*Minor spoiler warning*
After the death of Superman, three mysterious, ancient relics known as Mother Boxes begin to awaken, summoning an evil villain from another world. This monster, Steppenwolf, comes to Earth with one purpose: to unite the mother boxes which will destroy the world and all life on it. Now it is up to Batman and Wonderwoman to find heroes on Earth strong enough to defeat Steppenwolf.
Zack Snyder’s Justice League is the director’s cut of the 2017 theatrical release of the movie. Though the movie focuses around the same superheroes, and has the same villain, the Snyder cut offers a completely different experience than the 2017 cut. For starters, this cut is the original vision of the movie, and keeps the tone dark and violent, and so earning its R rating. The 2017 movie (finished and edited by Joss Whedon) made the Justice League more like the Avengers, constantly cracking jokes, having random pop culture references, and keeping the overall tone light. But the Snyder cut does away with much of this. The tone remains dark, focusing all humor around one comic relief character in the form of the Flash. This keeps the movie intense and enjoyable from start to finish. The stakes are made more clear and this version of Steppenwolf (who got a new model and voice) is greatly improved from the 2017 version.
The Snyder cut focuses more heavily on developing the characters, and each superhero does undergo change. This is especially true for Cyborg, who provides much of the emotional progress in the story. Batman is also a focus, after having watched his friend Superman die (at the end of the 2016 movie Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice), he feels guilt and believes forming this league is the only way to redeem himself. This leads Batman away from his normal hyper-reasoning personality to a person who takes risks on faith. This may sound untrue to Batman’s character, but the move is done slowly and by the end Batman is still just as believable as when the movie started.
Almost every aspect of Snyder’s Justice League is an improvement on the prior version. However, there are a few things that may turn viewers away. To start the movie is darker, and though it is not as violent as other rated-R superhero movies (like Logan or Deadpool) it has its share of violence and language. But, the main thing that may keep some from watching it is its length. While the 2017 movie clocked in at a nice manageable 2 hours, the Snyder cut goes just over 4. There is no understating that this movie is long; so long it might require multiple viewings in order to finish. The length comes from the fact that Snyder includes almost every cut he filmed. There is more character development, more side plots, longer battle sequences, and just more Justice League. The movie is separated into six parts, each one around half an hour or so, with an epilogue.
At times the pacing, though done well, feels like characters spend time doing unessential things. However, if someone is a fan of the Justice League, it is well worth the long run-time with enough action, easter eggs, and other incredible moments. Sadly, there are aspects that will be lost since there does not seem to be plans for more Justice League movies. The epilogue (which is essentially a collection of four post-credit scenes) reminds fans of what could have been: showing Deathstroke, who would have been the main villain for a Batman movie with Ben Affleck, a reveal of the Martian Manhunter, who would have been in the next Justice League, and a call back to Jared Leto’s Joker. Each of these scenes promises something that, unfortunately, will never be delivered.
Zack Snyder’s Justice League is the definitive edition of the movie, which warrants its long and often tedious run time. But true fans of his work, and of the superheroes involved, will enjoy every minute of this great film.
*written by Brennan Kress
Union University Library Blog 