly extreme behavior after Superman's destructive introduction to the world. It also establishes the theme of impotence–which is mostly shown in the story through Batman–quite early on in the movie.

“Men with power obey neither policy nor principle, Miss Lane. No one is different. No one is neutral.” (General Amajagh)

General Amajagh in sunglasses leaning back in his chair in the compund at the beginning of Batman v Superman

The plot of the movie is kickstarted by a meeting between Lois Lane and the elusive General of a rebel group in the midst of a civil war. Before the situation quickly goes south, the two have a brief conversation about the military contractors within the compound and the US military drones that pass over it.

The conflict is brought back home with Lois Lane and this line sets up a lot of the central issues within the story such as tribalism and abuse of power.

“We’re criminals, Alfred. We’ve always been criminals, nothing’s changed.” (Bruce Wayne)

Bruce Wayne and Alfred Pennyworth standing by the monitors in the Batcave in Batman v Superman

Zack Snyder's take on Batman was one that encompassed the character's whole history, particularly as a somewhat problematic icon. Coming off of the Christopher Nolan years of the character in movies, Ben Affleck's Batman also leans heavily into the vigilante side of the persona but in a much more morally ambiguous kind of way.

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This line comes during the audience's first real introduction to Bruce Wayne in a relaxed setting, speaking his mind, and acts as a great hint to Batman's jaded and borderline cynical nature that is progressively revealed throughout the story.

“How do we determine what’s good? In a democracy, good is a conversation, not a unilateral decision.” (Senator Finch)

Senator June Finch addressing reporters in Batman v Superman

The political theater that Lex Luthor engineers throughout the movie against Superman is represented mostly by US Senator June Finch from Kentucky, who is one of the many characters attempting to get to the bottom of what Luthor has been planning.

Despite being obligated to follow up on the misinformation that Luthor has created, she's never villainous in the movie and her concerns about Superman seem entirely genuine and reasonable. She drops this pearl of wisdom when she asks for Superman to come forward to be questioned by her committee investigating his potential abuses of power. Sadly, when he does, it's all used by Luthor for his own ends.

“Do you know the oldest lie in America, senator? It’s that power can be innocent.” (Lex Luthor)

Lex Luthor in the Capitol building in Batman v Superman

As the Capitol building prepares to receive Superman to question him over his actions, Senator Finch and Lex Luthor meet outside the hearing room. Finch is feeling confident, as she's discovered that Luthor had engineered a massacre blamed on Superman earlier in the story. However, Luthor's endgame has already been set in motion.

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Knowing that this is the last time he will see her alive, Luthor doesn't have to offer up this admission of his broken worldview, echoing what General Amajagh says to Lois Lane at the beginning of the movie. But he does anyway, further illustrating his coldness after deliberately sending his assistant, Mercy, to go in to save him a seat that he'll never take, well within the range of the bomb that he's planted there.

“Good luck for one is always his brother’s misfortune.” // “But all accounts are balanced in the end.” (Anatoli Knyazev and Bruce Wayne)

Bruce Wayne at the underground fight in Batman v Superman

Conflict is the most important theme at the core of Batman v Superman, both its causes and its effects, with this short exchange between Bruce Wayne and a mercenary that he's tracking highlighting the Cain and Abel quality to the animosity between Batman and Superman in the movie.

The two are referring to Bruce Wayne's upset win at an underground fighting ring after he influences the outcome by giving one of the fighters some Batman-quality advice. But it doubles quite nicely as one of the many pieces of foreshadowing peppered throughout the story that all allude to Superman's sacrifice at the end of the story.

"Human beings have a horrible track record of following people with great power down paths that lead to huge human atrocities." (Glen Woodburn)

Glen Woodburn on TV in Batman v Superman

Journalism and its impact is another recurring theme throughout Batman v Superman that holds a special significance when considering Clark Kent's and Lois Lane's shared profession.

Woodburn is a character that first appeared in Man of Steel and is established to be successful within the world of blogging but not particularly reputable. Nevertheless, this observation rings undeniably true in a montage of talking heads discussing the ethical and political issues raised by the existence of Superman.

“See, what we call God depends upon our tribe, Clark-Joe. Because God is tribal. God takes sides.” (Lex Luthor)

Lex Luthor talking to Superman on top of the Lexcorp tower in Batman v Superman

For all his wrongheaded thinking and outright instability, Lex Luthor does demonstrate throughout the movie that he's actually quite intelligent, if not as intelligent as he may like to think.

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When he confronts Superman properly atop the Lexcorp tower before sending him off to fight Batman, Lex lets Clark Kent/Kal-El have it, mocking his Otherness and showing that his evil plans are rooted in a misguided philosophy that is far more bigoted than even Batman's. Yet, the audience is still able to understand how he twisted the logic of the world around him to reach his conclusions.

“You were never a God. You were never even a man.” (Batman/Bruce Wayne)

Batman looks down at Superman in his broken helmet at the end of Batman v Superman

On a slightly more redeemable end of the philosophical spectrum to Lex Luthor is Batman, who is possessed by a similarly consuming obsession with Superman that stems from his own ego being destroyed by this powerful being.

Up until his epiphany, Batman rationalizes his hatred by dehumanizing Superman. But his delusion crumbles when Lois Lane reveals that not only does Superman have a human mother that he begs for the life of even in his final moments, her name is the same as his own.

"...the world only makes sense if you force it to.” (Batman/Bruce Wayne)

Batman in his broken armor at the end of Batman v Superman

“I bet that your parents taught you that you mean something. That you're here for a reason. My parents taught me a different lesson, dying in the gutter for no reason at all. They taught me the world only makes sense if you force it to.”

Batman v Superman deals with some heavy themes sometimes, and a lot of them are personified in the story by the character of Batman, who straddles a line between villain and hero. This particular line is one of the many things that was directly taken from Frank Miller's comic mini-series, The Dark Knight Returnsand it perfectly sums up the wilfully delusional mindset that Bruce Wayne has slipped into. In attempting to escape the cruelty of reality that he was forced to witness as a child, he has chosen an arbitrary worldview that deliberately creates conflict, ultimately putting him in the position where he has become the aggressive, murderous, force that caused his own trauma to begin with.

NEXT: 8 Reasons Why Batman v Superman Isn’t As Bad As People Say It Is (& 2 Reasons It Is)