Enjoyable as an experience, yet wildly erratic and disenchanting as a film

Rating: 7/10 (18 November 2017)

After years of anticipation from longtime DC Comics fans and newcomer fans of the DC Cinematic Universe alike, Justice League has finally arrived.
Before I delve into what I liked and disliked about the film, I feel that is important to note that I am one of the few out there who loves the entire DC Cinematic Universe. In my opinion, both 2013's Man of Steel and 2016's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, both directed by Zack Snyder, are vastly underrated films, especially the latter. I will admit that 2016's Suicide Squad was a disappointment, but I soon forgot about this because I was very pleased that Wonder Woman got the critical reception that it so deserved.
With that being said, here are my thoughts on Justice League.
The film opens with the world dealing with the aftermath of the death of Superman, which occurred at the end of Batman v Superman. Bruce Wayne/Batman (played by Ben Affleck) realizes that he has to assemble a team of individuals with special powers, along with Diana Prince/Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot), in order to fill the massive protective void that Superman left behind, and to stop Steppenwolf (the highly polarizing entirely-CGI villain of the film) from returning the world to the dark ages.
Justice League has a far more simplistic plot than previous DC Cinematic Universe entities. This positively affects the film because it can attract a wider viewing audience (and perhaps win back the people who were turned off from Batman v Superman's more complex plot), which is exactly what executives at Warner Brothers likely want. However, the simpler plot leads to a far shorter running time than many expected, given the lengths of Snyder's previous DC films.
There were many key moments in the film that felt choppy and rushed. I won't give anything away, but there was one scene which would have been a perfect opportunity for an emotional moment in the film, and yet it is on screen for no longer than about 30 seconds. Character introductions, especially to newcomers such as The Flash, Cyborg, and Aquaman, felt very rushed and the film jumped back and forth between them all in the first act. The original cut of Justice League clocked in at about three hours long. However, it was reported that Warner Brothers demanded that the film's running time did not exceed two hours. This is unfortunate because I feel that the film would have been improved if it were at least twenty minutes or so longer. Hopefully an extended cut will be released on home media.
The acting from Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Henry Cavill, as well as the newcomers Ezra Miller, Jason Momoa, and Ray Fisher, was excellent. Gadot truly owns the role of Wonder Woman, as does Cavill and Affleck for Superman and Batman, respectively. While it's an unpopular opinion, I've always admired Affleck's portrayal of the Caped Crusader. When I first heard of the controversial use of a CGI villain, I came into the film with low expectations for Steppenwolf. However, I did not find him to be a major issue for the movie. Was he an amazing villain? Hardly. Was he a terrible villain? No. Steppenwolf was just fine. Nothing more, nothing less. The rest of the visual effects in the film were fairly well done. Though for a film with a $300 million budget, there were many special effect shots that could have been fine tuned. The action sequences were enjoyable and thrilling, though they did feel like they went on for a bit too long at times.
Justice League has a light tone – which can feel inconsistent from the other films in the franchise. I feel that given the mixed reception that Man of Steel and Batman v Superman received, a lighter tone for the film was inevitable. For individuals like myself who loved Snyder's dark and gritty entities, this was a bit of a letdown. I felt no real emotional weight or connection to the story as it went along; I felt completely removed from the emotional impact of what was happening on screen. This did not make me have a less good of a time (perhaps it did the opposite in fact), but it still felt like a letdown to me, given how much I enjoyed how different previous entries in the franchise were in terms of their tone.
While it may seem not worth noting for some, the limited to virtually absent use of Hans Zimmer's themes from previous films in the DC Cinematic Universe was a major disappointment. Danny Elfman's score works just fine, but not using Zimmer's themes for Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman at key moments of the film truly diminished scenes that were supposed to be powerful, but were already hurt by the constraints placed on them due to the reduced running time.
There were many aspects that I loved about Justice League. A combination of the acting, the simplistic yet enjoyable plot and the action sequences made for a highly enjoyable time at the cinema, especially in the IMAX format in which I watched the film. However, the shortened running time, lack of character development, an inconsistent tone and lack of use of Zimmer's themes from the rest of the DC Cinematic Universe majorly diminished what Justice League could have been.
Overall, Justice League is enjoyable as an experience, yet wildly erratic and disenchanting as a film.