‘Justice League’: Much ado about nothing
IT has been a couple of weeks since the release of the highly anticipated “Justice League” movie, aptly coined “Zack Snyder’s Justice League”.
But before the entire DC universe goes into warp speed and run out of superlatives to describe what a success it is, let us get a few things straight.
Zack Snyder clearly had better vision than his replacement Joss Whedon.
The overall product is no longer that appealing.
For every supposed ‘problem or weakness’ Whedon addresses, there is another one either created or ignored.
Talk of going around in circles!
For instance, Ezra Miller’s Barry Allen (The Flash) and Ray Fisher’s Victor Stone (Cyborg) are two characters that Whedon was criticised for destroying in the editing room.
While we finally did get to see some of that footage, it brought nothing new to the overall product.
Victor Stone’s sad tragic backstory does not improve his terrible computer-generated imagery (CGI), nor does it make him more of a sympathetic character.
Iris West’s introduction, while awesome to finally see, does not add oomph to the production.
This is due to the fact that Kiersey Clemons, who plays the role, barely has any lines in the movie.
She simply appears, gets rescued by her future husband, and then disappears.
The only characters that benefit from Zack Snyder’s original touch on “The Justice League” is Ray Porter’s Darkseid and Harry Lennix’s Calvin Swanwick.
It is revealed that Swanwick is in actual fact the Martian Manhunter, presumably Jon Jonz.
The film’s biggest, and most relevant achievement, remains the introduction of Darkseid, who was supposed to be the DCEU (DC Extended Universe)’s big bad.
Instead of the Marvel-inspired post-credits, we are shown an epilogue in which Darkseid finally arrives and conquers Earth, and all that is left is a beaten-down Flash (Miller), Cyborg (Fisher), Slade Wilson (Joe Manganiello), Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck) and The Joker (Jared Leto).
There is so much to digest from the brief exchanges.
Where does Zack Synder’s “Director’s Cut” lie in the grand scheme of things?
Will the DCEU ignore Joss Whedon’s 2017 “Justice League” and continue with Snyder or was this a once-off?
I refuse to repeat my ramblings from the 2017 “Justice League” review, except for a few key points.
Four hours is a very long time.
This particular production needed some more editing and cutting.
The dialogue remains a point of worry, but the CGI is the film’s biggest weakness.
Steppenwolf (Ciaran Hinds), on top of still being a one-dimensional and shallow villain, is the most affected by the CGI.
The fight sequences are impressive only when an Amazonian warrior is involved, while The Flash’s speed force effects are a joke.