With Superman (Henry Cavill; Man of Steel) dead, Batman (Ben Affleck; Argo) and Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot; Furious 7) are off on their own saving the world one criminal at a time and it seems the world has gotten out of control now that Kal-El is gone and crime is on the rise. However, there arrives a different type of evil in the form of an ugly, flying, giant bug that leaves a trail behind in the form a cryptic diagram of three boxes. As it turns out these boxes are the "mother" of Steppenwolf (Ciaran Hinds; Road to Perdition), an evil creature that uses the energy of the boxes to destroy worlds and inhabit them. The boxes, that laid dormant for 5000 years, suddenly have come to life beckoning the beloved son.
Batman and Wonder Woman, feeling the imminent threat, try to bring together other superheroes to help battle this supernatural evil. Their recruits include Barry Allen/ The Flash (Ezra Miller; The Perks of Being a Wallflower ), Arthur Curry/Aquaman (Jason Momoa; Conan the Barbarian) and Victor Stone, Cyborg (Ray Fisher; Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice). Their goal is to stop Steppenwolf from getting all three of the boxes. Batman, along the way, also hatches the brilliant plan to use the energy from the box in their possession to (spoiler alert) bring Superman back to life, which they eventually do. The six then set off on an epic battle to stop the supernatural creature determined to destroy the earth (a rather common theme in the superhero world).
Justice League is a case of the Good, the Bad and the Ugly. The good is most of the cast including Gadot, Miller, and Momoa. I was skeptical about Momoa as Aquaman but after seeing him in action (no pun intended) I felt his casting was a smart move. While I normally think of Aquaman as less muscular than Momoa, he gives the character a physical strength and presence that works. Gadot was brilliant casting as Wonder Woman and she proves once again why she won the role and Miller is very good as the awkward Allen/ The Flash who seems pretty uncomfortable in his own skin. Also on the good side is the action. It is the right blend of length and choreography to make it appealing but not over the top.
The bad is the beginning. The film starts off slow and, while it builds momentum along the way, I spent the first 15 minutes of the two-hour film being annoyed. Snippets of storyline flash (again no pun intended) across the screen and jump from character to character as we wait to learn what the mysterious threat is and for the inevitable team to be brought together to fight evil.
The ugly is the plot. There were moments that were groan-worthy and the "creature" was simply obnoxious. There was also not enough time to flesh out the new characters more and I was left with a sense of longing to know more of their backstory.
I went into the movie with somewhat low expectations and walked out with a slightly brighter outlook than I expected. With some funny moments to lighten the mood and some strong (literally and figuratively) characters, the movie wasn't a total disappointment.
Grade: B-
