Review - Justice League (2017)

     Hey guys, Chuck here. In 2014, when Warner Bros. slate of DC Comics films was announced, the one film that myself, among all other DC fans, got really excited about was the announcement of Justice League. This was it, DC's big response to Marvel's big superhero team-up film The Avengers. However, there was apparently a lot of behind-the-scenes issues, with the original cut that Zack Snyder handed in being disliked by the studio, and when Zack had to step away due to a family tragedy, Joss Whedon, who directed The Avengers for Marvel, stepped in to direct a series of re-shoots, and oversee the post-production of the theatrical cut of Justice League. And it is with a heavy heart that, unfortunately, this is the version I'll be reviewing at this moment. Here it is, the theatrical cut of Justice League. 

    Returning actors in this movie include Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Jeremy Irons, Connie Nielsen, and Diane Lane. Actors featured in cameos from Batman v. Superman like Ray Fisher, Jason Momoa, Ezra Miller, and Joe Morton all have major roles in the film, and are joined by newcomers Billy Crudup, J.K. Simmons, Amber Heard, and Ciaran Hinds. The story starts off with some time having passed since the death of Clark Kent aka Superman, played by Cavill, and now Bruce Wayne aka Batman, played by Affleck, is working to protect the world from a coming threat from beyond the stars. One night, Batman encounters a Parademon, who explodes before he gets to ask some questions. Batman then decides to journey North, to begin recruiting the metahumans in Lex Luthor's files. Meanwhile, a museum heist involving hostages and a bomb is thwarted by Diana Prince aka Wonder Woman, played by Gadot, and she keeps an eye out for any other signs of something bad about to happen. It is here where Bruce meets with Arthur Curry aka Aquaman, played by Jason Momoa, who is looking to keep a low profile and refuses to join Bruce's crusade. Meanwhile in Central City, Barry Allen, played by Ezra Miller, pays a visit to his imprisoned father, played by Billy Crudup, who tells Barry to move on with his life. We also meet Victor Stone aka Cyborg, played by Ray Fisher, who is starting to have an alien language rattling around in his head, and learns that he, himself, is being monitored and sought out by Bruce. Victor also refuses to work with his father Silas, played by Joe Morton, at S.T.A.R. Labs.

    On Themyscira, Queen Hippolyta, played by Connie Nielsen, leads the Amazons in a defense of a device known as the Mother Box, when a Boom Tube appears all of a sudden, and emerging from it is the warlord Steppenwolf, played by Ciaran Hinds, and his army of Parademons. Despite the fight they put up, the Amazons lose the Mother Box, and Hippolyta decides to light the ancient warning fire in the Temple of the Amazons, which only Diana will recognize. Upon seeing the fire, and knowing what it means, Diana goes to meet with Bruce, and it is here where we get some background on what's happening. Steppenwolf, we learn, is a warlord from the planet Apokolips, and with his army of Parademons, as well as the three Mother Boxes, sought to conquer the Earth and transform it into being identical in every way to Apokolips through the combination of the three Mother Boxes, also know as the "unity". Unfortunately, a mass alliance of men, Amazons, Atlanteans, the gods of Olympus, and even members of the Green Lantern Corps. stood against Steppenwolf, thwarting the "unity" and forcing him to retreat. The Amazons took a Mother Box, as did the Atlanteans, but the leaders of men buried their Mother Box so that none could use it against other men. 

    Bruce meets with Barry, and learns that Barry is a speedster, and Barry enthusiastically joins up with the team that Bruce is assembling. Meanwhile, Diana meets Victor, who isn't quite ready to be part of a team, and is less ready to embrace his cybernetic abilities. Meanwhile, Steppenwolf targets the Mother Box in Atlantis, or at least an area under the ocean controlled by the Atlanteans, and Arthur, having rescued a shipwrecked fisherman, heads under the ocean to fight Steppenwolf. It is here where he meets Mera, played by Amber Heard, who tells him that she knew his mother, Queen Atlanna, and convinces him to fight and defeat Steppenwolf as his mother would have. Back in Gotham, Commissioner Jim Gordon, played by J.K. Simmons, lights the Bat-Signal, and Bruce, Diana, and Barry suit up to meet with Gordon, and are joined on the GCPD rooftop by Victor, who notes that where the Parademons took hostages from S.T.A.R. Labs, including Silas, is located beneath an island in the middle of the bay, to which the only current access is from Gotham Harbor. The four heroes head for hte spot, utilizing a vehicle called the Nightcrawler, and fight Steppenwolf and his Parademons, while Barry rescues the hostages. Arthur arrives sometime after the fight, and the five take the Mother Box with them to the Batcave, where Bruce mentions a possible idea that Diana instantly shoots down: Use both the power of the Mother Box and the genisis chamber in the wrecked Kryptonian ship to bring Clark back from the dead. 

    Barry and Victor dig Clarks body up, and the heroes carry out their plan. Combining the electricity from Barry's running with the Box, the Genesis Chamber kicks into high gear and Clark awakens, alive once more. Confused, and due to Victor attacking first, Clark fights the others, and quickly recognizes Bruce and tries to kill him. Lois Lane, played once again by Amy Adams, arrives and brings Clark back to his senses. The two of them fly off, and a Boom Tube appears near the Mother Box, Steppenwolf taking it. The other heroes head back to the Batcave, where they regroup, and Victor locates Steppenwolf's base to an abandoned nuclear plant in Russia, where there is a nearby village. The heroes head there to stop Steppenwolf, keep the villagers from harm, and save the world. In Smallville, Clark recuperates, and speaks with both Lois and Ma Kent, played once again by Diane Lane, before going to join in the fight. With Superman's help, the "unity" is stopped, the villagers are saved, and a defeated Steppenwolf is sent running back to the stars in a Boom Tube. 

    The battle over, Bruce helps get the Kent farm back for Ma Kent and Clark by buying out the bank that foreclosed on the property, while Bruce and Diana decide to use the ruins of Wayne Manor to make a base for the team. Meanwhile, Barry gets a job as a Central City CSI, Arthur enjoys swimming at sea, Victor works with his father to further explore his abilities, and Barry and Clark have a race to see which of the two of them is faster. In a post-credits scene, Lex Luthor, played by Jesse Eisenberg, recruits Slade Wilson aka Deathstroke, played by Joe Manganiello, to form their own league to bring down the newly formed "Justice League." 

    Do I need to say it? Justice League: The Theatrical Cut is a mess. While I like some of the performances, especially from the six main heroes, there is so much that makes little sense plot wise. There are way too many things that get lost in the shuffle of the movie having to meet a two-hour runtime. Not to mention, the film really feels like the Frankensteined creation of two filmmakers with two very different filmmaking styles. Ultimately, the theatrical cut of Justice League is a mess, and is only worth a rating of 1.5/5. Luckily, however, due to a massive fan campaign, Warner Bros, through the streaming service HBO Max, will be releasing a new cut of Justice League, known as The Snyder Cut. This version will very much be the film that Zack Snyder wanted to make, and it's awesome that he's been given the opportunity to finish the visual effects, including a more intimidating looking design for Steppenwolf. Justice League: The Snyder Cut releases sometime in the next year or so. Meanwhile, my review of the DCEU movies continues with my next review: Aquaman.