Justice League

We did it Reddit!

I don't know if it's cause for fanfare that DC kept on fighting towards the Justice League movie being a thing, because let's face it...it hasn't exactly been an easy ride. I do have to give them props though for not giving up after the negative reactions of BvS and Suicide Squad. A lot of studios would have given up long ago, and a lot of studios already have within this year (Dark Universe, anyone?).

All that aside though, we finally got a Justice League film, which is something we've oddly been waiting for for what feels like forever. Sadly though, a lot of people would have rather this thing not become a reality due to their feelings on prior films in this universe, and I can see why. I may wish that more people would be more excited for this but after Suicide Squad and the mediocre theatrical cut of Batman v. Superman (I am still a fan of the extended cut), people are understandably pissed. It would take a hell of a movie to get people to warm up to this, and it's my job to say if this movie does that job.

Justice League is the story of the Justice League. That's pretty much the gist. Well, not exactly, honestly...it's a mixture of semi-origins for three of the characters involved (but not too much of an origin to feel slow and weighed down) leading up to a final team-up. Within the film, they're tasked with the defeat of Steppenwolf, a mysterious ancient demon-type thing that precedes the major villain of the universe, Darkseid. Add that to some stuff about Superman being dead and them trying to get him back, and you've got the real gist of it.

And honestly, I have to say after much deliberation...Justice League is okay.

Yeah, if you're a fan of this universe, you will enjoy Justice League, and if you're not, you probably won't. That's honestly the best way to put it. There's a solid base that this movie builds upon, but there are a few issues. The story's elements are pretty decent, but it suffers from the problem of being helmed by two completely different directors trying to do their own thing. Sometimes cuts are pretty jarring, but it doesn't ruin the experience all together. One benefit is that the second director, Joss Whedon, managed to fill the movie with a dash of clever humor, something that these films kind of lacked beforehand.

One more good thing about this film is probably the sum of its parts. We're very acquainted with Ben Affleck's Batman and Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman now, and I can still say that both are still very, very good in their roles, spot on to their comic counterparts. Also, the newcomers are not half bad, especially Ezra Miller's Flash, who is a pretty fun adaptation of the character, albeit a tad too kooky at times. Ray Fisher's Cyborg and Jason Momoa's Aquaman are good adaptations, but need a little polishing before becoming perfect. 

On another side of the technical spectrum, Danny Elfman's score is amazing, harkening back to his work in the 1989 Batman film, and even echoing some of John William's Superman score and Hans Zimmer's work on past DC films. However, there is one glaring technical issue, which is the CGI. You may have heard this already, but the CGI is not the best in the world. It's not really the worst, either, but you'd expect better than PS4 cutscenes in this $200 million movie.

But all in all, I'd have to say that this is a film that demands that you go make your own decision on it rather than listen to what everyone else has to say. It's a pretty fun film, with a decent story, but it's riddled with some issues that can't be excused, so I say I'll give it a 7.1/10. Maybe we'll get something better next time...or maybe it's time for me to stop hoping for nothing.