JUSTICE LEAGUE VERSUS BATMAN AND SUPERMAN – SPOILER FREE
No that was not a typo, I do mean Justice League vs Batman AND Superman, spoiler free-ish, (unless you’ve not seen any trailers or seen any photos of press outings).
ike the majority of audiences probably going in to see Justice League, I had incredibly low expectations. After the catastrophe that was Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and the middling to mediocre entry that was Suicide Squad I’d pretty much given up on the DC Extended Universe. Then along came an Amazon named Diana of Themyscira in Wonder Woman who gave me hope. Not only for female led superhero films, but for DC on the big screen.
Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman – Warner Bros.
Unfortunately not even the demigod can save Justice League from itself. In addition to Wonder Woman, the newcomers are probably the highlight of the film. Though they get rather rushed intros, Jason Momoa as Aquaman, Ezra Miller as the Flash, and Ray Fisher as Cyborg, all bring a bit of vitality to the film. Their chemistry makes for the most watchable parts of the film.
Jason Momoa as Aquaman – Warner Bros.
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Ezra Miller as The Flash – Warner Bros.
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Ray Fisher as Cyborg – Warner Bros.
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Particular shout out to Miller’s portrayal of Barry Allen (truth be told I thought Momoa was going to be my favorite newcomer, but Miller somewhat stole the show). He brings fun and humor to the role, and manages to portray a wonderment at his fellow heroes that doesn’t come across as annoying. I’d be absolutely willing to see a Flash solo film if Miller was in the role.
I’d absolutely watch Ezra Miller in a Flash solo film – Warner Bros.
The newbies aren’t the problem. They do the best they can with the scenes they’re given. The film utterly speeds through their intros, and relies on the actor’s to carry our affections for them. I can understand wanting to save one of their backstories for the already in progress Aquaman, but to not give time to the other two did a disservice.
Jason Momoa was an excellent casting choice as Aquaman – Warner Bros.
The main problem is they feel like they don’t belong in the same movie as Batman and Superman. At least not these iterations of Batman and Superman. After the horrors of BvS it’s unfortunate that DC decided to keep Affleck and Cavill in the roles. So I don’t blame Cavill as much but I feel like it’s actually easier to play a goody goody in this case. However I understand that deals were in place and replacing them was more a risky move than they were prepared to make.
Also, if you feel Superman’s return is a spoiler I ask you to re-examine that accusation. After all we had our post credits scene in BvS, Henry Cavill has been at much of the press appearances for the film, he’s in a trailer, his name is LITERALLY in the top billing, and quite frankly there was no way they were going to found the Justice League without one of their most lucrative characters.
Also, if you feel Superman’s return is a spoiler I ask you to re-examine that accusation. After all we had our post credits scene in BvS, Henry Cavill has been at much of the press appearances for the film, he’s in a trailer, his name is LITERALLY in the top billing, and quite frankly there was no way they were going to found the Justice League without one of their most lucrative characters.
Henry Cavill as Superman – Warner Bros.
However that doesn’t mean they should have made them the focus of this film, particularly at the expense of the other players. I don’t know if the film suffers tonally because of the Snyder/Whedon swap out towards the end of filming, or if they just didn’t know how to assemble a team. Whedon has proven he knows how with The Avengers, so I’m going to chalk it up to the former reason. The film feels disjointed, actually like two separate films. The strongest parts of the film were the humor generated by the rookies. The weakest are Batman’s brooding (which should be his forte) and Superman’s attempts at emotion. Both actors felt like they were phoning it in.
Ben Affleck as Batman – Warner Bros.
Other characters or even the story doesn’t get to flourish when directors are obsessed with making sure Batman and Superman get copious amounts of screen time. Batman was great in the Nolan movies because he was faced with villains who were true challenges to him (which doesn’t translate to the films with heroes with ACTUAL powers, as they’d likely be able to obliterate them rather easily). Superman is quite frankly antiquated, and unless filmmakers are willing to break with his beyond righteous image we’ll never see him evolve. Of note I’d absolutely be on board to see the Flashpoint versions of both (if played by other actors), but they’d have to truly commit to the variations the comic storyline explores.
While I know they’ll never do it, as they’re the most profitable characters in their stable, I think it’s time for DC to retire Batman and Superman from the spotlight of their films. They aren’t the heroes we need anymore. Hand the reigns (or the lasso) to the other characters and let them shine.
The best parts of the Justice League – Warner Bros.
Finally, I think it’s also time for DC to replace Zack Snyder from their creative leadership. While the personal tragedy that struck him during filming of Justice League was certainly horrible, the film was clearly already well into production, and already a mess. Considering the role he’s played in bringing disaster after disaster in the DCEU to the big screen, DC should cut their losses in their investment in him.