Justice League (2017) vs Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021)

 

To me, Justice League (2017) was an average, run-of-the-mill superhero movie. If one has never seen any of the other DCU movies going from Man of Steel - Birds of Prey, there doesn't appear to be any problems with it, aside from the fact that it's generic.

The problem(s) with it, if you have been watching since Man of Steel, is that many things that were set up in Man of Steel and Batman v Superman are either completely ignored, or glossed over. This is most noticeable with regards to Danny Elfman's score: why are the themes presentedin Man of Steel and Batman v Superman ignored, in favour of the John Williams Superman theme, and Danny Elfman's Batman theme from 1989?! It makes zero sense - Justice League is not connected to either of those films. But, again, this is not as much of an issue if this is the only film of the current DCU that you'll watch.

I gave the film a solid, well-rounded 5/10. It wasn't very good...nor was it awful - taken completely by itself. The biggest problem, as mentioned above, is that Man of Steel and Batman v Superman exist, so when the film was released is dependant on various attributes OF those two preceding films.

Now, we come to Zack Snyder's Justice League - the version that was SUPPOSED to be released (though I doubt it would've been 4 hours theatrically: likely 3 hours, with the home media release being extended to 4.)

Going from Man of Steel into Batman v Superman, and then into this version of the film offer much greater consistency and coherence....including the soundtrack. A little bit of background info, between the two edits:

- Joss Whedon (who completed the 2017 version) used approximately 10% of what Zack filmed, and it was reduced to just under 2 hours
- Zack's version is twice as long, and won't feature ANY of the footage that Joss filmed. So, in other words, there are a few shots/scenes that Zack filmed that are in Whedon's, but nothing that Whedon made in Zack's version.

Worthy of note for Zack's version, is that it is presented in a 4x3 aspect ratio. The reasoning for this, is that this was created for IMAX release, which has a 'taller' screen. One thing that's interesting, is that IMAX-filmed sequences in previous films (for example, The Dark Knight) filled the entire TV screen for their home video releases. Yet, this appears in 4x3. Whatever the resoning behind the differences, I'm glad that Snyder got to release this film in its original aspect ratio; regardless of how unusual it may appear on your screen. You wouldn't crop or cut a painting just to be able to hang it on a wall, right?

With regards to Zack Snyder's Justice League, I will say this: if you didn't enjoy 300, Watchmen, Man of Steel or Batman v Superman.....well, you most likely won't like this one, either. The film is definitely a SNYDER film. It is a much better film overall, though it's not perfect. It managed to elevate a 5/10 cut to an 8/10, for me. Man of Steel got a 7, as did the ultimate edition (3 hr version) of Batman v Superman. Did it need to be 4 hours? Most likely not. Still, it's great to see Zack release HIS movie at long last.....here's hoping that WB is paying attention to viewership and audience response, so that they may #RestoreTheSnyderVerse #ForAutumn. Finger tightly crossed on a Man of Steel 2, as well as Justice League 2, and maybe even 3. As it stands, the solo films of Wonder Woman and Aquaman appear to be the first steps moving forward in the new direction while 'semi' starting the universe over again, inside of itself. The Flash movie will likely play a key role, as it'll deal with the multiverse. this creates an opening to have a new Justice Legue with different actors (ie: Robert Pattinson s Batman instead of Ben Affleck). As it currently stands, think of Man of Steel, Batman v Superman and Zack Snyder's Justice League as a 3-part cancelled cinematic universe.  

There are, however, three things that I missed from Whedon's version. In no order, they are:

- when The Flash sees the Bat Cave ("Wow....it's a cave *speeds*....it's like a bat cave.... *speeds again* *appears in Batmobile, eye shift side to side in wonder*). While possibly a 'Marvelization' of the character, to me that fit right in with Ezra Miller's portrayal.
- the scene of Bruce and Alfred talking, and Bruce says that Superman is more human than he (meaning Bruce) is.
- this one might be considered cheesy or out of place, though given Superman's confused state, as well as a call-back to Batman v Superman, him asking Batman "Do you bleed?" It just seemed to go full-circle for me.

That being said, the Snyder version does not suffer by not having those scenes in it (as they were likely Whedon additions), they were just moments that I was looking forward to seeing in the new version. Much like when you see a movie trailer, and the trailer has scenes in it that the movie doesn't.

The scenes that are present in both versions, virtually unchanged:
- Bruce meeting Arthur
- Bruce meeting Barry
- segments of the tunnel fight
- segments of the final battle (some Batmobile shots)
- there may be others, but those are the ones that I can remember off the top of my head.

However, in closing I will say this about the 2017 version: it's much more 'kid friendly' (in the manner of Aquaman, Wonder Woman and Shazam, for instance) than the Snyder version: the Snyder version is 4 hours long, and rated R. The 2017 theatrical release is half the length, and has more a kid-friendly rating. So if you have youngsters (your own children, nieces, nephews, cousins....) that haven't (as they shouldn't have, going by ratings and run-times) seen Man of Steel and Batman v Superman, that version would be best suited for them.

To recap:

Justice League (2017) : 5 / 10

Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021) : 8 /10