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After three years the fans have won: Warner Bros. has released the Snyder's Cut. It's not the first time that a director's cut is released to the public but now it's more interesting. Before the 2021 every extended version used to see the light only in home video editions like Lord of the Rings, Blade Runner, Watchmen, Alien and Apocalypse Now but last year a pandemic happened, the Covid-19 happened. It delayed productions and smothered the industry. The world was changing and the film industry had to change too. The streaming landscape grew so fast that prompted the Streaming Wars between every major contender in this sector: Netflix, the well respected vet, Amazon Prime, Disney+, the surging behemoth, and a bunch of newcomers like AppleTV, Peacock, Hulu and HBO Max. It was there, on the HBO platform, that this movie has found a new life. Everything was slowly falling in place after the acquisition of the Warner Bros. Studios by AT & T. The #releasethesnydercut resurfaced and AT & T started to spread rumours about a possible materialization of it, based on the fact that maybe it was worth investing on it. On June 23, 2020, Sandra Dewey, president of productions and business operations for WarnerMedia, stated in an interview that they are aiming for an early to mid-2021 release. In January 2021, Snyder confirmed that work on the cut had been completed. Finally on March 18, 2021, Snyder let its creature loose. Did it deliver?
PLOT
"Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Cyborg and Acquaman gather together to protect the world from an intergalactic threat which wants to annhilate the earth and all it's inhabitants"....or "The DC's desperate attempt to catch up with the Marvel Studios by boiling down The Avengers, Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame and six origin movies in a 4 hours movie which was intendend to be a miniseries".
SCRIPT
It's hard to flesh out six characters in a full length movie, even considering the fact that two of them have had a proper solo movie which is mediocre and only Wonder Woman is a good movie(until Wonder Woman 1984 came out and the character lost it's credibility). Nonetheless Snyder has been able to accomplish it in an acceptable way, considering the running time.
Batman is a psychologically wounded hero who wants to redeem himself after Superman's death in Batman v Superman and Affleck is able to deliver it in a pretty good way. Its relationship with Alfred(Jeremy Irons) is made of banters and witty lines alterned to serious one which makes him an interesting character, although it's not on the same level of Michael Caine in the Nolan's trilogy. In a way it helps the public to appreciate more Bruce Wayne and it's humanity. An aspect that underlines it's development since BvS, where he was a bruting killer(an aspect that contradicts with the comics) who branded criminals and challenged aliens. In the movie he takes part in good looking scenes which involves is vehicles, a detail which almost reduced him to a carrier, sidelining him for operations that keep him away from the villain. This reduced him to a guy with gadgets in a team of gods. It's evident in the climax where he did one thing, tearing down the defense field created by the antagonist, and then he diseappeared for a while, popping up sometimes to underline the fact that he's an integral member of the gang. In the last minutes he dreams about an alternative future and have an interaction with the almost useless Martian Manhunter, which are sequences intendend to tease a sequel but they do't represent something meaningful for the character. Wonder Woman is defined by her figthing skills and the fact that is used for a ton of exposition about Darkseid and Steppenwolf, the villains. Sometimes she does illogical things like blowing up a bank to protect the people in it from a thug who wanted to blow it up(like what????) or easily sneaking in the Parthenon's Crypts which is not guarded(so convenient). In the movie she has, as it seems, a sweet relationship with Bruce Wayne, something teased in BvS, but it's just about sexual tension and it doesn't affect the plot. She had better interactions with Alfred and it was unexpected. Not the best story arch but she's essential to defeat Steppenwolf and propel the story. Acquaman has a similar story arch to his solo movie, which makes him a bit redundant. Snyder wanted him to be cool and grumpy, to differentiate him from his comic's counterpart, and the result has been good enough. Jason Momoa bring a lot of physicality, charisma and humour to the Ocean's King who is used as a frenenemy for Barry Allen. His superpowers are a bit inconsistent and the fact that he has to turn is top to shreds every time he dives make his characterization a joke at time. Ezra Miller's Flash is one of the best aspect of the Snyder's Cut. He has a role similar to Spider-Man in the MCU but a less likeable character. Sometimes it's superpowers are inconsistent but it works, as long as you don't think about it. He's quirky, weird and gabby but also emotional and brave. The set up of his arch with his father it's good and he has the funniest and most beautiful scenes in the movie. His character's growth happens with the aid of Bruce Wayne, who is a sort of mentor to him, Acquaman and Cyborg. He's the one who becomes a hero without knowing how to be one. He's fundamental for the plot because, in the end, is the one who saves the day with a trick which no one would expect. Cyborg is Snyder's pupil. The one which has the best journey. His story is a tale of loss, desperation, self-hatred, resurgence and self-acceptance. It's satisfying to see how a character which strives to find a place in the world, is able to find it and become who he wants to be. It's the character which has the strongest link with the plot cause of its genesis and his role in the final battle. He's not stainless due to some arguable choice like: bury one the motherboxes, the plot's MacGuffin, in a cemetery where it would be easily detectable, he is not able to control himself when confronted by Superman and he can solve poverty but he's not interested in doing it on a large scale. Superman has little screen time and his arch is simple and forgettable: he's resurrected through a convenient plot point, fight the squad and than, thanks to the usual boring Lois Lane, becomes good again. He disappears for a long time before reappering during the climax to end the job and help cyborg to sunder the motherboxes. Steppenwolf is a villain. Darkseid is a villain. Not a lot to say about them. They are a lazy attempt at Thanos. Steppenwolf has the desire to return home and make his master proud. It's a powerful alien with an interesting suit and human eyes but nothing more. He's there to create conflict but nothing more. At least he has a lot of determination. Besides the character and the villains, which are weak, the script is decent despite the huge plot hole about Darkseid forgetting the fact that the Anti-Life Equation(a lame name for something so dreadful) is on Earth after he fought there and a lot of side character(Commisioner Gordon, Lois Lane, Martha Kent, Eugene Choi,...) who are there as a sequel bait.
Script: 7/10
ACTING
Most of the cast delivers a good performance with Affleck and Fisher being the best performers. Unfortunately Miller's represent a character which sometimes feels forced in its weirdness and Gadot's dictions goes totally off the rail in a pivotal scene, disrupting the movie's flow. You can expect it because of her inexperience and beginnings, in fact she beginned as a model without any acting education. Nonetheless she is well casted in her role and she could shine when the director understands her strength.
Acting: 7/10
PHOTOGRAPHY
The movie has some interesting and good looking shots but nothing exceptional. Snyder's favoured a grey filter which helps to set the tone of his Snyderverse, as we already seen in Man of Steel and Batman v Superman. It's intended to give a more grounded feeling to the film and differentiate it from the more colourful and bright Marvel. Some scenes concerning the climax are characterized by a saturation of red and yellow shades, making them more flashy and attention grabber. The only thing that seems odd is the choice to have a cut aspect ratio of 4:3, which isn't used a lot today. Probably this choice was made to enhance the character and make them look like demigods and legends but it falls flat sometimes and it could be pesky if you expected something in full screen. The result is a original and good looking enough movie.
Photography: 7/10
EDITING
It has the Snyder's trademarks and it could be pleasing or annoying. A lot of slow motion, sometimes it's cool, sometimes it's just there to convince you that what's happening is relevant and sometimes you just want to skip it. Some scenes are too long, like the Icelandic song of goodbye to Acquaman, the exciting scene where the gang is going up the stairs to reach Steppenwolf,...they are being dragged for far too long. I understand that it's an uncut movie but it doesn't mean that you have to stretch the time to make it seems more interesting. A good movie is characterized by the fact that every scene has a meaning and a relevance not by it's runtime. I liked the decision to divide it in parts, to make it more digestible, even though it breaks the flow sometimes. Releasing it as a miniseries would have been more interesting, in the vein of It, and it would have increased the revenue for the streaming channel.
Editing: 6/10
SPECIAL EFFECTS
Considering the fact that the reshoots costed $70 million and the original ones $300 million, I would've expected more from it. Just consider the fact that Avengers: Infinity War costed around $350 million and the VFX for Thanos were praised by everyone for it's attention to details. Steppenwolf looks like a videogame character, as all the other villains. I would say that all the movie is overstuffed with special effects. I consider it an issue because it alienates the audience in favor of bland spectacle and poor stakes. The Marvel has a similar problem, mostly Black Panther, but it's tackled in a more efficient way, by using a combination of VFX and practical effects(SFX). I understand that there's the need to represent something that doesn't exist and that it could look terrible if it's practical but too much of it takes down the movie's stakes.
Special Effects: 5/10
SOUNDTRACK
Tom Holkenborg aka Junkie XL do a very good job and thanks to it the movie is improved. In its possible to hear the theme of every single hero when they work together and enjoying some familiar themes, like the one of Superman and Wonder Woman. The last one is enhanced by a female voice, which recalls 300, and brings out the essence of the Amazon. There are some times when it doesn't match the rest and indulges in a theme which resemble a Black Sabbath song. After a while you get used to it but at first it seems out of place.The best part of the soundtrack is the Flash's theme At the Speed of Force, which is used masterfully in the climax to elevate Barry Allen's heroic action.
Soundtrack: 8/10
COSTUMES
Well, that's a mixed section. Cyborg's cgi skeleton is almost as bad as the one in Green Lantern. Wonder Woman's suit it's good and consistent with the rest of the franchise. The Flash's armor is weird, which is in line with the character, but not as good and accurate as the CW show. Acquaman's scaled panoply is the best looking but it seems a bit unpractical. I could say the same about Mera's one, something that was pointed out by the actress Amber Heard, and Vulko's. Superman's drak suit is the best iteration of the superman costume since Christopher Reeve and it serves its purpose. Batman's suit is a let down. The only thing that's original about that is the fact that there are googles, which make him seems like NightOwl, a member of the Watchmen(another Snyder's movie), and distort the character a bit.
Costumes: 5/10
CONCLUSION
Script: 7/10
Acting: 7/10
Photography: 7/10
Editing: 6/10
Special Effects: 5/10
Soundtrack: 8/10
Costumes: 5/10
AVERAGE: 6,42
Zack Snyder's Justice League is an enjoyable superhero flick with a lot of flaws. It's Snyder's vision and it permeates the whole experience. If you're able to get past the director's cliches and 4 hours of movies, you could have a good time with your favourite superheroes and enjoy some mindless action, great visuals and music. I recommend to check it out just to understand what it meant for the director and his private life, to understand his flawed and intriguing work of art, beautiful in its flaws and memorable in its execution.
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Director: Zack Snyder
Screenplay: Chris Terrio
Cast: Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Gal Gadot, Ray Fisher, Jason Momoa, Ezra Miller
Soundtrack: Tom Holkenborg
Cinematography: Fabian Wagner
Running Time: 242 min.
Budget: $70 million
