Thoughts on Zack Snyder's Justice League

I have been trying to find a way to put this into words. After my first watch through of Zack Snyder's Justice League, I felt as giddy and excited as I had when I had first watched The Dark Knight when I was just ten. Somehow Snyder managed to capture my pure childlike love, joy, and enthusiasm for comic book heroes all over again.

How did this happen? What is different about this movie that I love so much? After rewatching it a couple times, I found that the answer is just passion. Passion for the characters, passion for the story being told. Far too often in comic book adaptations I watch directors and writers breeze past the emotions of our characters, rather just scurrying from battle to battle where they fight their exact opposites with giant laserbeams.

This is what I realized is missing. I am not really invested in many superheroes emotionally. But you should be. You have to make your main characters relatable in order to stay invested. What about their struggles? Their conflicts? (I know their are exceptions to this rule. I am speaking in generalities.)

This is what Zack Snyder does differently in his Justice League film. The way that Snyder actually *means* every frame of this movie. It is so incredibly, unapologetically him. This radiates so much love and passion that you hardly see in any blockbuster. From the over-the-top slow motion action sequences, to the incredible amount mythology he managed to squeeze in here, this is Snyder at his most Snyder. It is a grand, Lord-of-the-Rings-style epic where gods battle gods in kinetic, thrilling fights that will make your inner child scream with excitement. Where every slowed down scene can be framed as a painting or looks as if it was taken straight from the comic panels themselves. This is a universe teeming with vibrant life and mythology. A world he is excited to share with us. We finally get to see the glimpse of the scorching hell planet, Apokolips. We get to see the villains fully fleshed out and their motivations for terrorizing Earth. We even get to see and hear about the battle that the Old Gods fought against Darkseid thousands of years ago. Clearly Zack loves this world, the characters, and the mythology that comes with it as he tries to immerse us in this world as much as possible.

He put work into developing each of these characters and making us feel for them. It's the little moments that make this movie. For a Justice League movie where six heroes are banding together to prevent the destruction of Earth, there are shockingly few action scenes. Most of our time is spent quietly with our characters as they deal with their conflicts, discovering that they had more in common than they had previously thought. Allowing them to bond over their shared trauma builds a natural sense of camaraderie throughout the team. They are not just people thrown together on a job to fight a monster, they are friends united with a shared purpose.

Rather than jam-packing this movie with action, which may have pleased a bunch of people, Snyder lets the characters breathe. We get to know the characters, and they, in turn, get to know each other. Cyborg in this movie turned out to be the whole heart and soul.. When we first meet him he was closed-off and angry with the world for what had happened to him. This is reinforced when Snyder has him say things like "Fuck the world." or "What part of this looks like a gift to you?" But can you blame him? Vic has probably been cast out and called a monster since his surgery. Vic quite literally is Frankenstein's monster, a boy who was brought back to life but now irreversibly changed. That's why he can't see himself as anything but. However, though, we come to understand and sympathize with him as we learn more about his story. The world rejected him so he rejects the world. Now, a bunch of rejects need his help to save the world. Slowly, we watch him build a camaraderie with the crew. For example, Barry and Vic have a very nice bonding moment when they go to Superman's grave. Barry admitting that Superman was his hero, while also attempting to joke around with Vic. Throughout the movie, he is not only learning to accept himself but accept his powers, the whole thesis of the movie. We see this through simple little heartwarming scenes like this when he is finally opening up to others. Or through simple acts of generosity, when he is finally comfortable enough to use his powers and he gives a woman thousands of dollars at an ATM.

Flash, played by Ezra Miller, also acted as a heart of this movie. Well, Since Barry Allen is known to be socially awkward, he is also the comedic relief. He has cute jokes that certainly work for his character and add levity, but he isn't just that. He has a big heart and he is selfless, which is clearly shown when we first see him. Barry is trying to apply for a a pet-sitting job, which he is clearly late for. He rushes inside, Iris and Barry exchanging glances as he makes his way in. He makes his silly awkward jokes as he fumbles for his resumé. Then, once he notices that Iris is in danger from a car crash, time stops. He breaks the window of the shop with his finger as he rushes over to her. For a moment, he stops to admire her before laying her on the ground safely. Then, in a truly silly but smart move, takes a hotdog out of the air and uses it as a cover story to feed the dogs. See! Caring, funny, selfess and sweet! Then, in the next scene, we see him talk to his father in prison. We learn that he is taking on four jobs just to try to pay for a degree that may get his father out of prison years down the line. Like Vic, he is walling himself off. His father tells him to stop putting his life on hold for him. That is the reason why he joins the Justice League. As his father put it, "he cannot keep running in place". Barry has to move forward. Like Vic, he learns that he cannot live in the past. He needs to fight for more than just himself.

The magic in this movie is found in the little things. The brief emotional moments that we get to just connect with our characters. Barry talking with his father in prison as his father begs him to move on and be the best version of himself he can be. The simple line that Bruce Wayne says to Alfred, "Faith, Alfred, Faith" when he is asked how his plan will work. Bruce went from someone who would never take any chances, to now someone who is willing to open up and trust. Victor trying to open up with Diana, but struggling to do so. Silas's tape that he left Victor, telling him that he cannot continue living in the past, he must live for himself and the people around him in the present. The heart to heart that Arthur and Barry had right before the big fight, as they express their concern for Victor after the loss of his father

. All of these moments reveal so much about our characters , their motivations, their feelings, their conflicts. I am so much more interested and fascinated by the characters being their most raw and vulnerable selves than a non-stop battle to defeat the bad guy.

Of course the action sequences that we did get were also probably some of best I have seen in a comic book movie as well, but that is attributed to the fact that our team felt like a team. They felt like friends. Not only that, but when they fought together, they actually worked together. When they fight, they actually work off of one another and use their powers or weapons in tandem to defeat an enemy. It was so satisfying and, just, awesome to see the creative ways Snyder was able to use their powers in battle. It felt like a video game the way he combined their abilities together, which is how it should feel. Everyone had a role, a responsibility, and everyone felt important.

Whether you love or hate the movie, or whether you love or hate Zack Snyder, that truly doesn't matter. He is a man who has his own voice and vision and sticks to it. He doesn't look to what other people are doing and adapt. Not many people have that. It is so refreshing to see a blockbuster filled with with so much love, passion, hope, and optimism. I think this is a noble thing to fight for.