MOVIE REVIEW | Justice League (2017)

Justice League (2017)

I liked how the director made an effort to give all characters equal exposure in the film, that is- not giving the limelight to any of them. Although Wonder Woman obviously stood out, what with all the grand entrance and that signature sound effect whenever she gets her limited screen time.

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JUSTICE LEAGUE (2017)
Rating: 7.5 / 10 
★★★★★★★

Director: Zack Snyder
Cast: Henry Cavill (Superman), Ben Affleck (Batman), Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman), Jason Momoa (Aquaman), Ezra Miller (The Flash), Ray Fisher (Cyborg)


One of the many downsides of the film though is that the villain seemed too mundane and in the words of some critics "one dimensional magnified with obvious CGI", against the heroes i.e one punch from Superman and he's a goner. That goes against the narrative which tells of how in the ancient days, even the gods of Olympus, alien races and tribes of amazons/atlantians/humans had to come together just to defeat Steppenwolf. I mean, come on- he was defeated by Superman single handedly. Didn't this realization dawned on the screenwriters?



And to be honest, there were some dragging scenes which should have been omitted e.g. lengthy explanations about the boxes, searching for other members of the JL, Superman's backstory and what not. To me, it seemed too convoluted to mash them all together. So, hopefully the next JL which will be directed by Patty Jenkins will be better.

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Batman's character was also compromised after being too emotionally charged for a character in the film. He was after all the one who initiated the resurrection of Superman using the motherbox, driven by guilt for Superman's death. This was noticeable even to a novice DC audience. He was too affected by Diana's sentiments about his decisions. And he even doubted himself, which is very un-Batman like. Couple that with several comic retorts from the cape crusader and Batman's image was completely altered. 

There's also the sense of rush to get the plot resolved. It's like all roads lead to defeating the villain so we can all go home after a three-hour film. I mean, we all know that's gonna happen but what we really wanted is a twist on how it will be done. 

When Superman seemed like he's gonna turn his back away from his JL, you know that ain't happening because he's Superman so he will change his mind and will show up to finish this already decided battle. That's how it is going to be, and that is how it is going to end.

What I'm saying is that JL became too predictable and characters were reduced to god-like beings capable of resolving the problems of the world. If that is indeed the essence of the film- why even bother creating a film that doesn't offer much opportunity for audience to somehow "believe" that it could happen within the realms of an imagined reality. Because fact of the matter is, JL was just a pretty film with nice costumes. It failed to give a compelling narrative.