Review of Justice League

By Dave B.

​In the wake of Superman’s death, Earth finds itself vulnerable to invasion from alien forces. Aware of this imminent threat, Batman forges a team of superpowered individuals into the planet’s last line of defense. But can they put aside their differences long enough to defeat Steppenwolf? And even if they can, are they powerful enough to do so?

I’ve heard a lot of people say a lot of things about Justice League (2017, currently on HBO). What they all fail to mention is that this is one of the oddest superhero movies ever made. Tonally, it’s all over the place. Yes, some of the humor in the movie is welcome, but I suspect Justice League would’ve been better with a more consistently dark tone. Beyond that, I’m pretty sure that everyone in a random Icelandic village now knows Batman’s true identity. For that matter, how does it not strike everyone at the Daily Planet staff, the Kent’s neighbors, or anyone else in the DCEU, as odd that Superman and Clark Kent return from the dead at the same time?

​What all this is leading to is that, despite being somewhat entertaining, Justice League is objectively and undoubtedly, poorly written. That doesn’t necessarily make it a terrible movie, and it isn’t. The Justice League heroes themselves are interesting enough and the performances of the cast are pretty solid. And at two hours, the movie stops just short of being overly long. But most of the action scenes that don’t involve the Amazons aren’t very creative and, as usual, Superman is a momentum killer, fundamentally making every other hero superfluous.

​Perhaps the oddest thing about Justice League is that it lacks a central theme. Yes, yes “hope” blah, blah. But seriously, if this movie were a body, it would be lacking connective tissue. Because the plot is weak and there is no central theme, almost nothing ties the film together from one scene to the next. I’m sure there are people who feel differently, but I couldn’t generate any emotional connection with this film on any level and that is the main reason (above even the mediocre plot, substandard writing, and relatively boring fight scenes) why I’m not recommending Justice League. It just doesn’t pique my interest enough to feel invested in it’s inevitable result and the obvious path that it takes to get there. For those who love or hate this movie, more power to you. Personally, I find it too mediocre to care much about it either way.   

Rating: 5.5/10