Justice League: A Victim of Timing

Well, it’s here. The controversial Snyder Cut of Justice League has finally arrived. And if my social media is any indication, this version is leaps and bounds better than the 2017 theatrical version.

What is the Snyder Cut exactly? If you’re not up on the latest geek news you might not know that Zack Snyder, director of Man of Steel and Batman v. Superman, departed Justice League’s production after the untimely death of his daughter. Joss Whedon, director of Marvel’s Avengers, came in to finish the film, which was ultimately panned. For years, cult fans have been urging Warner Bros. to release Snyder’s version of the movie, which didn’t really exist. But the pressure persisted until WB gave in and brought Snyder back to finish his film. This version clocks in at a whopping four-hour runtime.

So what did I think of it? Do I agree with fans who said this version is far superior than the theatrical cut? Yes and No.

Yes. When you pit the two versions against each other, Snyder’s is much fuller and more rounded. The characters have arcs. Easter eggs and foreshadowing makes sense. It definitely gives viewers a sense of this grand universe of heroes and villains and how it all fits together.

BUT…

It’s an unfair comparison. Snyder’s version is four hours long. Of course every character has ample screen time. How could they not? Joss Whedon was brought in to finish a two hour long film for a theatrical release. So if you were given the Snyder cut and told to trim it down to two hours long, what would your version look like? I’m sure pretty close to what was released back in 2017.

In the end, they’re both the same story. One just has two hours more content to tell it. And this is where I call Justice League a victim of timing. If Zack Snyder began production of his movie today, he would have no problem making a “theatrical Snyder cut.” The final 30 minutes of the film can be cut as well as a bunch of other scenes and sequences that are unnecessarily long. He could’ve easily told the story he wanted to tell in 3 hours and that would’ve been just fine for today’s post-Avengers Endgame world. But Warner Bros. probably pushed for a 2 hour long movie. And that’s what we originally got.