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A little over three years ago, I left a theater with my friends after viewing 2017's Justice League for the first time and knew something wasn't right. "That was good" I kept telling myself, trying to deflect that what I had just watched was an abomination of a movie for the comic book genre. I couldn't believe what I had just witnessed in all reality. It didn't feel like a Zack Snyder movie at all and was vastly different then the previous installment Batman V Superman and as it turns out.. It wasn't Zack Snyder's version of Justice League at all. Snyder had left the project earlier that year after a horrific tragedy that plagued his family and Warner Bros in response hired The Avengers filmmaker Joss Whedon to replace Snyder and reshoot most of the movie.
Finally, years after fans rented out billboards in Time's Square and flying banners over Warner Bros studios, Zack Snyder's definitive version of Justice League is out on HBOMax and the question many have is... Is it really that different? Well... Yes it is. It is a entirely different movie and I have many thoughts but lets start at the beginning.
"Fueled by his restored faith in humanity, and inspired by Superman's selfless act, Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck) enlists newfound ally Diana Prince (Gal Gadot) to face an even greater threat. Together, Batman and Wonder Woman work quickly to recruit a team to stand against this newly-awakened enemy. Despite the formation of an unprecedented league of heroes in Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman (Jason Mamoa), Cyborg (Ray Fisher) and the Flash (Ezra Miller), it may be too late to save the planet from an assault of catastrophic proportions."
Let's get this out of the way from the start.. This review will be non-spoiler and I will do my best to be as vague as possible. This movie is so much better then the 2017's Justice League and it's not even close. Literally every aspect from the story, character motivations, dialogue, visual effects, direction and acting is far superior from the previous. With that said, this doesn't mean that everything about Zack Snyder's Justice League works or is even good on the basis of film criticism. This movie has flaws and some even detract from the film overall but I enjoyed this movie for the most part.
The most positive comment I have coming out of the film is the story and progression of the film. The story in this is much more clear and includes so much more detail then the previous. I felt that each hero was given more time to not only be introduced but for the audience to grasp what their purpose in the film is. None is more evident then Cyborg, who Snyder described as "the heart and soul of the movie." We are introduced to this characters tragic backstory and we begin to understand throughout the film how important of a role he plays for the league. Another standout of the film was Ezra Miller's Flash who in the previous iteration I found to be useless and nonessential. He has a much bigger role to play and I'll leave that there for you to find out.
One of my biggest concerns heading into the film was star's Ben Affleck and Gal Gadot's demeaner in the film. In the 2017 version of Justice League, both look and acted like they would rather be anywhere else in the world. As a die-hard Batman and Wonder Woman fan, this was crushing and I was hoping this movie would be different. I can safely say that this is very much the case. Both give solid performances and embody their characters. The action in the film is very good as well. The last hour of the film is extremely fun and energizing to watch. While there wasn't a sequence like the Batman warehouse scene from Batman V Superman in this film, it does boast some really fun action scenes. Also Snyder added new footage that includes a scene with Batman and Jared Leto's Joker which for me was a dream come true. I'll leave it at that.
Look, I don't need to say much more for you to get the idea I really enjoyed this movie. This is a worthy addition in the comic book genre and one of the best DC movies in years. This movie does have negatives though and they shouldn't be overlooked. For starters, Snyder uses his love for slow motion way too much in this movie. It's cool in the action sequences but his use of it in certain scenes was very off-putting and puzzling to say the least. Another negative I have is certain scenes linger for much longer then they should. A scene in particular in the first act of the film lingers a good minute or two longer then I would have liked and it felt very awkward. This film clocks in at over 4 hours long and I feel that you could of cut a good chunk of that runtime out with more precise editing and less slow motion. The CGI for the most part is fine but their were definitely scenes it could have been better. Amy Adam's who plays Lois Lane in the film does fine but her character mostly just was sad and didn't contribute much to the film until the final act. I felt her character brought the film to a halt each time she appeared on screen.
My only expectation going into this film was the hope it would be better then the 2017 version of Justice League and I was blown away with how much better it was. It isn't without its faults but its worthy of all the hype it's gotten. I definitely recommend checking it out if you are a fan of Man of Steel and Batman V Superman as it's a worthy conclusion to the trilogy. For the comic book nerds like me out there, be ready to drool at some of the coolest moments ever put in a comic book movie.
Grade: B+
Zack Snyder's Justice League is streaming on HBOMax