The film's bookending theme is hope, so it's appropriate
that it restored my hope for the DC Cinematic Universe. (Yes, I know it’s
officially called the “Extended Universe.” I’m not calling it that.) It’s not quite
a breath of fresh air, like Wonder Woman, but it’s an engaging and exciting movie with no major
flaws to drag it down.
I can’t discuss my feelings about Justice League
without recapping my feelings about the DC films I didn’t like.
I mostly liked Man of Steel, but I could never get excited
about it because its flaws were flaws that really bothered me. (Visually, it
suffered from muted colors and an abuse of slow motion during emotional scenes. Narratively, it was hampered by some logic flaws... and everything
about Jonathan Kent.) I loved the opening sequence of Batman v Superman, and I
think that Ben Affleck is the best on-screen Batman ever, but the film quickly descends
into a jumbled and numbing slog. (I also can’t stand Jesse Eisenberg’s Lex
Luthor. At all.) I thought that Suicide Squad was mostly a mess, slightly
redeemed by a few good characters – including the first good portrayal of
Amanda Waller, by Viola Davis – but just as harmed by bad ones. (I approached Jared Leto’s
Joker with an open mind, but I couldn’t get onboard.) Finally, as I said above, Wonder
Woman was a breath of fresh air, even if it had some flaws.
With Justice League, all of DC’s good casting decisions are
in the spotlight, along with some new ones, and that really helps. The actors
playing Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman were already great in their roles.
Among the new faces, I thought I would like Jason Momoa as Aquaman, and sure
enough, I did. (For the record, I’ve been a fan since before Game of Thrones,
when Momoa joined the cast of Stargate Atlantis.) However, I wasn’t sure how to
feel about Ezra Miller. He has a hard job to do in owning a character that
already belongs – for this generation of fans – to Grant Gustin on the Flash TV
show. This version of Barry Allen is young, impulsive, and insecure. Rather
than Barry Allen, he feels more like Bart Allen (another speedster, one who’s actually
known as “Impulse”). For me, though, the real standout was Ray Fisher as
Cyborg. I already knew the character, but not very well, so this was a new
introduction for me. Fisher brings gravity – and some elements of danger – to
the role, but he also gets to show some emotional range. I’m really looking
forward to seeing him as a fully-developed hero.
For most of the film, I was invested in the interactions
between these characters, and that’s an important proof of concept for a DC
universe that’s jumping into its big team-up movie without introducing all of
the players first. This film shows that I can see these characters together and
actually care about them and what they’re doing. The only weak areas are some
bits of humor – mostly with the Flash, but even with Batman – that feel a
little forced. I wonder if that was the influence of Joss Whedon (who took over
the post-production of the film after the director, Zack Snyder, suffered a
personal loss), or the influence of a movie studio listening to complaints that
Batman v Superman wasn’t “fun like those Marvel movies.” Either way, it’s not always
a good idea for the people making movies to listen to what audiences think they
want. When people complained that Batman v Superman wasn’t “fun,” the remedy
wasn’t to add more jokes; it was to build a better story with engaging
characters. The good news is, they mostly hit that mark this time.
(Next on my DC wishlist: a climactic battle sequence that
doesn’t remind me of a video game.)
