Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021)

By rights, we shouldn't even have the chance to see this, Snyder's Justice League in its full, four hour format. And we wouldn't have, if it wasn't for the persistence of Snyder's most ardent fans, culminating in a $70 million pot for re-shoots to make this vision come to fruition. So, how does it fare? Well let's start with the obvious. ZSJL is absolutely a better, more rounded, more cohesive film than Justice League, but considering what a mess the original was, with Joss Whedon having to complete the film after Snyder had to leave the film after a family tragedy, we pretty much already know that. Studio pressure has a lot to answer for with regards to the critical reception to the DC films in general, cutting the theatrical release of Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice (2016) to two hours from three, stripping the film of sense in the process. Not wanting to take the time to follow Marvel's business plan, in favour of making a quick buck, Warner Brothers forced Snyder's hand in producing a Justice League film with only three introduction films (four if you count the utterly unwatchable Suicide Squad).

Anyway, here's Snyder's chance to right those wrongs as best he can. And for the most part, admirably, he succeeds. The film is split into sections, and before you roll your eyes in disgust, this works pretty well, certainly adding a sense of cohesion to the proceedings so staggeringly lacking in the original. This also serves to offer a thorough back story to each character, and Cyborg's especially benefits from this. As too does villain Steppenwolf's, offering us a far better origin to his relationship with big bad Darkseid, introduced in a back story so lacking in the original. Ben Affleck's Batman has some excellent scenes with the superb Jeremy Irons' Alfred, Superman is still pretty boring (I've never been sold on the character frankly) and there is even an apologetic cameo from a vastly different looking Jared Leto Joker. It's still difficult to pin down whether Jason Momoa's Aquaman is endearing or stupifying; I do think it's the former, I just believe he has some rotten one liners forced on him. Diana Prince/Wonder Woman is certainly one of the most interesting characters in the Justice League, but her own intro to the film, where she protects a group of school children from some villains is hammy, and the dialogue is abysmal. Indeed, the dialogue throughout is, at times, laughable, much of it involving Ezra Miller's Flash. Some of the scenes themselves are laughable. Some of the story is laughable. There are a lot of large fight sequences with lots of people hitting each other. But despite the harsh (if true) analysis of these discrepancies, that unfairly tarnishes Zack Snyder's sweeping brush here. To make a four hour film that I was engaged with pretty much throughout is no mean feat. To raise a four hour film from the appallingly strewn non-sensical wreckage of the original Justice League movie, and keep me engaged for the duration, is nothing short of miraculous. And of course, when you make a four hour movie in which you have a contractual obligation to give Jessie Eisenberg's insufferable Lex Luthor some screen time, the longer you make the film, the smaller percentage of it you have to waste on that truly wretched incarnation of that character. All in all, I shake Mr. Snyder (and those responsible for bringing this vision to life) warmly by the hand, simply for making this watchable at the very least. 6.9/10