My Thoughts on Zack Snyder's Justice League - Part 6 (2021)

Poster Description: The poster is black and white, with “Zack Snyder’s Justice League” written at the top in white. The JL symbol is surrounded by a square with a star-shaped gap between the letters. Superman, Aquaman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Batman, and Cyborg stand side by side.  

  You can read my thoughts on Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, and Part 5 here.

 

PART 6: Something darker

 1)      “You smell good.”/ “You spoke”?

In the previous part, I wondered where Clark and Lois would go after his tense fight with the League. They land in a cornfield, and it is very familiar.

“You brought us here?” Lois asks with some surprise.

“This is home,” Clark answers for the first time. They are at his family farm. It’s a lovely moment, reminding us of Cavill and Adams’ chemistry and the sombre piano motif that follows Superman around. Mercifully, there’s no weird energy from “You smell good.”

Instead, Lois gasps, “You spoke.”

 

Image Description: Surrounded by a cornfield and pinkish sky, Clark embraces Martha and Lois with his head slightly bowed. Lois smiles against his chest, which is no longer bare. Clark wears an old plaid shirt. Martha’s face is hidden from view, probably looking out to the sky, wondering if her husband is watching.

Shortly afterward, Clark is reunited with his mother. As he holds his two most favourite people in the world, for a moment, everything seems alright. Except Clark has barely been alive for a few hours, and he already needs to save the world again.

 2)      The final battle.

Bruce brings his new friends home, introducing them to Alfred, who does the beautifully British thing by offering to make tea. Apparently, Bruce works for him, now?

Using those six (SIX!) satellites, the Mother Boxes are found in Pozharnov, Russia. Despite its alien origins, the protective shield Steppenwolf created around the site looks bizarrely organic, like a mammogram or tumour, which couldn’t have been unintentional.

Victor volunteers to link up with the Boxes and stop them from the inside. Arthur, however, is not fooled. The death of Victor’s father is incredibly raw, and this task is perilous. It’s time, then, for a battle prep montage.

Although it’s surprisingly easy for Bruce to break through the alien tumour defences, the Batmobile looks utterly iconic. Then, finally, the battle begins…and it is so much fun to see the League working together. Arthur rides a para-demon through the air like a surfboard. Diana’s ethereal chanters are outdoing themselves. The sequence is dark (though not Game of Thrones Season 7 levels of darkness), lit by the para-demons red gunfire, Barry running around to gather enough charge for Victor, and the Mother Boxes. 

 

Let’s go!

Image Description: With weapons at the ready, Arthur (left), Diana (middle), and Victor (right) stand together in Steppenwolf’s realm, looking fierce. It glows like ashes around them.

 3)      Teamwork makes the dream work!

Poor Ezra Miller spends a lot of time falling over in this film.     

A para-demon injures Barry, effectively killing the powerful charge he has been building to help Victor. The Unity is complete, blasting Victor into bits, and opening a portal.

It reveals a magnificent chamber and who should be waiting there, but Darkseid. Despite this turn of events, his face doesn’t change. It makes one wonder what would make him smile? Things look bleak, before Barry uses his unique metabolism to heal himself. Then, to replace the power he lost, he has to run fast, the fastest he has ever run in his whole life, breaking his one rule to turn back time and save everyone. Woo!

Steppenwolf tries to stop Victor with his axe – but he can’t. Someone’s indestructible head is blocking the way, and I can’t deny that I squealed at this moment.

GIF Description: Steppenwolf’s mighty axe crackles with heat, against Superman’s collarbone. The camera zooms into Clark’s smug face. Victor remains safe behind him. Clark smiles, mouthing, “Not impressed.”

 Superman freezes the axe with his breath which , somewhat ironically, gives the rest of the League the fire they need to fight harder.

 

4)      Not broken, not alone.

Thanks to The Flash and Superman, Cyborg makes proper contact with the Mother Boxes. After all their efforts, it’s abrupt but not unwelcome. As with previous simulations/metaphors, Victor looks like his “old” self, wearing his high school jacket. In a strange, desolate space, he finds three people waiting for him: his father, mother, and himself.

 

Image Description: The image is in black and white. Victor wears his high school jock jacket. He looks to his left, where his parents and himself stand side by side. Despite existing in a space that seems as though an alien bomb has hit, they’re smiling.

They tell Victor to stay, they tell him he is broken, and they can fix him. But Victor is no longer the angry, bitter Cyborg he once was: he has a purpose, and his father died for the greater good.

“I’m not broken,” he growls. “And I’m not alone.”

Victor attacks the trio, pulling them apart and revealing them for what they are – hideous, screaming spectres. These are the Mother Boxes. 

5)      Darkseid ain’t done yet…

 

Image Description: Darkseid stares, scowling, with glowing red eyes. His face is scaly, encased in metal armour. If we were any closer to him in this image, we’d be looking up his nose…

With the Unity now broken, Steppenwolf looks decidedly worse for wear. Superman has torn off one of his horns, and his barbed armour is long gone. Victory is assured. Right? The blue portal remains open, so Darkseid has been watching the whole thing. It’s almost enough to make one feel sorry for Steppenwolf as the Justice League sends him back to his boss…impaled and decapitated. As a final blow, Darkseid crushes his head beneath his foot.

Triumphant, the League survey Darkseid. I was surprised no one flipped him the bird. Darkseid closes the portal with a heavy grunt, vowing to claim the Anti-Life Equation using “the old ways.” Evidently, we haven’t heard the last from him.

 

Image Description: Sunlight streams across the League’s faces at a side profile. Victor, Barry, Bruce, Clark, Diana, and Arthur stand together in that order. It’s a picture of a robust and victorious team.

In the meantime – look at our guys! It’s the same shot from Justice League, but the swelling sense of relief and victory feel entirely earned this time around. It’s an excellent, old-fashioned way to finish with the bad guy defeated and our heroes becoming better people from their experiences. Yet, we don’t know what will become of the Mother Boxes or what the League will do now. So, for now…let’s enjoy the sunrise.

My Sources:

Zack Snyder’s Justice League poster - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12361974/

 

Image: Clark, reunited with his family - https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2559113/amy-adams-wonders-if-the-snyder-cut-of-justice-league-has-expanded-the-universe 

 

Image: Diana, Arthur, and Barry go to work - https://www.vox.com/22330390/zack-snyder-justice-league-differences-from-original-snyder-cut

 

GIF: Superman to the rescue - https://comicvine.gamespot.com/forums/battles-7/could-thor-no-sell-steppys-axe-like-superman-did-2146496/

 

Image: Victor is tempted by the Mother Boxes - https://marvelousgeeksmedia.com/2021/03/30/scene-breakdown-cyborgs-story-in-zack-snyders-justice-league-something-darker/

 

Image: Darkseid looks menacing - https://www.looper.com/359134/easter-eggs-you-missed-in-zack-snyders-justice-league/

 

Image: The League look out towards the sun - https://townsquare.media/site/442/files/2020/08/snyder-cut-team-shot-1.jpg