By Paul Dehlinger and Blake Fisher
Since 2017’s release of Joss Wheadon’s Justice League, affectionately called “Josstice League”, the DC fan base has been in an outrage due to Warner Bros’ refusal to release Zack Snyder’s original cut of the movie. This changed with the purchase of Warner Bros’ by telecommunication giant AT&T. Due to the overwhelming fan support, and seeing the opportunity to boost HBOMax subscriptions, AT&T gave Zack Snyder $70 million to finish post production on his original cut and even add an extra scene in the epilogue. The recent release of Zack Snyder’s Justice League (ZSJL) on HBOMax showed that the fans can and do have a say in large corporations, and that their voice can lead to what some people considered one of the best comic book movies of all time.
The opening of ZSJL made the audience feel the enormous impact that the death of Superman had on the planet as Superman’s final screams are seen traveling across the planet and are heard by both the Atlanteans and Amazonians. This is in contrast to its predecessor (2017 JL) which tried to demonstrate this with a vague sense of violence and hopelessness that has grown in the absence of Superman.
With a run time of 4 hours, the entirety of ZSJL is broken up into six chapters, a prologue, and an epilogue. The prologue running at just under 10 minutes beautifully recaps the ending of Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, and gives an audience an exciting taste of what to expect with the remaining 3 hours and 54 minutes. From part one through part six the audience is left craving more of this fantastical journey Zack Snyder has envisioned for the entire League.
Unlike the 2017 JL, ZSJL has a place for every superhero, and gives the main antagonist, Steppenwolf, a driving force behind his actions. The audience understands and feels what’s at stake for the heroes and the world. Steppenwolf is driven by a desire to be allowed back to his home world, Apokolips, and to be welcomed by Darkseid, the Great One. The Flash is given an important role, which without this character the Justice League would not have succeeded opposed the 2017 JL used him mainly to lighten the mood, provide awkward humor, a prove to the audience that the Justice League does save people.
Silas Stone, Cyborg’s father is also given a much greater role in the film. We see him as a complex person who we learn was partially responsible for what happened to his son. And this leads us to the character that was unarguable the most wronged by the edits made in the 2017 JL. Cyborg goes from being a plot device to being the heart of the film. There is an amazing scene in which Cyborg contemplates his new abilities as his father narrates, and explains to him that he will have the power to manipulate global financial market as if they where playthings and lauch all of the world nuclear weapons with a single thought. For many the scene may make them wonder if cyborg isn’t the most powerful member of the league. Overall his character has a fulfilling arc as he comes to terms with this relationship with his father and his own robotic body.
With a 4 hour run time it would have been hard not to give the audience more character development than was provided in the 2017 JL. But for many this film is a fulfillment of a consistent narrative and tone started by Zack Snyder in Man of Steel and continued on in both Batman v Superman and Patty Jenkins’ Worder Women. It is a darker and more serious take on the super hero genre, giving a genuine look into a world where gods and cosmic beings interact with earth and it’s people.