Mark Reviews Movies: ZACK SNYDER'S JUSTICE LEAGUE

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Review by Mark Dujsik | March 17, 2021

When Justice League was released in 2017, it arrived with Zack Snyder credited as the movie's director. Now, though, it's pretty clear that, while Snyder may have overseen the shooting of the majority of the material in the original version, the final cut of the theatrical release wasn't his. There's little doubt that Zack Snyder's Justice League is his.

Running a total of just over four hours, it's a lot more movie, for sure (twice the length of the theatrical release), but the good news is that this new, director-signed-and-sealed version is a better film, too. Snyder and screenwriter Chris Terrio have undone a lot of the problems with the original cut, primarily giving each of the superheroes—especially the ones who are making their first appearances within the timeline of the DC movie universe—some much-needed back story and personality. Even the pretty generic plot, which features the heroes trying to stop a potentially world-ending threat by protecting a trio of MacGuffins, feels weightier.

Watching the two similar—in terms of plot—but very different—in terms of tone, aesthetics, and pacing (obviously)—versions of this material within close proximity to each other is quite revealing. The original cut was light on its feet, jokey, and focused on the fun that could come from having six superheroes of various degrees of fame team up together.

That version was clearly a counter-response to the gloomy, dour tone that Snyder himself had solidified with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. More importantly, it was the DC movies' attempt to catch up with their comic-book-universe competition, which already had a large cast of superheroes and many more movies in which to establish them. In the movie's haste to course correct and play catch-up, a few of the characters, both new and old, were overlooked. As much fun as the bickering and bantering between these heroes could be, the actual plot was a rushed bore, while the action was almost as dull as the main villain.

It's important to note the new and expanded scenes in Snyder's cut, but it's equally important to notice which scenes have been omitted (likely because the director had nothing to do with them). A lot of the joking exchanges are gone, and so, too, are scenes summing and/or speeding up the plot. The entire climactic battle is altered, so we can see how the original version tried to streamline the action (and, for some reason, put innocent civilians in the ghost town of a nuclear disaster site). With these awkward moments absent, the material has a lot more space and, of course, time to breathe.

It's much appreciated, in that it actually gives us a lot more time to appreciate the element of this story that matters the most: each of these superheroes—who they are, where they come from, what they're dealing with individually, how they're going to put that aside to work together against the big, bad threat. It's simple enough, but it makes all the difference.

The plot, again, remains mostly unchanged. Bruce Wayne/Batman (Ben Affleck), feeling guilty and worried about the death of Superman (Henry Cavill), wants to put together a team of super-powered people in order to confront any foe that might threaten the Earth. Diana Prince/Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) learns that a threat has already arrived in the form of Steppenwolf (voice of Ciarán Hinds), a disgraced conqueror of worlds trying to regain his reputation.

The team still has to find and/or protect three cubes—"Mother Boxes"—that, when united, can transform a planet into a wasteland and turn its inhabitants into flying-insect henchmen. It's still relatively bland stuff, but one of the better changes here is, not only in expanding the Steppenwolf's motivation, but also in the character's new design, which turns him from a tall humanoid into an almost pathetic creature, compensating with his spiky armor. A lengthy sequence showing a battle from ancient history—as gods and demigods and humans team up against Steppenwolf's boss—explains the MacGuffins a bit better, provides a better sense of the stakes, and is pretty impressive on its own. Snyder and company haven't skimped on the visual effects in these new and expanded scenes (The whole film, by the way, is presented in a taller, boxier aspect ratio, which, since the frame is no longer cramped, fixes some of the issues with the action, especially in a battle in some tunnels and the climax).

Most of the new scenes, though, give us a better understanding of the new characters. Aquaman (Jason Momoa) has some dialogue with his fellow Atlantians, although one imagines he's still overlooked in this version because the superhero had a solo adventure lined up in the immediate future. Barry Allen/the Flash (Ezra Miller) receives a clever introduction, in which he a saves a woman from a catastrophic car crash (while grabbing a hot dog to provide a cover story), and a bigger chip on his shoulder from a scene with his wrongly-convicted father (played by Billy Crudup). The character still provides jokey, energetic levity, though.

The most substantial changes, though, belong to Victor Stone/Cyborg (Ray Fisher), who seemed extraneous in the theatrical cut but becomes a sad, tortured character in this one. Part man but mostly machine, Victor is still reeling from the car accident that killed his mother, nearly killing him, and resentful of his father (played by Joe Morton) for transforming him into something neither man really understands.

The changes and expansions work (even if Snyder and Terrio's attempt to set up at least three sequels or spin-offs during the epilogue feels like grasping at fleeing, diminishing straws at this point). Zack Snyder's Justice League is a bigger, richer, and more balanced experience, and it's a pretty good, unexpected superhero epic on its own merits.

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