League a real Marvel
Justice League (M) 120 mins ALTHOUGH I had low hopes (I am, like many, a little superheroed out right now), I so badly wanted to like Justice League.
While last year’s Batman v Superman drew scorn and disappointment, Wonder Woman surprised me by how enjoyable, meaningful and emotional it was, and Christopher Nolan’s Batmans will always have a place in my heart. Plus, it would be really nice not to join the Ben Affleck haters, whose knives are already unsheathed.
Thankfully, despite the 11thhour departure of director Zack Snyder, who stood down following a family tragedy and passed the reins to Joss Whedon (known for two Avengers movies and the Buffy series), Justice League is enjoyable, smart and interesting, with touches of humour, an almost overwhelmingly highcalibre cast, and plenty going on.
Superman is dead, and the whole world is in mourning, nihilistic at the prospect of anyone else coming to save the day. (I lost count of how many characters refer to the deplorable state of the world, but clearly it’s as true in Comic Book Land as it is on Planet Earth 2017.) Bruce Wayne (a tired and puffy Affleck) decides to conscript a band of heroes to fill Superman’s vacant niche, and pretty swiftly there is urgency in this call as the team face off against a world-destroyer called Steppenwolf (ironically the least interesting part of the whole shebang).
The nature of the bringingeveryone-together plot is it can feel a little episodic – meet this character, here’s their life – but these are great episodes. What works is that by the time they’re a team, we’re invested.
Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman has dipped out of public life with a broken heart, Batman has gone a bit grey but still has the loyal service of Alfred (Jeremy Irons), but they need some young blood.
Enter scene-stealer Ezra Miller as The Flash – surely first off the blocks to get his own movie after
Justice League is enjoyable, smart and interesting
this delightful introduction – along with Jason Momoa’s Aquaman (probably the least necessary superhero, but at least he has a twinkle in his eye and some fun lines) and theatre actor Ray Fisher as Cyborg (always ohso-serious).
Amidst the occasionally video game-ish CGI, there are some terrific action sequences across very diverse worlds, with Danny Elfman reprising the motif from his original 1989 Batman score and Snyder’s trademark obsession with slow-motion and speed-ramping ever present (no bad thing).
While Justice League follows DC’s trademark tone of serious over silly, Miller lends a lightness to proceedings, soothing our fatigue when the final act tacks on some civilian peril and risks going on a bit long.
With key characters we want to know better, and cameos by supporting characters from previous movies, Justice League has clearly been in training for its ongoing fight against Marvel. Having leapt off the ropes, I would say DC is deservedly back in the game. – Sarah Watt