Now Watching: The Justice League

The Justice League is the best comedy of 2017. I can’t remember the last time I’ve laughed so much or so hard whilst watching a film. It’s also really bad. I consider it to be the worst of the DC Cinematic Universe films, not just because it’s bad, but because it’s so damn bland.

I can at least say Suicide Squad and Batman v Superman were bad in an interesting way. But there’s nothing interesting or surprising about TJL – it’s as safe and by the numbers as you can get. I don’t know how much of an impact the reported re-shoots / change of director had, but the inconsistencies in tone, style and structure are clear to see.

Visually, the film looks off, as if the colour gradient is all wrong, and many scenes look ugly as a result. This isn’t helped by the poor CGI. I’m not sure what’s worse – the big bad Steppenwolf, who looks like he’s just stepped out of a Mortal Kombat cut-scene, or Henry Cavill’s fake upper lip. They’re both hilarious, though.

What’s not hilarious are the numerous, extremely awkward and bizarre attempts at humour. Many of these misguided quips fall to The Flash, who is unfortunately the only character with some traces of a personality.

The plot is paper thin, the villain is a joke, the action is poor and everything looks fake as f**k. Cyborg looks like a cartoon. There’s no sense of stakes, tension or emotion. It’s flat, drab to look at and poorly scripted. The only redeeming aspect of The Justice League – and the reason it didn’t score lower – is because it’s so damn bad it’s funny.

The film opens with a music montage – never a good sign – lamenting the death of Superman. But the sad music and glum faces only serve to remind us how poorly the death of Superman was handled in BvS. DC, in a misguided attempt to keep pace with Marvel, is riding roughshod over what should be major plot and character developments in the series.

The Justice League desperately wants to be The Avengers and fails miserably at it. Aside from Superman (to a limited degree) and Wonder Woman, none of these characters have been appropriately established. What’s the rush, DC?

The Wonder Woman film felt like a step in the right direction, but The Justice League isn’t just a step back – it’s a flying leap. I honestly can’t see a way forward for the DCU at this point. I think they need to scrap the entire project and start over from scratch. The Justice League is just . . . embarrassing. It’s a joke.

3/10