Zack Snyder's Justice League debuts on HBO Max on March 18. Warning: This review contains full spoilers for Joss Whedon’s theatrical cut but keeps spoilers for the differences present in The Snyder Cut to a minimum.
If you’re a fan of the Lord of the Rings film franchise, odds are that after you watch the Extended Editions there was no going back to the theatrical cuts after seeing how the additional material enriches the story. That goes triple for Zack Snyder’s Justice League. What was released as a sloppy, lighthearted team-up of quippy heroes rises like a dead Kryptonian from a Genesis Chamber… ready for a second chance (you know, after trying to murder his Leaguemates). The fabled “Snyder Cut” elevates Justice League into something well worth watching.
The set-up of Zack Snyder’s Justice League, in broad terms, remains the same as the theatrical cut: after Superman (Henry Cavill) sacrifices himself to kill Doomsday, Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck) resolves to put together a team of heroes to defend Earth from an oncoming alien threat. But with double the runtime to spend on establishing context around key events, how that story is told this time around far more coherent and engaging. Where the theatrical cut raced from action scene to action scene, Zack Snyder’s Justice League is a methodical slow-burn and has a much deeper interest in exploring its characters and lore than you may expect.
Nearly every character in Zack Snyder’s Justice League, from the top down, has a clearer journey and more dimension. There’s no one that exemplifies that better than Ray Fisher’s Cyborg, who saw the vast majority of his backstory cut in Justice League’s 2017 release. It’s frankly stunning how engaging Victor Stone is here compared to the robotic (sorry), bland iteration in the theatrical cut. Snyder’s version of Victor plays up the gothic horror aspect of the college student given a second chance at life through his father Silas’ (Joe Morton) experimentations with a Mother Box, and their conflicted relationship is given new dimension in several new scenes together. Victor’s struggle to accept his new circumstances is played with nuance by Fisher and colors everything the character does, from his early reluctance to aid the heroes to his eventual acceptance of his responsibility to use his power for good.
Like Cyborg, Batman's characterization is almost entirely different this time. This Bruce Wayne has been irrevocably changed by Superman's sacrifice, and here serves as the standard-bearer for the hope that Jor-El sent his son to Earth to inspire. Bruce's struggle to put the isolation that's come to define him in the past and assume a leadership role amongst these wildly different heroes is given gravity by how earnestly Affleck plays his reverence for the Man of Steel and the ideal he represented. This is the kind of Bruce Wayne who will turn to a skeptical Alfred (Jeremy Irons), grin, and say "Faith, Alfred! Faith!" That’s a far cry from being one “Martha” away from running Superman through with a Kryptonite spear. Also, he gets to drop an absolute banger of an F-bomb at one point. Hearing Batman say f*** is rad.
Bruce’s faith in Superman, as we know, pays off. Superman’s resurrection plays far better with more of a lead-up and, once he gets over his “destroy whoever ever I see” instinct, Clark gets a moment to shine back at the Kent family farm. His reunion with Lois Lane (Amy Adams) and Martha Kent (Diane Lane) is much more emotional thanks to Snyder’s increased focus on how devastated the two were by his death. However, one way in which Snyder’s cut doesn’t vary much from the theatrical cut in conception is that Superman’s role is limited by design; but here at least, he’s far more prevalent as a symbol for our heroes.
Snyder presents Ezra Miller’s Barry Allen as farther along in mastering his powers than the theatrical cut did, including an entirely different introduction scene. The boost in confidence he gains from that levels out the earlier version’s manic energy. He remains the comic relief character and fills that role well, as he’s still a green enough hero to freak out when entering the Batcave for the first time. Snyder doubles down on Flash in the finale, with spectacular use of the Speed Force that raises the bar for his eventual solo film.
Like Cyborg, Arthur Curry (Jason Momoa) has little interest in playing nice with the team at first. Snyder draws out Aquaman’s eventual decision to join the League with more explanation about why he’s resisted his Atlantean heritage, the focus of restored scenes featuring Willem Dafoe’s Vulko (and Vulko’s luscious locks, which apparently he decides to start man-bunning by the time we see him in 2018’s Aquaman). Arthur’s story feels like little more than a set-up to give him a fuller arc in his own movie, but at least this time we have a clearer picture of where Arthur’s at and some of why he harbors so much resentment towards Atlantis.
Of all the heroes, Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) ends up benefitting least from the extra runtime. As the Amazons prove to have the most information on Darkseid and his prior failure to conquer Earth, Diana is often relegated to delivering historical exposition. In battle, though, Wonder Woman is deadly as hell. Free from the restrictions of the PG-13 rating imposed on the theatrical cut, Snyder has no problem letting Diana’s inner demigod off the chain, notably in her first fight scene where she just obliterates a room full of terrorists and cracks a couple of skulls against the walls as she goes.
"Hearing Batman say f*** is rad."
Meanwhile, attention is paid to the near-universal criticism lobbed at the theatrical cut’s villain Steppenwolf, where his vague motives and uninteresting personality left his only real contribution to the movie giving the League someone to punch in the final battle. Zack Snyder’s Justice League repositions Steppenwolf as an outcast, desperate to make good on his failures and get back into Darkseid’s good graces by delivering him Earth. With a more imposing costume and savagery on the battlefield the R-rating takes advantage of, Steppenwolf starts off with actual motivations this time (and his eventual fate is so much cooler). But once Darkseid decides to start taking his calls again, Steppenwolf stalls out a bit. It doesn’t help that Snyder introduces another McGuffin that Darkseid’s after, and the Big Bad’s desire for it starts to overshadow what Steppenwolf’s doing with the Mother Boxes back on Earth.
The action benefits from Snyder’s experienced hand in that department. Clashes between heroes and villains feel more visceral this time and each hero gets multiple moments to shine. However, while each battle does play out with more energy, it’s in these scenes where some of the additional, less polished VFX work is more noticeable.
It’s not just the action that’s been revamped: Danny Elfman’s score has been replaced by a much punchier one courtesy of Junkie XL, aka Thomas Holkenborg. Snyder’s Justice League also eschews the widescreen format of its theatrical release in favor of a 1:33:1 square frame that seems destined to fill IMAX screens when we’re in happier times. The new framing doesn’t detract from the experience of watching from home, but it certainly feels more suited to a big screen. If it’s a big enough bother, most TVs have a zoom function that you could use to make it fill the screen (but come on, don’t do that.)
While the majority of changes Zack Snyder’s Justice League makes to the theatrical cut feel vital, some of the material veers into fan service for its own sake. When so much of the movie is working with only what it needs to spin its four-hour yarn, that becomes more noticeable. For instance, while Superman’s black suit may be comics-accurate for a revived Man of Steel, its significance is only passingly referenced, which felt like a missed opportunity to say something about Clark’s ideology post-resurrection. And it’s no secret that Martian Manhunter debuts here in this version of Justice League, but his contributions are minimal and do more to distract than to serve the story. Case in point: his entrance kind of retroactively ruins a sweet moment between two characters once you know one was actually the shape-shifting green man from space.
Similarly, while the epilogue's newly shot Knightmare scene may give us another window into days of DC future yet to pass, it feels a little indulgent to spend time seeding out story arcs that will most likely go unfulfilled; especially as this scene is tacked on after an otherwise-cogent coda which nicely sums up the characters' arcs. With that said, the touted encounter between Ben Affleck's Batman and Jared Leto's Joker, while brief, doesn't disappoint. The bloody history between the two looms large over their tense exchange, which is a highlight for both actors' tenure in their roles.
