Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021)

When Justice League was released in 2017, I liked it. Was it the move I wanted? No. Was I disappointed that it wasn't the tone of, and true follow up to, BvS that I was hoping it would be? Yes. Was I frustrated with the sillier tone and jokes like the "thirsty" joke or the "probing" joke? Sure was. But did that mean I had to hate it? No. At the time I wasn't aware of just how toxic Joss Whedon was so for me it just felt like what we got was just another Marvel like superhero movie that I could enjoy on that level. Only it meant a bit more to me because it was the first real live action take on these characters. That meant something to me, these characters that meant something to me. It wasn't terrible (despite what Snyder fans want to believe) but it wasn't what it could be or should have been. It was an "Avengers" movie, and I enjoyed it for what it was. 

You see these characters and this team had meant something to me for a long time. As a child I was obsessed with reruns of the Super Friends, the ones I watched set Darkseid and his Apocalypse crew as the villains. When I got older and began reading comics it was  Crisis On Infinite Earths, Legends, The Dark Knight Returns, John Byrne's Man of Steel, Watchmen, The New Teen Titans, Cosmic Odyssey that I binged, comics that were set very firmly in a comic book world with these characters but had them wrestling with very adult questions that weren't black and white, weren't simple. As both a fan of super hero comics, and a budding cinemaphile I wanted to see superhero movies that could capture that. While I loved films like Superman the Movie, Burton's Batman, the X-men films and The Dark Knight Trilogy none of them did that. They were either too campy or too real world. I wanted to find the magic mix I found in the comic books on the big screen and it wasn't until Snyder's Watchmen, Man of Steel and BvS as well as Jenkins' Wonder Woman that I truly found that. And I wanted more. 

This is where Zack Snyder's Justice League steps in, truly becoming the full fledged, no holds barred, epic that I've always thought could be possible, a full on big screen adaptation of the comic stories that I loved and continued to love. a true translation of the combination of the child like fantastic and the adult ruminations that pull me in. It doesn't shy away from the fantastic, the impossible, that superhero stories are rich with but it also doesn't shy away from telling an adult, complicated story which wrestles with our very real world struggles. The challenges of what it means to be a hero in a world where right and wrong are not clear and where there are consequences to actions that affect different people in different ways. The struggles of bringing diverse people together who don't all share the same barriers. Striving for freedom against hegemony, against domination. What do we owe each other as human beings? I want my action adventure stories to play with these ideas and not just tell the classic hero arc. 

I understand why the studio system which produces our blockbuster mass entertainment was worried a movie like this wouldn't land the same way the adventure stories about heroes overcoming villains do. Stories like this ask of us as an audience so much more. Wanting to tell the kind of story told in the theatrical cut is just, well, easier. Anyone can walk in, watch it for a couple hours, be entertained. We laugh we cry and we go home happy. Isn't that what we all want? But watching something like this, something with a layered, complex narrative, something that asks us difficult questions, something that we need to invest the time into.... well that's not for everyone. That's not escapism.  

I've always appreciated films that take the time they need to tell their story and by taking the time Snyder is able to tell a very complete story. There is time to truly delve into each chapter, give all the characters the time for us to connect with them. There is time to tell the sort of epic - in the true sense of the word - grand storytelling that comic books have been telling for generations and that we rarely see on the big screen, with The Lord of the Rings being the closest recent example I can think of. Snyder can begin with the consequences of a world where a Superman has lived and then died, the ways his characters choose to live in that world and what they do with what they have, spending time with each character to bring us into who they truly are. He builds the growing threat, not just a monster who wants to kill half the universe, but one who wants to dominate all life. Step by step he shows how divided peoples aren't able to effectively stand against that threat. Then he works through how we come together, and all the barriers broken to do that. Until the coming together is what saves us. The point is he can actually work through that arc so that it is meaningful and satisfying while developing a roster of characters who have to interact. 

But all that being said, this film is also a damn good action movie. The Amazons battle. Wonder Woman battling terrorists in the way only she can. The invasion of Atlantis. The team's first awkward fight against Steppenwolf... and the rematch. Superman's return. The Speedforce rescue! I was on the edge of my seat for most of it. For all the talk of Snyder's DC movies being "dark" there is great humour throughout, there are scenes of real human connection. Without having to rush characters can honestly connect, action sequences can play out thoroughly, multiple storylines can play out and merge into a cohesive whole. This is an eloquent mix of action and character development. There is truly the time to build through all this movie needs to be. 

And that's where the gap from 2017 til 2021 really comes in. The cinematic world is changing and streaming may allow for a new form of cinema to truly shine. As we learn to binge we can accept longer forms of story telling, even in one shot movie format not just television style episodic narratives. In many ways, this movie may not have really been possible before. And I am excited to see what possibilities for story telling are out there with future films of all types, but especially for the "comic book movie," a genre which is based on a style of story telling that can be drawn out (no pun intended). 

What we've heard as rumor is true. This film weaves Cyborg's truly moving story throughout. It is an arc exploring numerous intersections of race, disability, and family. For this story to be all be excised from the theatrical cut was a terrible decision, one likely rooted in systemic racism and ableism which assumes what a movie audience will pay to see... and what they won't. But this story is the heart of the movie, a story about identity, about family, about choosing to become who we can be and having that restored is a blessing. There are other moments too which feel more grown up, filled with more gravitas than the previous version, like Martha and Lois' scene, Barry's visit to his dad. For those of us who have invested our lives in reading stories about these characters, seeing these so human moments brought to life is remarkable. 

This cut of this film feels for many, and feels for me, like a movie made specifically for me. It speaks to something very personal for me. I don't care if it's not for everyone. Sometimes art comes along that just is right for you and this is it for me. This is a film that I feel I've been waiting for for much longer than just 3 years, and I'm glad it has finally arrived and will always be available for me. 

Zack Snyder's Justice League

Starring: Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Henry Cavell, Ezra Miller, Jason Mamoa, Ray Fisher, Amy Adams, Zheng Kai, Jeremy Irons, Ciaran Hinds, Diane Lane, J.K. Simmons, Heard, Ray Porter, Billy Crudup, Joe Morton,  Kiersey Clemons, Peter Guiness, Harry Lennox, Jared Leto, Joe Mangianiello, Robin Wright, David Thewlis, Russel Crowe, Kevin Costner, Marc McClure
Director: Zach Snyder
Writers: Chris Terrio