Superhero movies. Needless to say, they have dominated mainstream cinema for the greater part of a decade. Marvel certainly inspired other studios to whip out whatever super-powered schlock that they could in an effort to topple or, at the very least, compete with the juggernaut that is the MCU. It was inevitable that Warner Bros. would throw their hat in the ring with their entirely owned roster of iconic superheroes with the likes of Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman. Their attempts at trying to created a connected universe that was barely woven through a small handful of films crashed hard and their direction has changed after the dramatic failure of what should have been a ground-breaking event with their “Justice League” movie. The movie proved a chaotic experience, with the most prolific being the departure of director, Zack Snyder after the tragic death of his daughter. Joss Whedon was brought on to finish it, but he ended up retooling it into something more akin to his style. What we got was a frantic mess of conflicting tones and terrible writing that makes you question how the guy that directed “The Avengers” could make something so horrendous. Fans have been calling for Snyder’s vision for some years now, and after much harassing and bullying, the studio finally keeled over and gave them what they wanted.
I have never been the greatest fanatic of Zack Snyder; his previous directing on “Man of Steel” and “Batman V Superman” churned out miserable experiences with misguided visions and outlooks of these iconic heroes. Knowing that he would be in charge of this crossover left me with a feeling of dread. I was optimistic when Whedon came on board, but was bluntly shut down by just how messy the final product was. I felt done with this universe, not wanting these poorly connected movies and simply yearning for DC to just have fun with the outlandish concepts that they had planned. Hearing that Synder’s scrapped cut was going to get an official release, and that it was going to be four hour long movie, left me exhausted to the point that I was ready to just ignore it completely. Curiosity has gotten the best of me and I used my free NowTV trial JUST to watch this. I found myself pleasantly surprised. I didn’t want to go in hating this movie, but there was an instinctive apprehension that somewhat clouded my judgement in the first half hour. I could not have imagined ever finding such elation and emotion from something that was made by a man who has the maturity level of an overactive teenager. With all this said, it’s time to talk about a cut that had such a troubled history and seemed impossible for a release. This is “Zack Snyder’s Justice League.”
Despite this film, mostly, following the same premise as the theatrical cut, there are many noticeable differences. The story picks up right where “Batman V Superman” left off; the death of Superman (Henry Cavill). Superman’s death scream echoes across the world as it awakens three mysterious boxes, these boxes summon the alien maniac, Steppenwolf, who is aiming to use these magical items to gain the approval of the villainous Darkseid. This is all unbeknownst to Batman (Ben Affleck) who is trying to band together a group of super-powered beings in honor of continuing Superman’s legacy. He uses the aide of amazon warrior, Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) to help recruit the remaining members: sea-folk legend, Aquaman (Jason Momoa), young speedster, Flash (Ezra Miller) and newly cybernetic teenager, Cyborg (Ray Fisher). Aquaman is next in line for the throne to Atlantis, Flash is trying to make his wrongly-imprisoned dad proud of him, and the heart and soul of the movie comes from Cyborg, who is resentful of his scientist father for bringing him back to life and turning him into this cybernetic man. After some reluctance from most of the members, Batman brings together these godly heroes after they learn of Steppenwolf’s plan. The villain manages to harvest the boxes held by the amazons and the atlanteans, but it’s the one in human hands that he must get, and Cyborg knows where it is. The team becomes more and more desperate as they realize there is only person who can guarantee their victory.
Given that this film is a staggering four hours, there is lot to unpack with this one. As Snyder was given full reign to finalize his vision, there is much that the studio allowed him to get away with. One of the biggest issues with the theatrical cut was that Warner Bros. interfered with the production as a knee-reaction to the negative criticisms of previous movies. Being able to watch one clear vision with little to no outside meddling gives us a genuinely entertaining movie. Snyder can often come across as overly arrogant with how seriously he takes his superhero movies, but he manages to find a nice balance that satisfies those who want it. The first half hour does feel like a typical Snyder affair, with overly dramatic slow-mo, dull lightning and religious symbolism, but it begins to pick up when we begin the recruitment process. I found myself smiling and even laughing at the attempts of humor, perhaps due to the darker nature taking precedence, and getting caught off guard. It’s a superhero movie, it doesn’t need to be too violent or miserable. Snyder’s eye for action and creative cinematography is amplified and compliment these lighter moments. The film does rely on muted color-grading and dim lighting as previous films had, but it feels purposeful and far more pleasing on the eye than Whedon’s over-exposed and ugly aesthetic. There were several shots in the movie that were downright gorgeous, as if ripped from the pages of the comics that inspired it. There is fantastic balance in tone all throughout, and that is no more apparent than how it portrays our main heroes.
I have always stood by the idea that Snyder just doesn’t understand Superman. I can’t say this improves here, but as far as the other heroes are concerned, there is a surprisingly concise blend of respect for the characters’ origins and wonderful changes. The Whedon cut pretty much butchered the characters, but none were more massacred than Cyborg. Cyborg was, by far, the blandest of the group in the Whedon cut, but Snyder treats this character as if he were more significant than anyone else. Cyborg’s backstory felt the most humanized, and the emotional beats felt much more fluid as a result. His tragic history, mixed with the contempt he has for his new life is what elevates this character from being more than just a standard namesake character. Even the small act of him trying to help out a single person gave him ten times more intrigue than anything in the Whedon cut. Even his dad is made far more fascinating by the way that film plays against the cliches of the negligent father trope. You can understand both characters and the emotional strife that they have to go through.
Both the Flash and Aquaman were characters I absolutely despised in the original cut, but here, they both have their own charm. Flash is still treated as the comedic relief (I was genuinely surprised how many of the jokes were Snyder’s) but he rarely feels annoying. His introduction scene is one of the greatest in the film; it sets up the tone of the character perfectly and foreshadows has contribution in the final battle. I was never fan of Momoa’s Aquaman, far too egregious and overly-antagonistic for no real reason. Even in his eventual solo film, I couldn’t stand the character. Snyder’s vision for him follows a natural and believable progression. There was never an instance of when I felt that they had overplayed the brashness of the character, and his little moments where he sympathizes with Cyborg felt honest. Batman and Wonder Woman aren’t the focus, they were given time in other movies to give fans some insight, but even here, they feel well utilized. I really disliked how blood-thirsty Batman was in “BVS”, and while Batman does mow down various alien creatures, he feels far closer to his traditional portrayal, counterbalanced by his occasional one-liners. The scene that introduced Wonder Woman is nearly identical to the original cut, but feels far more empowering, encouraging a moment between her a little girl that speaks for the significance of the character’s inception. Though I will say, Wonder Woman feels the least utilized, maybe due to the reliance on her previous solo movie.
As much as I may praise the differences with this film, there is a lot of overly-gratuitous imagery that plagues Snyder’s movies. The religious symbolism that her passionately adores is certainly toned down in comparison, but there ares till plenty of moments. Superman’s resurrection is far more symbolic and the shot of him in a cross pose as he floats towards earth is downright stupid. Even Aquaman is given a moment where a choir of women, in film, begin singing in an operatic nature. It’s hard not to groan and roll your eyes at something this overzealous behavior. Amy Adams’s Lois Lane has very little reason to be in the film until the eventual arrival of Superman. There was nothing remotely interesting to me about her conflict, even when one scene where she talks to Martha Kent is completely undermined by the secret arrival of a shoehorned character. Speaking of said character, this film uses new footage that Snyder decided to add once he had the chance to release this cut. This movie has a meaty epilogue that really drags the film through the dirt. Many already know of the new shots involving Jared Leto’s Joker, and this scene is, by far, the worst scene in entire thing, and only serves the purpose of trying to set up a potential sequel. I also greatly despise Leto’s performance, which is far worse than any scene he had in “Suicide Squad.” This epilogue ends with the previously alluded mystery character in a scene is so pointless and only raises more questions than it does answer them. Had the epilogue ended with the montage of the heroes going about their lives, then it would of been a nice ribbon to tie it all together, but Snyder can’t help but milk the time he has.
When watching films, I tend to focus most on narrative and world-building. As this is a unique cut, it means that it is important to focus on the editing choices. It may seem incredibly minor to complain about things such as lighting and color-grading, but these differences to the original cut are pushed right up against your face. I’ve never been a fan of the overly dark colors that Snyder uses, but they add much to the atmosphere and his cinematography has always been a highlight. The Whedon cut is full of hideous looking shots that make the heroes look ridiculous, even highlighting the issues in the costume design and CGI. Steppenwolf was the biggest victim of this, gaining a horrendous design in said cut that made him look like something out of a PS2-era videogame. The Snyder version is a little busy, but it is quickly explained in universe why it looks the way it does. As minor as it seems, it gives it so much more of an identity. The music in the Snyder cut is phenomenal. Danny Elfman’s score in the Whedon cut is mediocre and reliant on iconic music that doesn’t fit the setting. Junkie XL returns for this particular cut and manages to create something truly impactful and awe-inspiring. The way the “Man of Steel” theme comes back in the final fight was genuinely exciting. The editing in general is so much better, both in effect and pacing. There is over-abundance of slow-mo that feels grating an unnecessary, but when the editing is used well, it really pops.
It’s hard to say whether I find this film to be as good as it is is due to the existence of the theatrical cut, or due to the amount of time it uses to flesh out the characters. Regardless of whatever the answer is, I found myself really enjoying this. This is coming from someone who has repeatedly disavowed the works of Snyder, I even despise films like “300” and “Watchmen” for the same issues I had with his previous DC movies, but there seems to be a balance here. Snyder does seem to have listened to the criticisms given to him and was dead-set on making a film he wanted fans to love. There are some questionable choices, like the forced swearing and violence to gain that “R-rating” and a bizarre choice to have the film 4:3, but this doesn’t ruin the movie for me. I really just wish the epilogue had been cut down and the overly-gratuitous moments weren’t as desperate as they were. What stood out to me was that Snyder didn’t just solely want this film released because he felt screwed over by Warner Bros. but it’s possible that the death of his daughter happening midway through left him with an unfinished duty. The film is a heartwarming tribute to her, and the use of her favorite song as the credits theme adds a beautiful close to this book. It’s hard to despise a movie that is made with such genuine intent. I never thought I would ever find myself enjoying a Zack Snyder film as much as I did, but I am glad I watched it, and glad for the fans that desperately wanted this. It genuinely made me despise the Whedon cut, as opposed to the dull feeling I had previously felt.
Written review by C. Johnson.