acid reflects

I’m going to attempt a spoiler-free review. Which means this might be shorter than my usual reviews, but definitely longer than the reaction I posted the other day.

I didn’t know what to expect, really coming from Batman v Superman. I liked BvS. I dug BvS. Especially the extended edition. So I was a bit hesitant, anxious, excited and hopeful coming into the premiere. And I’m happy to say that I’m happy and satisfied with what I have seen.

Batman/ Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck) and Wonder Woman / DIana (Gal Gadot) have been busy doubling down on the rise of criminality since the death of Superman (Henry Cavill.) We know this from last year’s Wonder Woman, and Suicide Squad the year before that. At the same time, the duo has been busy spying on their potential recruits – the speedster Barry Allen aka The Flash (Ezra Miller,)  Arthur Curry aka the protector of oceans, Aquaman (Jason Momoa) and Victor Stone aka Cyborg (Ray Fisher) – for an alliance against an anticipated alien threat.

And the threat comes. Steppenwolf (Ciaran Hinds) Ender of Worlds, lands from the heavens to take ancient instruments of power – motherboxes – from their earthly keepers in order to form the Unity of powers that will enable him to conquer worlds once again. In a flashback, Diana tells Bruce how this was halted on earth long ago when Amazons, Atlanteans, human and gods joined forces to defeat Steppenwolf’s invasion. Since then, each faction kept a motherbox in safekeeping for thousands of years. With the death of Superman, Earth’s defenses have become sharply diminished against Steppenwolf. Hence the need for a team.

Steppenwolf uses an old nuclear power plant to combine the motherboxes. But it is only after the heroes come together and overcome internal bickering that the group learns to work as a true team of superheroes. In a nutshell. Avoiding spoilers.

All things considered, this is a safe, satisfying film. By now you have heard that the best part of Justice League is its characters, because it gets them right. SPOT ON. There is enough (or more than enough) on screen that pays tribute to these icons and the actors portray them to perfection. Okay, maybe the least popular is Cyborg, but let’s give Fisher the leeway of being able to do what he wants because he has the least pop history to work on (and be encumbered with.) But homage after homage of scenes from the comic books, TV and DC animations, and even previous films all point to a nearly universal amalgam of most things that fans love about these characters. Spiced with a little humor.

I can’t say it’s hard to pick a favorite because I’ve been a Superman fan since I was a kid, but excluding the Man of Steel, it would also be hard to pick a favorite among these charmingly fleshed-out characters. Maybe Ezra Miller’s take on Barry Allen – flat-footed, navigationally-challenged and allergic to many things including human interaction. Cracks me up all the time. Momoa’s swaggering surfer dude is next.

The film is quite concise in its dialgue given the (comparatively) short runtime, so each  long-ish exchange between characters is quite precious. Lois’s (Amy Adams) and Martha’s (Diane Lane) connection. Barry and Henry Allen (played by Watchmen Dr. Manhattan Billy Crudup) whom we will both see more of in the coming Flashpoint standalone film. Henry’s final line to Barry was particularly touching for me.

The studio-mandated 2-hour runtime obviously had an effect on the jumpy plot. But even so, don’t we all ask for better characters each time a film becomes plot-driven? Great characters sounds better to me than a great plot and in this regard, JL is  refreshed storytelling in the Snyder filmography. Incidentally, you can almost tell which are the Joss Whedon-helmed reshoots, but they fit quite seamlessly with the rest of the film.

That said, the movie pays a lot of homage to Justice League in its many incarnations over the years, including cues in Danny Elfman’s music. I really like what Elfman has done for JL, but I’d have to admit that I somehow miss the edgy scoring done by Hans Zimmer and Junkie Xl for Man of Steel and BvS. This is probably my least favorite aspect of the film, which for me added to the noise and mayhem more than adding atmosphere. But that’s just me.  There are tons of “that scene is from this comic” or “that one is from JL War animation!” The movie nails fan service at the very least.

Yes, Steppenwolf is a weak villain – and this is where a lot of explanation outside the theatrical version of JL comes in. Steppenwolf isn’t exactly a famous villain (nor was his closest Marvel comparison Malekith.) And so by virtue of the main premise (the formation of the League) Steppenwolf is automatically dispensable. No thrill generated. There’s action, yes, and a fight sequence that makes the group a credible “team.” But somehow, supposedly, we know at the end of BvS that Steppenwolf is merely the harbinger of darker things to come.

Who knows? Justice League seems to say that this story may or may not necessarily tie in with what BvS was supposedly building up towards. End of rant and possible spoiler. For now, we see these iconic superheroes forming a formiddable team. It can even end here, and just let each individual superhero have their own storylines that may or may not have a thing or two connecting to the grand scheme of things that Zack Snyder started.

The answer may or may not be in the two credits scenes.

I’ll write a longer and spoiler-y review maybe after the commercial run.

The bottom line is that if you’re a true comic book (or superhero animation/ tv series) fan, you’re going to enjoy this a lot. I did.