Not perfect, but still a great time

Rating: 8/10 (26 January 2018)

I liked Justice League. Some may still be sorry Snyder's cut won't be seen anytime soon, but I think most of his ideas did end up in the final product, along with some tweaks to make the film a little more accessible to general audiences. I don't necessarily agree with some of those choices but I understand why the folks at WB did what they did. For all the drama surrounding the film's production, it ended up feeling surprisingly very consistent in tone, well-paced and structured. It felt like a standalone movie that wasn't concerned with setting up future installments except through some very subtle easter eggs, unlike other films like Age of Ultron or BvS for instance (even the UC, which I loved).
Cyborg, Batman, Wonder Woman and Superman were the best characters since they got the better arcs. Cyborg's was surprisingly touching and the Trinity's were already set up in the previous films, so here we do get a sense of completion for their characters.
Aquaman felt a little sidelined, but what we did get to see from him left me excited for his solo movie. Flash was the comic relief character and, as such, stole the show every time he was on screen. He wasn't as fleshed out nor as developed as one would've hoped, but he still delivered.
Steppenwolf as the villain is nothing special. He's basically a less intimidating, interesting, and compelling General Zod that's 100% CGI and wanted to take over the world because that's what he does. He wasn't terrible, and had some standout moments and lines. He was just serviceable to the story and nothing else.
Cinematography and action choreography are still on par woth what we've come to expect from a visual director like Snyder, which is a good thing. Elfman's score was mixed. There are some tracks I loved and others I can't remember anymore. His decision to reuse some of the classic themes for Batman, Flash and Superman in a Justice League movie felt like a nice way of tributing superhero movies of old, but at the same time it felt out of place, given that those scores suit different interpretations of the characters we're currently seeing. The CGI can also be unexcusably bad, but there are other times where it would just look beautiful. As with every DCEU film before it, there's a lot of memorable shots and scenes to take away from JL, and the joy I felt as a fan for finally seeing these icons share the screen together for the first time in live action is just priceless.
Even with some technical issues, though, and its short runntime, JL still delivered on what it was supposed to do. It was an entertaining and heroic superhero film that introduces new likeable characters, brings some completion to the previous installments in a satisfactory manner, and opens the door for an exciting and promising future for the DC universe. A fun time at the movies.