DC Comics has been hyping Justice League for several months now. The film hearkens back to 1960, when the team consisted of Superman, Aquaman, Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter, Batman, and Wonder Woman. There have been different characters in the Justice League over the years since. This film brings together Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Cyborg and Aquaman. With the death of Superman in Batman Vs. Superman, the DC Universe is missing their anchor. With a world in chaos, the fledgling team must join forces to defeat an alien army. An ancient vendetta that involved the races of a couple of the characters. Without unity, the world is doomed.
Batman Vs. Superman was subtitled Dawn of Justice. The name implies that the film was a setup for the creation of the Justice League. Indeed, the film appears to pick up shortly after Superman's death. After Batman (Ben Affleck) runs into a scout alien, he begins to research strange events and begins to build his team. He knows there are three mysterious boxes that were significant to Lex Luthor, but he isn't sure how they fit into the broader threat to our planet. His team is comprised of a kid (Flash/Ezra Miller), a rebel (Aquaman/Jason Momoa), an angry teen (Cyborg/Ray Fisher) and a reluctant leader (Wonder Woman/Gal Gadot). While there isn't much writing geared toward their "learning curve" the team does have some misfires as they learn to work together. In the end, the heroes win, the planet is saved and the seeds of the Halls of Justice are planted. The film serves as yet another set up for the next film, while missing opportunities to tell its own story.
Zack Snyder returns to deliver the sequel to Batman Vs. Superman. The film has the same texture as its predecessor. The look and feel are familiar, as is the feeling that the film only serves to set up the next storyline. That may be, in part, because writer Chris Terrio is back from the previous film. He is joined by writer Josh Whedon who has also dabbled in the Marvel Universe. Whedon's presence didn't do much to stabilize this film. The jokes were flat, the character development stilted and the story kind of boring. And predictable. This film really served more to give us some back story on Flash, Aquaman and Cyborg (and to set up the next film) than to deliver a meaningful stand alone story. It may have been better if they had given us a feature film on each of the three before launching the Justice League. Then we could have spent more time focusing on the broader story. I understand that they probably wanted to follow up on the Dawn of Justice theme before too much time passed. Doing four more films (counting Wonder Woman, which they actually gave us already) may have dragged the Justice League into 2018 or 2019. The short time lapse between events in Dawn of Justice and Justice League may not have made much sense had they gone that route. So I guess I can cut them a little bit of slack for picking the best of the four to do a story on leading up to this film.
Justice League has a pro cast. The acting is rock solid. The highlight of the film. With a whopping 300 million dollar budget, I would have figured the special effects would have been spectacular. They didn't work for me at times. The strange formations coming out of the ground, the under water scenes and even the costumes bothered me at times. I hate batman's outfit in this film. It's just ugly. And with that kind of budget, you would think Wonder Woman would have the same shoes on from scene to scene. The lack of attention to detail was a bit surprising to me. But the acting was solid. Aside from the title roles, Amy Adams has a cameo as Lois Lane, we get Jeremy Irons as Alfred, J.K. Simmons as Commissioner Gordon, Diane Lane as Martha Kent and Ciaran Hines as Steppenwolf. If only they had spent some of that all-star budget on good writing.
Justice League has an even 120 minute run time. The MPAA gave the film a PG-13 rating for violence. The film has typical superhero violence, which is to be expected. The film is geared to adult fans, but I am certain DC wants to remain relevant to younger audiences with their reboot. That probably had a lot to do with keeping this film clean. No drugs, no alcohol, no sex. Pretty tame stuff. Safe for dads to take the kids to a matinee. No way would I pay full price for this mediocre film.
DC Comics missed an opportunity with their reintroduction of the Justice League. Hopefully they dump the current director and writers for the next adventure. Because both of the current films in this franchise have been a bit flat. They have a dystopian feel that gives the universe a decidedly dark feel. That might be okay, but some of the costumes don't work for me. The attempts at comedy fell flat and the character development left a lot to be desired. Overall, a decent film that swung and missed. I would give this film a mild recommendation at 6.5/10.
Bonus Material The best part of this film was the trailer...for Deadpool. Deadpool doing his best Bob Ross imitation painting happy clouds and snow. That was the best laugh I had the entire film. Also, stick around, there are a couple of Easter eggs at the end.