Though the beleaguered DCEU soldiered onwards to more emphatic successes, what should have been its flagship franchise movie and crowning glory ended up being one of the brand's most public failures.
2017's Justice League is an undeniably muddled movie shaped by co-writer, and eventual secondary director on the project, Joss Whedon out of a reportedly almost-finished cut from original director Zack Snyder. It's suffered through its fair share of controversies since its release but maintains a strong fanbase despite all of them. This begs the question: is it really as bad as people say it is? Let's weigh up its best and worst qualities.
Isn’t: Danny Elfman’s Score
Though one of the many relatively late changes made to the overall feel of Justice League, Danny Elfman's score is uplifting and often downright delightful to listen to.
As the composer of the Batman theme from Tim Burton's original movie, Elfman isn't shy about incorporating some of the classic DC themes into his score and they each inject a jolt of sudden energy into the movie that gets fans' hearts soaring.
Is: The Reshoots
Film crews working on movies of Justice League's caliber are always doing their best under high pressure and the requirements of strict deadlines. The reshoots for the movie, however, left the crew with relatively inadequate time to get things to an optimal standard.
Ben Affleck's weight, complexion, and hairline visibly alter on a shot-by-shot basis in certain scenes (and they're scenes made up of shot-reverse-shot close-ups). Not to mention the distinct green screen tinge that can be seen reflected on some of the actors' skin in pickup shots. It feels almost like an insult to all of the incredibly hard work that the cast and crew had already done.
Isn’t: The Cast’s Dynamic
The strength of the foundation that Snyder laid out does, despite everything, shine through where it counts a lot of the time. Particularly with the core casting of the movie, which is something that reshoots couldn't take away from it.
The actual Justice League itself has a distinct dynamic that sets it apart from the always bickering Avengers and it brings out the best in each of the famous heroes.
Is: The CGI
It's by no means all bad all of the time but the sharp brightening of the color grading in the movie, coupled with the toning down of certain designs (such as main villain Steppenwolf) results in a number of the computer-generated effects seeming like they're of low quality. Or, at least, of low quality when factoring in the movie's enormous budget.
This is to say nothing of what happens to the lower half of poor Henry Cavill's face, which underwent digital restructuring thanks to the reshoots' time constraints in conjunction with some facial hair that the actor couldn't remove due to his then-ongoing commitments to the Mission: Impossible franchise.
Isn’t: The Tone
Even if the reshoots formed a visually unsatisfying product, the more easygoing tone of Justice League compared to earlier DCEU movies certainly isn't a mark against it.
DC has a long legacy with movies that began decades before the idea of the DCEU was even conceived and Justice League does a good job of incorporating a tone that fits the brand's entire history rather than just its current state.
Is: The Pacing
Audiences expect a certain level of bang that's relative to a movie's particular degree of buck and there's something about the final cut of Justice League that just doesn't add up.
The missing sections of Snyder's original vision for the movie leave chasms in the flow of the story that can't be bridged by any amount of frothy humor and it can leave the audience feeling like they've been given an incomplete experience.
Isn’t: The Humor
Humor and overall levity is not only something that Justice League is very conscious of but it's perhaps the thing that Justice League is the most conscious of.
The relentless backlash against the tones of Batman v Superman and Man of Steel caused the DCEU to come heavy with the comedy in future installments and it was a welcome addition to the franchise for fans regardless of whether they did or didn't enjoy the earlier movies in the series. Ezra Miller, in particular, demonstrates great comedic timing which has the power to ultimately shine through even in some of the more unattractive reshoots.
Is: Marvel Envy
Not every comic book movie is like the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies and even their most ardent fans would gladly admit that not every comic book movie should be.
Though the DCEU finds itself understandably confused by conflicting waves of disapproval, the solution should never be to just copy what the other team is doing. Whedon injects a number of similarities to his second Avengers movie into Justice League and they not only add nothing to the experience but they ultimately subtract a lot of its own unique character.
Isn’t: The Action
The superteam doesn't kick into full gear quite as often as most fans would hope but, when they do, it's always a fun, pacy, well-choreographed, spectacle.
The Justice League isn't without its teething problems but their fighting style always reflects what makes each member unique and comes off as far superior to the Avengers' endless barrage of kicking, shooting, and jabbing.
Is: The Treatment of the Original Director
The most unpleasant thing about Justice League isn't something that you see on the screen so much as it is something that you sense happened behind the scenes.
Other than those directly involved, no one really knows what happened with the handover of creative control from Zack Snyder to Joss Whedon but what fans do know is that the official transition of power was made public in the wake of the death of Snyder's daughter, Autumn.
This, obviously, made the subject very sensitive but ended up conflicting with reports of a different timeline of events. Perhaps fans will one day get to see the fabled 'Snyder Cut' or perhaps they won't. But, for the time being, Justice League has a lingering ugliness hanging over it, which has a clear effect on the movie, and it's difficult to ignore.