For as long as it has existed, the DCEU has been lost at sea, drifting in the haze of longtime fans complaints. People were quick to blame director Zack Snyder’s vision, an amalgamation of Batman and Superman story lines over 20 years old, and his insistence on wandering away from the character’s roots. Pitted against the Marvel machine, the DCEU chose a darker palette in both story and visuals, placing fans of DC in an awkward position. On one hand, they had to push against the Marvel hoards, now made up of people who have never been comic fans, and created a fair amount of in-fighting. Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice was the tsunami that capsized Snyder’s ship, but in true superhero form, Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman brought the DCEU above water and out of the mist, with renewed hope for the larger unified arch that Warner Bros. desperately wants to sell. And though this project has had more bumps and bruises than Batman after a hard night, in the light of day, we now have Justice League. Thankfully, it’s the honest glimmer of hope that the League was always meant to stand for.

While Justice League lands running straight through

perceived darkness surrounding the DCEU, it does so with the clumsy gait of a newborn horse, or more accurately, the newly recruited Flash. There is a certain tactile, tacit feeling right off the bat, introducing us to a Gotham that feels like more than just CG, reminiscent of Tim Burton’s turn. It is by far the biggest change to the atmosphere under Snyder’s hand. In fact, most of the film has moments of clarity and color not found in BvS or Man Of Steel. It really seems like he has been listening to the feedback and honestly tried to make a change for the better. There are however still many scenes that feel flat, where the CG just can’t hold its own. Its pretty to look at, but it lacks the true depth you get with sets or in nature. So again, the time between these big scenes relying on CG and those that don’t make it a bit of a bumpy ride, especially considering Marvel rarely has this issue. Maybe it’s more of a difference in philosophy than technique, but even older films like Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man have a better grasp, despite its theatrical campy feel.

The individual scenes showing off each superhero’s powers look great. Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) has bright, clear action, Batman (Ben Affleck) finally fights at night for once (I am looking at you Dark Knight Rises); The Flash (Ezra Miller) has some unnecessary lightning effects, but it still easy to follow his movements; Cyborg (Ray Fisher) looks incredible considering how bad they messed up Green Lantern, even though I feel he is a bit too shiny and looks like a Christmas tree at night; Sexy and cool Aquaman (Jason Momoa) is a fine addition though he feels nothing like any Arthur Curry you may know. Finally, while not really a spoiler, Superman (Henry Cavill) is finally born the man he was always meant to be. He is an amazing bright red and blue beacon that finally resonates as the real Superman. The rest of the supporting cast really takes a backseat especially considering three new heroes and an unspoken of villain are on the scene, all of whom get a quick, abridged mini-arc within the film that is complete, though a bit unsatisfying.

Which leads me to how cohesive this film turned out despite having a clunky story. The overall narrative is a bit weak, staring the villain Steppenwolf (Ciarán Hinds [voice]), who I wasn’t very familiar with but nevertheless appeared out of the ether to enact his revenge after a loss on earth 5000 years prior. Each recruitment scene stumbles into the next, specifically Flash and Cyborgs, who get the least amount of screen time, and a very clumsy dialog between Batman and Aquaman that kind of epitomizes the type strangely familiar yet pointed dialog throughout the film. There is also a very forced altercation between Wonder Woman and Batman that is a bit out of character and out of left field. Other than that, it completes a mostly pointless arch in which the team is formed with little emotional fanfare. One of its better features is how much more human Batman comes off as a fighter. They give him the lighter share of the physical altercations and let his gadgets do the walking. Finally, like Burton’s Batman, Danny Elfman was back behind the conductor’s stand with a bunch of classic tunes, including the original Batman theme, Superman theme, and reimagined Wonder Woman Theme. While there are moments of Elfman’s flair, it plays much more subdued than his turns with Burton, but still much more orchestral than Hanz Zimmer’s turn.

If there was a breakout actor here, it was Cyborg, who packs quite a punch despite having the shortest storyline. The Flash is almost too annoying, piggybacking on the comic timing of this TV counterpart. When he runs, it looks way too weird. It looks like Ezra was never allowed to run like a normal person on the green screen. The much lower budget TV version is definitely preferable. Ben Affleck’s Bruce Wayne and Batman are much closer to his comic counterpart and honestly one of the best on screen. Henry Cavill definitely gets to kill it as Superman, even though he has a brief moment out of character that makes me realize he would make a great villain.  It goes without saying that Gal Gadot is literally THE Wonder Woman. Finally, Jason Momoa creates his own character that neither looks or acts like Arthur Curry or Aquaman in a traditional sense, but it’s not completely awful, though maybe a bit cliched.

Ultimately, I don’t think this film is going to make a splash, certainly not after the Amazon sized cannon ball that Wonder Woman was. It is a bit choppy with the story, a little rough on the edits, and again the CG has moments of impressive clarity followed by mundane flatness, but in the murky blockbuster waters, the DCEU ship is weathering the storm. Stick around for some post-credit scenes, one of which is classically inflammatory, the other a promise of something truly ridiculous to come. You are sure to leave the theater wondering if there is any point to the DC film universe when the TV universe is cheesy, yet prospering. More than that, outside of Wonder Woman, what could their individual hero films promise us at this point? I am personally hoping for a huge Lantern revival. To end, Justice League is a film that surprisingly found a balance after a series of re-shoots, bad press, and tragic family loss for Snyder, but it is still a confusing entry in a series that feels a bit aimless. Oddly though, Justice League still inspires a glimmer of hope, so here’s hoping.

~* 5/10 *~