Justice League Snydercut
Should you watch the Zack Snyder version of “Justice League” (Director’s Cut, popularly known as “Snyder Cut” or #snydercut) if you’ve already watched the theatrical version from 2017?
Yes.
Should you watch the Zack Snyder version of “Justice League” if you haven’t watched the theatrical version from 2017 before?
Yes.
Should you watch the Zack Snyder version of “Justice League” even if you haven’t watched “Man of Steel” or “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” before?
Yes (though it would be a shame not to watch these two films too).
Should you watch the Zack Snyder version of “Justice League” (we’ll call it “Justice League Snydercut” hereafter) even if you’re not a fan of superhero films?
The answer is again yes.
Yes, yes, yes and YES!
It was worth waiting all this time for this edition of the film to appear, and it’s worth four hours of your time.
Before I touch on some differences compared to the theatrical release (which #snydercut beats by several notches), we’ll just briefly touch on the plot for those who might not be familiar with the film at all, but would like to know at least what it’s about and whether it’s worth investing four hours of their time.
Superman sacrificed his life to destroy the monstrosity (it’s Doomsday) that evil mastermind Lex Luthor created to finally get rid of the Kryptonian hero. Time passes since Superman’s/Kent’s funeral. Batman/Bruce Wayne still isn’t at peace, because he senses a great danger approaching, and that he and Wonder Woman/Diana Prince aren’t enough to stop it, and so he tries in every way to contact and entice three (for now confirmed) people with superpowers to cooperate – Flash/Barry Allen, Aquaman/Arthur Curry and Cyborg/Victor Stone (a small digression: if you don’t mind, I’ll use their names in English, somehow I’m more used to them when it comes to superheroes :))
Batman was right. Superman’s death “awakened” three mysterious “boxes” (Motherboxes), hidden around our planet. And one of them managed to summon a dangerous villain from a far, far, far planet, Steppenwolf, who with an army of flying demon-soldiers (Parademons) quickly manages to get hold of one of the “boxes,” precisely from the Amazons (to whom Wonder Woman also belongs). Soon Steppenwolf finds an excellent location for his post-apocalyptic base for himself and his soldiers. His goal is to find the remaining two “boxes,” which would enable him to summon his master (whom he once betrayed), hoping that if he delivers planet Earth to him, he’ll thereby redeem himself and get permission to return home.
Meanwhile, Batman and the newly assembled team are in possession of one of the “boxes,” and soon realize that although the boxes are something that can bring doom to the planet, they themselves possess the power to change the state of “something.” Black can become white, the ashes of a burned house can become a whole house again… “something” can return to its previous state. The awareness that our superhero team isn’t strong enough to resist Steppenwolf and his demons drives them to a risky move. If their plan doesn’t work, they’ll hasten our planet’s doom themselves. However, it seems Steppenwolf isn’t their biggest danger… but rather the one this villain wants to bring to Earth.
Whether our newly formed league of (super)heroes will manage to prevent Steppenwolf in his intention to bring his master (and thereby guarantee Earth’s doom) and whether their risky move will pay off… you’ll find out if you set aside four hours of your time and watch “Justice League Snydercut.” 🙂
Keep in mind, from here on there are major revelations of details from the film (to use an old Slavic word, spoilers), because there’s no other way to approach dissecting “Justice League Snydercut.” 😀
As you may know, a family tragedy prevented Zack Snyder from really completing the film, though he later revealed that constant conflicts with the studio over his vision of the DC Universe also drained all his energy. So the studio called Joss Whedon to finish the job. However, Whedon had his own visions for this film, so he redid, cut and re-shot 90% of the material, and we got some kind of cheerier and lighter two-hour version of the film, which met with quite a lukewarm audience reaction.
You know, I quite respect Joss Whedon’s work. He gave us some cult series (for me one of the best series of all time is precisely “Firefly,” and there’s also the legendary “Buffy” whose remake is coming soon, then solid “Angel,” interesting “Dollhouse,” hilarious mini-series “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog,” as well as the superhero “S.H.I.E.L.D”) and brilliant films (“Serenity” which tried to round out the “Firefly” series, and there’s also the unforgettable “Toy Story,” as well as excellent superhero films “Avengers” and “Avengers: Age of Ultron”). On paper, this man knows how to do a good job with the superhero genre, right?
But they shouldn’t have hired Whedon to do DC! Just as Nolan decided to give us a darker Batman (with Bale in the main role), so did Snyder have a darker version of the DC universe in mind. Don’t get me wrong, Marvel dealt with quite dark and difficult themes, the Russo brothers nicely rounded out the “Avengers” whole. And Whedon’s films with “Avengers” turned out great… but he somehow gives everything a cheerier and more humorous note, and sometimes that’s not needed for some work. And he’s quite a stubborn man who wants everything done his way, and often gets into conflicts with others…
In translation, before the release of “Justice League #snydercut,” my impression was that Whedon made a lukewarm superhero film that got by more on hype. After the release of “Justice League Snydercut,” my impression is that Whedon badly bungled the film, and that Zack Snyder ultimately had a better vision for DC. Again, that’s how I experienced it, maybe I’m wrong.
What did Zack Snyder do to make this film (again, at least for me) several notches ahead of the original release?
For starters, everything is darker… but not just in the figurative sense, but literally. The film is quite visually darker, grayer, gloomier and seems “more dangerous,” which quite follows the film’s plot. Later scenes have quite an apocalyptic vibe.
The music is also brilliant, and completely different from the original film… in translation, it’s much more dynamic and dramatic, and at certain moments it can give you slight chills. Of course, this number is still unsurpassed.
Snyder expanded the backstory of the superheroes. We finally know what specifically happened to Cyborg, how he became what he is, we experience his getting used to the idea that he’s half man-half cyber weapon of mass destruction, as well as his very complicated relationship with his father, scientist Silas Stone.
Speaking of Silas Stone… here we finally get an explanation of what happened to him (since in the original release he just “disappeared” at one point), and that he played a very important role for the superhero team. God forgive me, it’s not that I want to believe it, but giving reduced significance to two black actors really doesn’t work in Whedon’s favor, about whom there are rumors he’s a heavy racist… and that Gal Gadot had heavy problems with him…
Our Flash, our Barry Allen… from an ordinary clumsy goofball who looks quite retarded and has a bad sense of humor, whose biggest successes are adding a sword to Wonder Woman and saving one Russian family (as he was presented to us in the original film)… now we got an intelligent and awkward young man (still with a bad sense of humor) who is, though fearful, quite a significant team member and who plays a key role in the film’s finale (after all, he possesses one of the best superpowers with all its variations).
Wonder Woman and Superman are additionally nicely “polished” with a darker approach like in the first films.
Aquaman is a badass brute as before, but now even more feisty and sarcastic.
Batman in “Justice League Snydercut” is shown as an even more competent actor on the battlefield (those who watched animated DC versions know this is still far from his potential), but what’s even more important, he’s presented as a clear team leader and authority.
Interaction among heroes is also improved, and this is most noticeable in the field of humor (especially between Aquaman and Flash), emotional understanding (Wonder Woman and Cyborg), and even subtle platonic sympathy (Wonder Woman and Batman).
And villain Steppenwolf is a special story. In the original part he looked terrifyingly like a clay figure that children made and you’d most like to smack him with the comment “Stevie, stop sh*tting around,” and now he seems quite frightening (slight alien vibe) and has a serious motive to conquer the planet, which is redemption before his master.
You know, “Justice League Snydercut” is an excellent example of the saying “the devil is in the details.” The film shines on that level. I’ve mentioned only some of the obvious details that are different (better), and I could write for many more pages about what’s changed, but I recommend you discover for yourself. I’ll only mention the black Superman suit, Darkseid, DeSaad and Granny Goodness, dark Apokolips, legions of parademons, Anti-Life Equation, superheroes from Greek mythology, Joker… quite a few treats for DC fans. And add to that the expanded story.
What’s also a jump in quality is the action, which is quite more fluid and dynamic, and especially striking is the opening scene where Wonder Woman saves students. And unlike Whedon who’s afraid of blood, here you’ll have the opportunity to see it (including one quite serious execution).
There are even three epilogues, one of which the audience went particularly (and justifiably) crazy for… knightmare.
The acting is excellent, and for many actors got another dimension. I still stand behind Ben Affleck being an excellent choice for older, more experienced Batman/Bruce Wayne. He has certain charisma and “neutral,” stoic humor that suits Batman, and here Batman really seemed like a leader.
The expanded role for Cyborg enabled Ray Fisher to show his talent, as well as a different spectrum of emotions and I think it’s hard to imagine who could be the new Cyborg.
Ezra Miller… poor Ezra, I think he fared worst in Whedon’s edition. Small screen time, stupid scenes and Whedon’s vision of Flash, led to this actor being showered with criticism and urgently needing to find some other actor. Hand on heart, I’m still not really thrilled with the idea of this actor being Flash (nor civilian Barry Allen), but his role in #snydercut edition and visibly different acting… I think they softened the audience toward this actor too, so they’re willing to give him another chance. We’ll see…
Badass Momoa and witcher Geralt were standardly good, and charming Gal Gadot should kiss Snyder’s hand, because this film washed away the disgusting taste of her previous film (“WW 84” is for me not only one of the stupidest superhero films, but films in general) and clearly made it known in what direction this actress should develop as Wonder Woman.
Another plus is that actors (like Irons, Simmons, Connie Nielsen, Dafoe and Amy Adams) in their episodic roles gave quite depth to the film.
When all this is summarized, what do we get? Factually, a new film. Not some “upgrade,” but really a new film, which has a completely different (and more meaningful) story from Whedon’s version. This isn’t a classic director’s cut or extended cut or something similar, but really with full right is “Justice League #snydercut.”
As can be seen, I really liked “Justice League Snydercut,” and I watched it twice in a short period and it was worth my time. After this, Whedon’s version completely lost its point for watching for me.
Is it worth watching “Justice League Snydercut”? I think the answer is obvious, but if you still have doubts, reread the beginning of the review. 😀
And you, dear reader, what are your impressions of the #snydercut version? 🙂
Trailer
IMDb | Rotten Tomatoes | Metacritic
Format: Film
Premiere: 2021
Duration: 242 minutes (yes, you read that right… four hours…)
