5/10?
Starring: Henry Cavill, Ezra Miller, Gal Gadot, Ben Affleck, Jason Momoa, Ray Fisher, Ray Porter & Jessie Eisenberg
The mention of the legendary “Snyder Cut” has sent chills of excitement or despair down everyone’s spine in the last few years. From the DCEU super-fans who have championed the hashtags online, to those who haven’t even given the original 2017 cut of Justice League a second glance. Whichever side you happen to fall on, the Snyder Cut is here.
Released as a four-hour behemoth on HBO Max, the constant support and championing of this property finally paid off and the fans have what they have been asking for. The state of the world, with theaters being out of commission for extended periods, certainly had no small impact on the decision to release this new cut as it is. But this is an example of something totally new. A film company choosing to fund another, popularized by the public, cut of a film.
The most important question going into this epic cut, is it better than the 2017 one?
Short answer: yes
Zack Snyder’s Justice League falls far from any sense of “masterpiece” though. The Rotten Tomatoes score and various outlets paint a glittering picture of a wonderful super-film that delivers on every promise; to be hailed as some of the best Comic Book Movies ever made. Unfortunately, it seems that “met expectations” have become confused with quality.
Certainly, this version has a more coherent story to tell. With more time and less studio interference, it’s much easier for a director like Snyder to tell a relatively simple superhero team-up story. The villains are properly set and the characters (misunderstood as they may be) have more moments to denote growth or some form of an “arc”. The story being told though, along with the characters and performances are not really much different. A few decent tweaks here and there it seems, can only take a bad movie and make it “better”.
This leads to what I personally liked least in this film. The characters. Some true-blooded fans of this DCEU will say this cast is perfect, maybe even some of the best. While there are some who play their parts well like Henry Cavill or Jason Momoa, the rest feel as bland, boring, and forgettable as any secondary character in a big-budget action film. The stories these films try to tell are full of tonal flip-flopping and a severe lack of depth, which other CMBs are able to reach. The very essence of these characters starts to become what is said about them rather than what they do. Batman never really leads, he just is the leader. Superman doesn’t really speak to any members of the league. But they love him. Cyborg has a troubled relationship with his father. And after fighting an alien invasion, he listens to his apology. These simple changes are being thrown up as evidence that Snyder has the formula for DC. Without the expectations that the dialogue meets, the characters are left woefully flat.
Many fans of ZJL have pointed critics of the film back at Marvel’s films, but the comparison is hard to realistically make. The marvel plans were clearly at least planned in some way. However, it was a point of pride for DC fans in the early days that Warner Brothers would do it differently. Sadly, the kind of difference they chose leaves no context for anyone who is viewing this film alone. Even with an added intro showing the end of Batman Vs Superman, no characters are clearly defined other than by what they say.
Obviously for some, these issues are outweighed by the legend surrounding the creation of the film. Or outweighed by the “dark” take on the typically bright and shiny DC. But it is important that it’s remarkable making not cloud the actual criticism that the film deserves. Not the worst film from DC or even from Zack Snyder. But it’s no magnum opus and hardly a film I’m inclined to watch again.
