Though we didn’t get the Zack Snyder cut of Justice League petitioned for by thousands online, we do now have the official home release of the latest DC film, which brings together some of DC Comics’ biggest heroes on the big screen for the first time in history. Ben Affleck’s Batman joins forces with Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman to put together a team of crime fighters that can help save the world from an impending threat known as Steppenwolf. The demonic presence has a history with the Amazonian warriors, and is on a mission to bring together three Mother Boxes so that he can claim ultimate power. He’s not immediately a villain that we care about, and seems more of a Norman Bates-esque alien always going on about his “Mother”, but he proves his power when he takes out many of Wonder Woman’s sisters in his hunt for the very first Mother Box.
Heroes come together for the first time in Justice League
In tackling Steppenwolf, Bruce Wayne and Diana Prince recruit Arthur Curry, aka Aquaman (Jason Momoa), Barry Allen, aka The Flash (Ezra Miller), and Victor Stone, aka Cyborg (Ray Fisher). We get a little bit of backstory for each of the heroes woven into Justice League, but enough is kept under wraps to ensure that each of their singular movies will prove just as enticing as ever before when they eventually make their way to cinemas.
Of the three newest additions, Miller is certainly right at home in his role. Barry is somebody who’s a goofy and often curious character, unwittingly prodding at the insecurities of his fellow teammates, and those aspects of his personality shine with Miller in the role. After seeing Grant Gustin make such a success of his version of Barry in The CW’s The Flash series, we weren’t sure we were ready to take somebody else in the role, but Miller has proven us all wrong.
Momoa is also a fantastic Aquaman, though completely different to the versions of the character we’ve seen on the pages of DC Comics. More grizzled and aggressive than the Arthur we’ve grown accustomed to throughout the years, it’s nice to see a completely different take on the hero. His underwater scenes are especially beautiful, and our introduction to Amber Heard’s take on Mera is fantastic. We can’t wait to see more from her in the future.
Then there’s Fisher’s Cyborg. He’s got a tragic backstory, and Fisher’s performance does well to make sure we’re immediately invested in seeing him succeed. His relationship with Aquaman is one that goes through the motions, but he immediately has Diana’s trust.
They may not be the Avengers, but we wouldn’t want them to be. There’s more underlying tension here than many people would be able to stomach, and that makes for some brilliant sequences throughout the movie.
There are also a few little Easter Eggs for huge DC fans, such as Alfred’s musings about the days when their “biggest concerns were exploding wind-up penguins”, and Barry’s admission that he knows “gorilla sign language”. Fan service on this level is a beautiful thing, and it isn’t shoved in the face of audience members who may be new to the DC world.
What we didn’t appreciate were the couple of jokes made simply because Wonder Woman is a female. They feel completely dated and out of place. Very Joss Whedon – we can’t imagine they were a part of Snyder’s cut.
Putting that aside however, and this film is a great romp of action, comedy, and excitement. There are times when the CGI feels a little off, but then little moments such as seeing the front pages mourning Superman, David Bowie, and Prince’s losses as the return of stars to their “home planets” more than make up for it. Henry Cavill’s infamous moustache CGI is there in full force, but once you’ve seen it once, there’s more than enough time to get over it.
This film certainly got a harder bashing from many critics than it deserves, and we’re already planning our next rewatch. A success, and one that convinces us we want to keep indulging in the DC Extended Universe’s future.
Justice League is out now on Digital Download and is available on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray, Blu-ray 3D, Blu-ray and DVD now. A Steelbook is also available exclusively with HMV.
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