Zack Snyder’s Justice League
HBO MAXFor all of its pomp, bluster, and self-ascribed importance, Zack Snyder’s four-hour long cut of Justice League, indicatively titled Zack Snyder’s Justice League, only proves that it’s possible to have too much of a good thing. Certainly, the fact that Snyder was awarded the funding and wherewithal by Warner Bros. to complete his vision given the tragic circumstances surrounding his initial departure and replacement by Joss Whedon on the 2017 film is a win for filmmakers everywhere. But the intense vitriol and exponential hype whipped up by Snyder’s fans online made it seem as if any director who had made a mediocre movie deserved, nay, were entitled to a premium director’s cut. Maybe Snyder did set out to make a four-hour long movie in the first place. But whatever his intentions, it’s generally a good idea to take feedback in stride instead of being egged on by yes-men.
Frankly, neither the four-hour runtime nor the online enthusiasm was justified by the film itself. It does improve on Justice League in practically every regard, but the design flaws present at the center – not heart, because that’s something still lacking – of the film are still here. The Marvel Avengers blueprint that the film religiously follows is a major weight holding it back, especially since neither the charm of the Marvel characters nor the slick pacing are carried over.
Although the fan service is not as ridiculously over-the-top as it is in some Marvel and Star Wars installments, it still exists nonetheless, and every time it pops up, it’s painfully obvious that each scene could have been excised from the movie entirely without any effect. The movie’s trailers and marketing promised brand-new heroes and villains, but Chris Terrio’s screenplay never figures out how to effectively integrate them into the storyline. Thus, Jared Leto’s Joker, Joe Manganiello’s Deathstroke, and Harry Lennix’s Martian Manhunter, among others, are little more than window dressing.
Admittedly, the central characters are marginally better than they were in the 2017 original. Ray Fisher’s Cyborg gets the biggest makeover, as he is actually given a backstory, and Ben Affleck’s unfairly maligned Batman feels much more like a protagonist. Ezra Miller’s Flash is funnier than he was four years ago, perhaps because there’s less forced humor around him, so he really gets to shine. Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) and Aquaman (Jason Momoa) are about the same – that is, not as good as in their solo adventures. They do make a strange unforced error when it comes to Wonder Woman though, opting to replace some of her galvanising theme song with an almost primal chant-type noise. It’s always jarring whenever it pops up and it’s all the more a shame given that her original theme is so energising and always the best part of any movie it’s in.
Henry Cavill’s Superman is almost not worth mentioning. He has very little screen time and very little to do, and just about the only major change made to his character is purely cosmetic. It’s unclear what the shift from the colorful suit to the black suit was supposed to accomplish, because anyone who’s watched Man of Steel or Batman v Superman already knows this is a darker take on the character. And this movie doesn’t necessarily represent him going down an even darker path, unless you count the tacked on “knightmare” sequences, which are pure set-up for sequels and follow some strange logic. The treatment of Superman also represents larger systemic issues within the DCEU. Introduced in 2013 with Man of Steel, Superman is killed off in his very next film, Batman v Superman, and he is subsequently brought to life in the immediate sequel, which is this film. That might just be the epitome of “rushed.”
On a more macro level, Snyder expects his audience to care far more for his characters than his films have put in the time and effort to make them compelling. There are not really any legitimate emotional connections for any of these characters, and every time the movie tries to establish one, it falls flat on its face. Take Cyborg, for instance, who may have the most heart-wrenching origin but is still little more than a robot by the film’s end.
Another unearned part of the film are the backdoor sequels it poorly sets up. This cut heavily advertised the arrival of Darkseid, the fearsome boss to Steppenwolf. But instead of him taking over as the main villain, he is no more than DC’s equivalent to Thanos in the Avengers franchise. The sequel set up here, with Darkseid gathering his forces for a second invasion of earth is bound to be nowhere near as good as any of the Avengers films. It’s essentially the same exact plot as this one, only with a different video game boss for the heroes to fight.
Still, there are enjoyable qualities to Snyder’s “epic.” In superb contrast to the lifeless Marvel films, Snyder always brings great visual flair to his films, and this might be his most aesthetically inspired to date, at least within the DCEU. The 4:3 aspect ratio that accompanies his “creative vision” actually works and isn’t some gimmick to flaunt the purported artistry of his movie. Shots are well-framed, action scenes well-shot, and epic moments do, indeed, feel epic. Instead of the gray color palette of the MCU, the colors are interesting to look at here. And most of the effects-work is quite well done, particularly the way the Flash’s powers are visualised and the vast improvements to Steppenwolf’s design. In some moments, though, the CGI does feel unfinished, as with Martian Manhunter, whose visual effects are legitimately worse looking than the character’s equivalent on the DC CW shows – a very low bar, for the uninitiated.
This is also, despite its bloated runtime, a much more watchable movie than the original Justice League. That film always ranked at the bottom of DCEU lists, but this one is more likely to end up somewhere near the top. It’s cohesive and makes much more sense than its predecessor. The pacing is surprisingly good for a film of its length, and it’s generally a much more competent and capable film than the original. The conflicting visions of Snyder and Whedon made that film messy and Frankenstein’s monster-esque. This one, while not flawless, is no slouch. It sets out to tell a specific story, and more or less tells that story its own way. While that story might not be all that intriguing and is pretty familiar to fans of the superhero genre, props to Snyder for seeing his project through to the end.
