We've seen the League come together and fight the DC Universe's greatest threats in various media beforehand, from animation to comics to even an infamous TV pilot. But they've never come together in live-action film. Until now.
So, what happens here? Well, the League (Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Cyborg, and the Barry Allen Flash), must come together to face the threat of Steppenwolf, an Apokoliptian warrior who wants to use the Mother Boxes, three artifacts to remake the Earth into essentially...a Hell of some kind.
So, I'm just going to get the negatives out of my system. First of all, some of the designs of the characters, mainly Flash, Cyborg, and Steppenwolf. I hated their designs. Cyborg looked like tin foil. The Flash costume was ugly as sin to me. The Flash costume that Grant Gustin wears as Barry Allen on the Flash TV series looks much better. They should have made it look more like that one. I didn't really dislike Aquaman's appearance, I just wished they made his costume brighter.
And speaking of Steppenwolf, I felt that he was a bit weak as a villain. I didn't quite get why he wanted to destroy Earth. Was it a mission from Darkseid? Or was he just bored? This was where I felt a real lack of MCU-style buildup towards him hurt the character and the film. They should have done solo films with the League members beforehand to expand on Steppenwolf's plans and give a better idea of his motives.
And speaking of the Flash...I'm rather mixed on him. Ezra Miller did a pretty good job with what he was given, and he was enjoyable to watch, but I get the feeling throughout the film that they wanted to use the Wally West incarnation instead of Barry Allen. He felt more like Wally. Also, I wasn't fond of the idea of the Flash being a complete rookie to crimefighting. To me, that should have been Cyborg. I would have preferred that Flash was an experienced crimefighter, but his Rogues, despite having colorful costumes and gimmicks, are more street-level criminals, bank robbers and the like in general. Barry would be inexperienced in dealing with cosmic-level threats like Steppenwolf.
And to be fair, I did enjoy Ezra Miller's performance, and I especially liked his interactions with Cyborg. And also, what was the point of Amber Heard as Mera there? She didn't really do much. A bit of a waste.
Finally, I wish this League had a Green Lantern. Minor spoiler: We do see a GL in the movie. But it would have been nice to see a Green Lantern among the League. Jessica Cruz would have been a great choice here. She's Latina, so it would have made the League more diverse, and it would have balanced the gender ratio of the team a bit.
Just a thought.
So, with my major complaints out of the way, what did I like about it? Well, I really enjoyed the final battle. It was pretty epic. I also liked the performances. The cast did a pretty enjoyable job all around. Jason Momoa was surprisingly fun as Aquaman. There were some enjoyable moments of humor, and the film felt...rather fun all around. There were quite a few moments that made me smile. The mid-credits scene was rather fun. It was nice to see these heroes actually smiling and making the occasional joke.
Justice League, I have to admit, is flawed. It's a flawed movie. But the thing is...when it comes to the reception the DC Cinematic Universe has gotten from fans and critics so far...this film and Wonder Woman seem to indicate that they are taking steps in the right direction. I do think Wonder Woman was a better film overall, but Justice League is perfectly enjoyable in its own right. It does feel like the makers are slowly embracing the idea they are adapting comic books, and that's nothing to be ashamed of. So, I say, give this film a shot. Your mileage may vary on some things, but compared to the first three DC Cinematic Universe films, Justice League is a breath of fresh air in a way.
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