Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

Justice League: War Blu-ray Movie Review

War. Huh! Good God. What is it goo-ood for!? Absolutely... depends on your history with the DCU.

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown February 10, 2014

Whoa. Change is in the air. Based on the opening volley of DC Comics' "New 52" reboot, Justice League: War tosses out the old (and not so old) and ushers in the brand spanking new with almost aggressive indifference. Creatively, it's an exciting prospect; a bold, publisher-wide effort to cast eighty years of familiar heroes and villains in a fresh light. Logistically, it's struck many a longtime fan as alienating; dividing an already splintered DC fanbase into those hungry for radical change and those tearing out their hair, shaking their fists at the comicbook heavens and cursing the DC Entertainment gods. War presents a very, very different JLA (more so perhaps than even its New 52 counterpart), with Batman being the only hero who seems to have escaped DC's scorched earth revamp relatively unscathed. Superman is now an impulsive, arrogant titan with little concern for property damage. You're not meant to like him, and you won't like him. At all. Green Lantern is a quippy, joke-slinging crack-up with a raging ego. You'll laugh, but visions of Ryan Reynolds' Hal Jordan might start to dance in your head. Wonder Woman is an exotic, overbearingly enthusiastic and, above all, irritating off- lander (with a taste for ice cream) who takes her cues from Chris Hemsworth's Thor. Flash is a restrained, nose-to-the- grindstone crime fighter; a speedster with a slug's charisma. On and on and on.

Judged on its own merits, War is a blast. I'll give it that. It's fun, surprisingly funny and packed with wall to wall, punchety-punch-punch action. But beneath all the bluster and bombast is a JLA that's difficult to warm to, an animated original movie that lacks subtlety and depth, and a launching point for a shared continuity that, at least at the moment, doesn't seem all that appealing.

When alien creatures begin planting mysterious explosive devices in major cities around the world, Earth's mightiest defenders come together to stop an invasion led by a merciless planet terraformer named Darkseid (voiced by Steve Blum). But first the heroes have to meet one another, not to mention work out their differences. Green Lantern (Justin Kirk) is first on the scene, and soon discovers that Gotham's fabled guardian, Batman (Jason O'Mara), isn't an urban legend. From there, Lantern and Bats track down Superman (Alan Tudyk) in Metropolis, enlist the help of Central City's Flash (Christopher Gorham), run into Wonder Woman (Michelle Michelle Monaghan) while preventing Parademons from destroying Air Force One, and eventually add Cyborg (Shemar Moore) and Shazam (Sean Astin) to their reluctant ranks. Bickering, slinging barbs and overcoming clashing egos, the inadvertently assembled JLA race to stop the alien invaders and save the planet.

War's centerpiece is the Justice League's knock-down, drag-out fight with Darkseid, a city-wide scuffle that chews up a sizeable chunk of the movie. Outmatched and severely out-gunned, Bats and his fellow heroes have to put aside their differences and admit none of them are capable of fending of an invasion by their lonesome. In fact, it's only when the superheroes shut up and get to work that War finds its footing. The first act is full of laughs -- if, that is, you aren't seething over the drastic personality changes many of the characters have undergone -- and Heath Corson's screenplay has plenty of spirit, channeling the best of Geoff Johns and Jim Lee's 2011 six-issue Justice League: Origin arc. The back- and-forth between Hal Jordan and Bruce Wayne keeps things light, every hero is given a crucial role to play, and there are only a few hints of reckless implausibility. (Watching Batman lunge at an alien tyrant head-on -- the same alien tyrant who previously swatted Superman out of the sky like a bug -- is a stretch.) It's all played to heavy-handed, feel-good ends, sure, but it also serves as a fitting, arguably thrilling origin tale. (Even if it's a bit difficult to believe Earth's superest superpowered beings are just now meeting for the first time, seeing as Superman, Flash and Wonder Woman are known to the public at large.)

Unfortunately, as is too often the case with DCU animated movies, the hit or miss actioner that rises from War's shallow sea would have benefited from an extra fifteen or twenty minutes. With a slim 79-minute runtime (closer to 70 or 75 if you toss out the opening and closing credits), there isn't a lot room for backstory, supporting characters or subplots, and Cyborg is the only hero that is given all three. Most of the JLA'ers don't earn any. Batman's tragic past is only mentioned in passing and his relationship with Gotham is anyone's guess. Lois Lane is MIA while the Daily Planet is a foregone conclusion. Wonder Woman practically mounts Superman the second she sees him, and it's clear from his reaction to Diana's advances that Lois isn't on his radar anyway. And Green Lantern, Flash and Shazam's beginnings are never detailed, much less fleshed out. All well and good when dealing with the superheroes we've come to know and love through dozens of movies and animated series. Yet these are new heroes, with new personalities, new motivations, new statuses and new stories. War simultaneously asks you to forget everything you know about the JLA and lug everything you know to the table.

But then every DCU project can't be a two-parter a la Dark Knight Returns. For pure bang for your animated comicbook buck, Justice League: War throws a haymaker, follows out with a flurry of blows and doesn't stop swinging until cities are saved, crowds are cheering and once-bitter allies are well on their way to Super Friendom. And the voice cast is great; especially O'Mara, who has the thankless job of replacing fan-favorite Kevin Conroy, to the grumbling of the masses. Just know this: if you stormed out of Man of Steel after Superman put a stop to General Zod's reign of terror, be warned. War is guilty of that and much, much more. Simply put, casual DC Comics readers and DCU animated movie fans will be more satisfied with director Jay Oliva's latest than JLA purists and longtime comicbook junkies. This isn't your mom and dad's Justice League, kids. For better or worse...

Justice League: War Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Like The Flashpoint Paradox and others before it, banding is the biggest flaw to be found in Justice League: War, followed by almost negligible aliasing and intermittent softness. The good news is the culprit is, more often than not, the animation itself rather than Warner's 1080p/AVC-encoded video presentation. Gradient lighting overlays lead to numerous instances of banding in the skies, the finest line art (CG or otherwise) is problematic, and artificial enlargements and zooms occasionally make the image appear soft. That's not to say War is a bad looking film, or that it's animation necessarily disappoints or that its encode is anything short of faithful. However, distractions are rather prevalent, which will irritate those often irritated by such things and sneak by those who never seem to notice. Thankfully, the rest is roses. Colors are subdued but satisfying, primaries pop, black levels are inky, contrast is vivid, and detail is solid on the whole (all things considered). Moreover, there aren't any major issues that trace back to Warner's video presentation, although pay enough attention and you'll spot some fleeting macroblocking here and there). Subjectively, there's a case to be made that my video score should actually be lower. Objectively, there's an argument to be made that it should be higher. I'll split the difference.

Justice League: War Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Like the movie, War's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track is heavy on action and light on subtlety. Be that as it may, the ensuing lossless experience matches the movie beat for beatdown, without any real mishaps to point to. When fistfights and battles with alien invaders aren't being waged, the front speakers do the majority of the lifting, but only insofar as the sound design dictates. Dialogue is clear and intelligible at all times, and prioritization is spot on. The LFE channel doesn't falter either, latching onto every heat-vision-induced explosion, earth-shattering Darkseid punch, collapsing building, smashed car and ripped metal beam that enters the fray. The rear speakers are just as aggressive, even if directionality is somewhat imprecise. Dynamics deliver, pans are slick and the soundfield is reasonably immersive. It doesn't offer the sort of top tier experience you'd expect from a theatrical superhero outing like Man of Steel, but for a DCU animated movie, it bears its teeth, charges headlong into the chaos and accomplishes everything it's meant to. No complaints.

Justice League: War Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Deconstructing JL: War (HD, 21 minutes): Director Jay Oliva and artist/DC Entertainment co-publisher Jim Lee comment on a few key scenes from War. It's not a full-length audio commentary, or the Picture-in-Picture video commentary it should have been, but Oliva offers up a variety of details, particularly when it comes to the differences between the original comic arc and its animated adaptation.
• Creating Heroes: The Art and Life of Jim Lee (HD, 37 minutes): More love for Lee in this lengthy bio-doc, this time courtesy of a variety of industry insiders and professionals. Fans will no doubt remain in awe for the duration (particularly considering how many interview bits Lee provides), casual comic readers will warm to the ever-humble and candid artist, and those new to the icon's work might just find a new appreciation for the value and blood, sweat and tears of a talented career penciller.
• Act D: From Animatic to Pencil Test (HD, 24 minutes): War's third featurette affords Oliva the opportunity to provide insight into the creation process, production and the various stages of storyboarding and animation.
• Sneak Peek: Son of Batman (HD, 9 minutes): Set to arrive on Blu-ray on May 6th, Son of Batman is based on Grant Morrison's "Batman & Son" comic book arc in which Bruce Wayne learns he has a child with Ra's al Ghul's daughter, Talia.
• From the DC Comics Vault (SD, 88 minutes): "Destroyer" from Justice League Unlimited, "The Malicious Mr. Mind!" from Batman: The Brave and the Bold, and "Happy New Year" & "Earthlings" from Young Justice: Invasion.

Justice League: War Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Where does Justice League: War fall on the spectrum of DCU animated original movies? Every comic and DCU animation fan will walk away with a different answer. And debate will continue to rage as long as DC Entertainment sticks with The New 52. Being introduced to new incarnations of familiar characters can be exhilarating, particularly when creators are given the freedom to play. It can also be a frustrating experience, fraught with pitfalls and wrong turns. As a launch pad for the DCU's newly announced plans to develop a shared continuity among its animated movies, War plants plenty of intriguing seed and serves as a decent origin tale. It's flaws are pretty glaring, though, and it's more divisive than most. Warner's Blu-ray release isn't exactly reliable either. Its DTS-HD Master Audio track is excellent, but its video presentation is a bit too problematic and its supplemental package can be exhausted too quickly. Still, it's an entertaining flick and a solid disc. Rent it if you need to be sure. Otherwise take advantage of the low pricepoint and enjoy the take in the latest DCU animated original movie, flaws and all.