Justice League

            After the critically panned Batman vs. Superman, DC tries again with it's follow up "Justice League". Using the first film to set up the characters and eventual storyline, director Zack Snyder (and later an uncredited Joss Whedon) tries hard to correct the mistakes of the earlier film. Unfortunately some things cannot be undone.

              Ben Affleck is not a credible Batman. His acting does not help the film at all and Batman is the central character bringing all the other pieces together.  The first part of the film is the recruitment phase where we meet the rest of what will become the Justice League. Aquaman, played by Jason Momoa, is the first of the underwritten characters. For a superhero who is master of the oceans, he spends most of the film literally a fish out of water. Hopefully his proposed solo film will feature character development as its main strength. Then we have Cyborg, played by Ray Fisher. Cyborg is a combination human/robot with angst as his main character description. Flash, played by Ezra Miller, brings the most humor to the film and is enjoyable enough (Marvel still did a better job with Quicksilver showing off his super speed though). And then we come to Wonder Woman, once again played by Gal Gadot. Ms Gadot is the best thing about the film. Her acting, action sequences, and beauty through it all belong in a better film. (Hopefully that film is "Wonder Woman 2").

                Since his name comes up in the opening credits, it's no surprise that Henry Cavill as Superman will eventually be resurrected to help save the day from the horde of CGI monsters led by a CGI villain named Steppenwolf (voiced by Ciaran Hinds). I imagine they are saving the bigger bad guy, Darkseid, for the next installment. Since Superman does return, we have the requisite cameos by Amy Adams as Lois Lane and Diane Lane as Martha Kent. And of course, if Batman is in the movie we need his loyal butler Alfred, played by a droll Jeremy Irons and Commissioner Gordon, played by the always dependable J. K. Simmons.

                 Chris Terrio and Joss Whedon are credited with the screenplay based on a story by Mr. Terrio and Zack Snyder. They try hard to lighten the tone but much of the humor seems forced.  Thankfully they managed to keep the film to a tight two hours and while not up to the successful Marvel formula, it's not a terrible superhero movie. An extended sequence after the credits sets up the next film so expect these characters to be around for a while. Maybe next time, they will even get it right.