Amy Adams

REVIEW: Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021)

My review of the 2017 theatrical version of Justice League.

Determined to ensure Superman’s (Henry Cavill) ultimate sacrifice was not in vain, Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck) aligns forces with Diana Prince (Gal Gadot) with plans to recruit a team of metahumans to protect the world from an approaching threat of catastrophic proportions led by Steppenwolf (Ciarán Hinds).

The trials and tribulations of this film, or this version of this film, are pretty well known and now thanks to HBO Max Zack Snyder has been able to release the version of Justice League that was his ideal vision to release back in 2017 – all four hours of it.

It’s difficult to watch Zack Snyder’s Justice League and not compare it to the film that was released in cinemas in 2017. There are scenes that are exactly the same or similar but extended but then there’s also a whole lot of new footage and backstory on different characters. Much like the 2017 version, I think Zack Snyder’s Justice League is mostly fine, it’s still messy but it is a bit more coherent and thematically consistent. It’s just that if you’re not keen on how Snyder represents these characters, making them more like God-like warriors than superheroes, then you’ll probably not be too over keen on this film.

Cyborg (Ray Fisher) gets the most out of this new version. As a character he gets so much more to do, more character development and he does kind of become the heart and driving force of this team of heroes. Fisher’s performance isn’t always great, but his character goes from being an almost non-entity to the glue that holds this team together – and his relationship with his father Silas Stone (Joe Morton) is a big subplot of the film.

Steppenwolf is given more of a backstory too so becomes a bit more than a generic villain who wants to destroy the world. The CGI with all the spikes in his suit makes him appear more menacing and with the extra blood and violence he does seem like a sizable threat.

The four-hour runtime of Zack Snyder’s Justice League is a bit intimidating, and you do feel it at times. Slow-motion shots are a big part of Snyder’s directing style and there’s a lot in here. In fact, the use of them is excessive as shots that look cool in a trailer (Jason Momoa’s Aquaman standing in the waves) last for minutes as you have to see them in slow-mo and from every angle, and then there’s sequences like a football game that’s also in slow-mo which seems pointless. These shots may look cool, but having so much slow-motion shots used, all the time no matter the context of the scene, makes them lose their impact when they’re used in a big action sequences.

I think that’s a good way to sum up Zack Snyder’s Justice League. A lot of the time it looks cool but those visual, stylistic choices don’t necessarily make a good film. With it’s four-hour runtime there’s a lot of exposition and action and some it works while some of it doesn’t. More padding around the plot makes it a more consistent film than the one released in 2017, but I see little reason for it to be four hours. There’s probably a really good two-and-a-half to three-hour Justice League movie in here.

If you had problems with the 2017 film, you may like this version more. If you liked the 2017 version, there may be some stuff to like here but there’s not as much slapstick comedy for instance. Zack Snyder’s Justice League is long, often dour but frequently visually interesting. There are a few nice character moments (how the dynamic between Wonder Woman and Aquaman is briefly explored is one of my favourite moments) but then other characters are pushed aside (Amy Adams’ Lois Lane). It’s the balance between character and action and pacing that’s lacking and often makes Zack Snyder’s Justice League a bit of a slog but the film does just enough to keep you watching – if only out of morbid curiosity. 2/5.

If you want to hear my spoiler-filled thoughts on this film, I featured on JumpCast’s Zack Snyder’s Justice League episode that was released today.

REVIEW: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)

batman v supermanBatman (Ben Affleck) vows to take on Superman (Henry Cavil) when he fears that if the alien’s actions remain unchecked, it could mean even more pain and destruction for humanity. Meanwhile Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg) is using Kryptonian technology to fuel his own ambitions and the world tries to decide what sort of hero they want and need.

This is Ben Affleck’s first outing as Bruce Wayne/Batman and he is brilliant in both roles. He is an older Bruce Wayne who has been the Batman for twenty years so he’s seen some stuff and is a bit world-weary and cynical. His relationship with Alfred (Jeremy Irons) is great and Alfred in general offers some great lines and the film shows how well Alfred and Bruce work together. All the Batman-related stuff is definitely a highlight of the film.

When Batman and Superman fight, it is brutal and it’s kind of great to watch. These are two of the biggest superheroes out there so to watch them duke it out is a sight to behold. Also when Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) finally makes her appearance it is an amazing “hero” moment and the soundtrack that starts when she appears is my new favourite piece of music.

The main problem with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is that there are a lot of characters with their own agendas so there are a lot of plot threads that don’t always seem vital or complete. Bruce Wayne has his own agenda, Lex Luthor has his own agenda and so does Wonder Woman, Clark Kent and even Lois Lane (Amy Adams). All these things are there and some of them are interesting but they just don’t really tie together that well. All these threads mean that the film feels really disjointed and the pacing isn’t that great a lot of the time, the first hour chunk especially is trying to set up so much stuff that it feels a bit bogged down and slow.

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is the launching pad for the DC Cinematic Universe and while it does a good job setting up some characters like Batman and Wonder Woman, sometimes it feels like it’s too much of a set up and there’s a moment where the film seems to pause to show off some characters that we’re very likely to see in future films. Batman v Superman feels like it’s trying to be too many things. As well as being a starting point for a new franchise, it feels like a gritty action film and a political thriller with the courtroom drama stuff. It feels like there’s too many ideas gone into Batman v Superman and not all of them worked or fitted together cohesively.

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is an alright film, there’s some great moments that really pull you in but on the whole there’s too much going on and the pacing of it isn’t so great. 3/5.