Justice League

Starring: Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Gal Gadot, Ezra Miller, Jason Momoa, Ray Fisher, Jeremy Irons, Diane Lane, Connie Nielsen, J.K. Simmons, Ciaran Hinds (voice), Amber Heard, Joe Morton, David Thewlis, Billy Crudup (uncredited), Jesse Eisenberg (uncredited), Joe Manganiello (uncredited), Robin Wright (uncredited), Holy McCallany (uncredited)
Directed by: Zack Snyder
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
2017

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: When Earth is threatened by Steppenwolf (Ciaran Hinds), a group of powered individuals must come together to stop him.

Review:

Tim: If you had told me at any point in the last two decades that they would one day make a Justice League movie- bringing together DC's most iconic heroes- AND that I wouldn't see the film in theaters, I would have immediately understood that you had no concept of who I was. And yet, that's exactly what happened. Now, some of that is being a father and having a much higher standard for what films I'll see in theaters, but the bigger commentary is on the state of the DCEU. DC's big team up movie felt just like any other. In fact, it didn't look very good from the very beginning. I know that I'm being way too kind in my final rating- the film is admittedly a mess. And yet, it was still enjoyable to see Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, The Flash, and Cyborg together.

I'll always prefer Marvel over DC, but I'd love to enjoy these movies more. It was hard not to shake the feeling that this was a rushed job. Rather than build organically like Marvel did towards The Avengers, it felt like this movie took as many shortcuts as they could. So, we only got solo films for Superman and Wonder Woman, and then a mini-team up that included both of them, as well as Batman. That means half the team- Aquaman, The Flash, and Cyborg were introduced in this film. Plus, you had to set up Steppenwolf as a villain. It felt like too much, too quickly and it all sort of fell apart.

Now, some of the film's lower quality might have to do with Zack Snyder having to step out of the reshoots and post-production work to deal with the tragic death of his daughter. He made the right call and he brought in probably the best person to fill in for him- Joss Whedon. However, I don't think you can blame a whole lot on this- sure, the film doesn't feel like one unified vision, but Snyder filmed most of the movie and what he filmed wasn't all that good to begin with. The reshoots did cause problems, most hilariously that Henry Cavill had grown a mustache for another role and they had to digitally remove his mustache in post-production. This wasn't glaringly obvious except for a few scenes where Superman's mouth just looks funny. Still, it's a problem that never should have happened and it's further evidence that DC needs to get their act together.

One of the biggest problems is that Steppenwolf felt like a subpar villain. To bring these amazing people together for the first time, you needed a greater sense of danger. Yes, Earth hangs in the balance, but it felt like the same thing we'd already seen in Man of Steel, Suicide Squad, and Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice. The stakes didn't feel any higher here. That made the whole movie feel like yet another entry in the series, instead of a must-see event picture. That might be partially why this film (SHOCKINGLY) is the lowest-grossing film in the DCEU. It still boggles my mind how that could possibly have happened.

The cast is huge, but the movie felt rushed. I'm surprised the film was only two hours long. There was so much to do here. As such, the film speeds through moments that needed more time to breathe and develop. I enjoyed seeing Ben Affleck as Bruce Wayne. I think he's good in the role. While his part here felt a bit too cartoonish, he's still solid in that role. Henry Cavill is good as Superman, but he had far too little screen time. It was great seeing Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman- she's really emerging as the bright spot of the entire DCEU. Ezra Miller and Ray Fisher were fine as the Flash and Cyborg. Neither is all that compelling as characters or actors, so it felt like we spent a disproportionate amount of time with them. I suppose Jason Momoa was fine as Aquaman. It's weird seeing him when he looks so opposite to the character I grew up watching, but I understand why the changes were made. I can't say this cast felt like they gelled together all that well. There's a fair bit of attempted humor in the movie, but it feels forced and unnatural. The movie simply wasn't all that fun (compare this with Thor: Ragnarok to see how you can tell a humorous, entertaining superhero story). It was great seeing Jeremy Irons, Diane Lane, J.K. Simmons, Amber Heard, etc- but they are all on screen for such a small amount of time. Ciaran Hinds was great as the voice of Steppenwolf, but again, his character was too forgettable.

There's a lot wrong with this movie, but I'm still generously going to call it a good film (but just barely). There's something so cool about seeing all these characters together. This film doesn't even get close to what this could and should have been, but there are small moments that work throughout the film. A few of the humorous moments were okay (although never laugh-out-loud funny). It felt like DC was at least trying to change their formula. It didn't quite work, but you need to appreciate the effort.

While I'm saying Justice League is a good movie, that doesn't prevent it from being a disappointment. I'd actually rank this movie below EVERY SINGLE movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Every. Single. One. I'd also say this is the 2nd worst DCEU movie, ahead of only Suicide Squad. While the Marvel fanboy in me kind of laughs at that, the movie viewer in me is discouraged that this is where we are five films into the DCEU. For comparison, Marvel did their team-up movie as the 6th film, and it still ranks as the greatest movie in the entire MCU (in my mind). I hope DC makes some changes, because good isn't good enough in the current superhero movie wars.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Man of Steel, Suicide Squad, Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, Wonder Woman