You can't save the world alone.
Justice League is a 2017 superhero film directed by Zack Snyder, written by Chris Terrio and Joss Whedon, produced by DC Films, RatPac Entertainment, Atlas Entertainment, Cruel and Unusual Films, and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. The film is based on various Justice League comics by Gardner Fox. It was not nominated for any Academy Awards. This is the fifth film in the DC Extended Universe. It acts as a sequel to both Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Wonder Woman. It is followed by Aquaman and will be followed by The Flash.
"For the unity. For Darkseid." -Steppenwolf
Plot
After the death of Superman, the world is in a state of shock and sadness. When a new enemy surfaces, a guilty Bruce Wayne decides that it is time to assemble a team of meta-humans. With help from Diana Prince, Bruce gets the rest of the team; The Flash, Cyborg, and Aquaman. Together, they must defeat space-monster Steppenwolf and stop him from conquering and destroying the entire universe.
Positive Aspects
The best thing about Justice League is the action. They made some very exciting action sequences that included all of the heroes and all of their powers. The first fight with Steppenwolf is very fun, as we finally see the team in full-on action. The Justice League vs. Superman fight is also very cool. I liked that the entire team faced off against him. The highlight, though, is the final battle. There are a lot of cool moments that feel like they belong in this movie.
The film also works well as a sequel to Batman v. Superman. You can see the toll that Superman's death has taken onto the universe. Batman and Wonder Woman are clearly shaken by the fight with Doomsday and Superman's sacrifice for the good of the universe.
I thought that the story was good enough. It was kind of cliche, but it doesn't make it any less entertaining. The Justice League coming together was very entertaining, and all of the characters are very likable.
Batman was much less dark and brooding in this, which was nice. Ben Affleck felt like he was playing a more human version of The Dark Knight, and it was much more fun to watch. Wonder Woman was as good and consistent as always. Gal Gadot had her usual charm and made the character likable. Flash was, by far, the funniest character. Ezra Miller was very funny and likable, but also gave Barry Allen a sadder side, making it easy to root for him. I liked the reluctant Cyborg that feels like a monster, and Ray Fisher plays that transition perfectly.
However, I thought that the standout with both character and performance was Jason Momoa. He made Aquaman hilarious at certain points, serious, charismatic, and devoted. He made a character that dresses in a mermaid suit and talks to fish entertaining and likable.
It was fun, like The Avengers, to see all of these characters get on screen together. We've never had an on-screen Flash, Cyborg, Aquaman or even Wonder Woman before this. It was really just a great experience to see this all come together.
This movie also has a killer score. Wonder Woman's solo is obviously the highlight, but the Superman Flying Theme is great, too. They also incorporated two classic themes; Danny Elfman's Batman theme from the 1989 film as well as the 1978 Superman theme by John Williams. It was just kind of a fun callback that I could hear.
Two smaller things, but I liked that Darkseid was kind of the overarching but unseen villain. I can't wait until they introduce him, and it was a really nice tease when Steppenwolf mentioned his name.
The after-credits are very good. They have a nice little foreshadowing of the Legion of Doom, and it was cool to see Deathstroke join the DCEU rogues. The setup for the future of the DCEU could end up being more massive than The Infinity Saga, which is a very high bar.
Negative Aspects
The biggest thing about this movie is Steppenwolf. He is not a good villain. First of all, he looks like a character out of a video game, which is distracting in itself, but he was very cliche. He was an alien that wanted an ancient relic to conquer the world. It doesn't get any more cliche than that.
I also felt like the Mother Boxes were the DC version of the Infinity Stones. They are these all-powerful objects that, together, can be used to do pretty much anything, including take over the world.
The final thing about the villains is that I wished that they had actually shown Darkseid. I loved the after-credits scene, but it would've been very nice to have teased Darkseid, just like they did Thanos in The Avengers.
I have said this before, but I'm not a big fan of Henry Cavill. I think that he is very emotionless and boring, and it feels like that in this. He isn't in a ton of it, but from the scenes with Lois, he was the same as usual. I actually think that he was much better in this than he was in Batman v. Superman. His first couple of lines with Batman were good, but otherwise, he wasn't that great.
I have also complained about this, but they still used too much CGI in this. All of the villains were CGI, most of the final fight was CGI, including the sky. It gave me a headache, and I really didn't like it. They really need to cut down the computer effects and either use humans as villains or start using some practical effects.
Finally, some of the writing in this is not fantastic. I actually thought that at least half of it was okay, but half isn't good enough. It felt very clunky and awkward at some points, and that made those certain scenes feel off from the rest of the movie.
Final Score
Despite a bad villain, an emotionless actor, and too much CGI, Justice League uses its fantastic heroes, action, and a good story to carry this to the higher tier of DC movies.
I will give it a Savory rating. Age range is 8+.
SWEET N' SOUR SCALE
Sweet (Great)
Savory (Good)
Sour (Bad)
Moldy (Terrible)
"Justice League"
Fun Factor: 7.5/10
Acting: 7/10
Characters: 7.5/10
Story: 6.5/10
Quality: 7/10
Directed by Zack Snyder
Released on November 17, 2017
Rated PG-13 for superhero violence and action, disturbing themes and images
2 hours
Ben Affleck as Bruce Wayne/Batman
Gal Gadot as Diana Prince/Wonder Woman
Jason Momoa as Arthur Curry/Aquaman
Henry Cavill as Clark Kent/Superman
Amy Adams as Lois Lane
Ezra Miller as Barry Allen/The Flash
Ray Fisher as Victor Stone/Cyborg
Jeremy Irons as Alfred Pennyworth
Ciarán Hinds as Steppenwolf
Joe Morton as Silas Stone
Diane Lane as Martha Kent
Connie Nielsen as Queen Hippolyta