The DC’s first proper live-action attempt at the Justice League didn’t exactly go down as the studio expected. With large amounts of interference from Warner Bros. a critical and commercial disaster and a lot of fan love and hate, it’s quite the polarising movie.
While many people are quick to criticize his superhero action blockbusters, there are quite a few elements of Zack Snyder’s films that have actually aged quite well. The talented movie director has a lot of great films in his repertoire, so here’s 10 things that have aged well about this DC team movies.
THE COSTUMES
One of the major things that the design department got right about these films was the costumes. While we know the Arrowverse has some pretty good attempts at adapting the characters to the screen, these films have managed to create a unique look for each hero.
Whether it’s the Wonder Woman or Flash outfits that have really drawn your attention, ultimately both the Batman and Cyborg costumes really stand out amongst the rest. There are some intriguing designs amongst the group and these have been carried over to other films.
THE BATMAN
The Ben Affleck casing of Batman was controversial to start with. Some people felt that DC was going in the wrong direction with the character. After his initial DCEU appearance people were set on the actual casting, although the characterization was wrong.
While it’s fair to say that this version of Batman is slightly different from everything else we’ve seen, people still mark the character as one of their favorite parts of the films. His combat, leadership skills and great suit all help to add a little more to the character.
THE MUSIC
The soundtrack to the films is pretty top-notch. The team working on the music really had their work cut out for them. A lot of the other films didn’t quite have the distinctive music we were all expecting. However, there are of course a few stand out themes.
The Wonder Woman theme, in particular, stands out amongst the rest and the composers managed to weave this into the larger soundtrack. The action beats were made better by this tense music and we love the heroic theme that they came up with for the team.
THE JOKES
Ok, so we know the jokes within Justice League are controversial. A lot of them don’t match the characters and it’s clear that a lot of these are a Joss Whedon contribution, in order to make the film feel more fun and move away from a gritty tone.
However, the jokes themselves mostly land. They may be in a strange context or feel very out of place, but when a joke actually hits it is pretty funny. Some people believe that the film should have leaned heavily into this, much like Shazam and this would have improved it further.
THE TEAM
The combination of the characters, and this cast itself, certainly works in Justice League. It’s a shame that many of them were written so poorly though. The studio wanted to have all the classic League characters brought into the film but there are notable exceptions.
The characters chosen to form the original Justice League though were the correct choices though. While the Avengers team originally formed wasn’t their most classic incarnation from the comics, no one can argue that this isn’t the League at its best.
THE CINEMATOGRAPHY
One thing Zack Snyder understands is the cinematography of a film. He can produce some really iconic images that seem like they’ve been taken straight from a comic book. Of course, this is also the work of his talented cinematographer.
Sometimes we might have unanswered questions about the plot, or the dialogue may feel heavy or disjointed. But, the cinematography is always top-notch and there’s a number of shots that we could point to, to showcase Snyder’s impressive style.
THE GREEN LANTERNS
Everyone was surprised to learn that Hal Jordon wouldn’t be a part of this big blockbuster film. He’s a core element of the team in the comics and even another version of the Green Lantern would have been a welcome addition to the League.
However, the Green Lanterns did make a very brief appearance during one of the action sequences of Justice League. We have to say that this was an action highlight, with the combat showcasing their powers really well. It showed us the proper potential of a Green Lantern Corps film.
THE CASTING
The casting across the board is pretty spot on. The script and choices can sometimes hinder a lot of the actors in their roles, but put into a different context the cast really shines. We’d love to see Ezra Miller have more of an opportunity to show his skills in the role.
Both Wonder Woman and Aquaman have had another opportunity to show why the characters work with the actors behind the roles. A lot of people believe Henry Cavill would make a much better Superman as well if he was allowed to play into the hope of the character.
THE PACING
There are some strange editing choices in Justice League but the pacing actually works for the most part. The scripts are generally written with a traditional three-act structure and while we can tell other people have interfered in some cases, the pacing is pretty good.
The action beats are in the right places and the momentum keeps the movie moving forward. There’s a lot of characters to balance here and it manages to effectively introduce them all without slowing down too much. It’s impressive considering the circumstances.
THE SNYDER CUT
The Snyder cut seems to be the thing with the most longevity surrounding Justice League. Despite how the final version eventually turned out, Zack Snyder’s contributions have made fans really want another version of the film, completely in his vision.
Even the cast has got behind the idea of a Snyder Cut. The film overall might not have aged too well because of its plot flaws and CGI issues, but the idea of a Snyder cut seems very attractive to people to this very day. Let’s see if it’s ever achieved!
