Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		4.0

Zack Snyder's Justice League 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

The Magnificent Ambersons for nerds.

Reviewed by Randy Miller III September 3, 2021

Warner Bros.' Justice League, as originally released to theaters back in 2017, was a magnet for fan backlash due to the controversial bait-and-switch nature of its post-production. (Rather than slog through every detail, I'll instead point to this article that sums it up well enough.) But the short version is that original director Zack Snyder -- who previously helmed Man of Steel and Batman v Superman -- along with his wife Deborah, who served as producer, left the project in May 2017 after the untimely death of his daughter Autumn. Due to the studio's disapproval of his work on the film, Joss Whedon was hired to reshoot and recut Justice League to their liking over a two-month period. The final result was undoubtedly lighter, more streamlined, and ultimately comprised of maybe 20% Snyder material, which was more than enough to send die-hard DC disciples into a rage. Snyder's most vocal fans heavily pushed for the release of his elusive original cut... a campaign that, even up until two years ago, was generally regarded as a pipe dream.

Well, all that obviously worked out for the best. Back in March, right around the home video re-release of Batman v Superman -- a 4K-only edition that changed the aspect ratio of several scenes to a more IMAX-friendly 1.43:1 -- Zack Snyder's Justice League premiered on HBO Max, with two separate 4K and Blu-ray combo packs now cementing its permanent pop culture presence. It's a film that almost redefines "self- indulgent": clocking in at over four hours with 2,000 new visual effects, at least one newly-shot scene (and countless extended scenes), and even a few new faces, this director's cut offers casual and die-hard fans alike an almost totally new viewing experience... and going one step further than Batman v Superman, the entire film is now presented in Snyder's preferred 1.33:1 aspect ratio.

Mercifully, it's divided into seven parts: "Don't Count On it, Batman", "The Age of Heroes", "Beloved Mother, Beloved Son", "Change Machine", "All the King's Horses", "Something Darker", and the epilogue "A Father Twice Over", with each segment running roughly 30-45 minutes apiece. But while these chapter divisions seem to offer little more than convenient stopping points for those unwilling to marathon this thing (can you technically marathon one movie?), they do give Justice League a more tolerable flow that's nonetheless clogged with some hefty pacing issues. Great moments abound, of course, and as a whole the new moments clearly increase the impact of its main and supporting characters. But speaking as someone who pines for the days when superhero movies weren't practically mandated to be at least 140 minutes (I blame Christopher Nolan, but he was just following Superman's lead), indulging this kind of pet project feels like a step in the wrong direction for a genre that's already well past the point of oversaturation.

But luckily, both still exist: if you prefer Whedon's lighter take on the material, no one's stopping you from watching that version exclusively. As for me, I admire and dislike parts of each version but prefer this director's cut by a decent margin. The overall plot hasn't changed one bit: it still follows the formation of the Justice League after the death of Superman (Henry Cavill) in the previous film, with Batman (Ben Affleck) and Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) recruiting the Flash (Ezra Miller), Aquaman (Jason Momoa), and Cyborg (Ray Fisher) to stop alien lord Steppenwolf from using three powerful artifacts to conquer Earth. But small and large changes abound: a different opening, restored music by Tom "Junkie XL" Holkenborg (replacing Danny Elfman's score in the Whedon version), more face time for the other three Justice League members (especially The Flash, who's kind of tolerable now), no smarmy quips, a dark fate for Cyborg's dad Silas (Joe Morton), an expanded final battle, and a shiny new "R" rating for more cussin' and violence. Darkseid and even the Joker (Jared Leto, reprising his role from the lesser of two Suicide Squad movies) show up, which is neat. And of course, there's no digitally removed mustache for Superman, although I'll kind of miss that one.

Just by the nature of its very existence, Zack Snyder's Justice League ironically reminds me of a particular Joss Whedon production: Serenity, the movie surprisingly born from the ashes of Whedon's short-lived but beloved TV series Firefly. Both films were largely the product of fan intervention, which was fueled by what could be called unfair treatment by a major studio several years prior. In my opinion, both also ultimately fall into the "good, not great" category... but really, any critical evaluation here is superfluous. The point is that this long-awaited director's cut of Justice League actually saw the light of day, and it scored a pretty damn solid 4K/Blu-ray combo pack too. That's pretty impressive.

Zack Snyder's Justice League 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Even more so than Snyder's darker and more foreboding atmosphere, the biggest visual difference here is a brand new aspect ratio: like portions of the recently-released Ultimate Ultimate 4K Edition of Batman v Superman, Zack Snyder's Justice League now makes full use of 1.33:1 open-matte framing, a format usually reserved for IMAX films. (Since both recent recuts have not yet been granted any kind of giant-screen theatrical release, this seems a little odd during an era dominated by 16x9 TVs and projectors.) Nonetheless, Justice League's new framing gives it a unique appearance that doesn't sacrifice anything important on the left and right side or leave too much headroom either.

But of course, the real benefit of this 4K edition -- which also comes paired with a two-disc Blu-ray copy, released and reviewed separately -- is the ability to enjoy this 4K-sourced material in a format very close to its original resolution, because it sure looks great here. While Justice League is admittedly not the most colorful production in recent memory, its subtle and occasionally vibrant hues are served well by the 4K disc's HDR10 enhancement, which also brings out more subtle grays and color shades which aren't quite as visible on the Blu-ray edition. Textures look fantastic and fine detail is much improved in costume and other fabric features, complex backgrounds, skin, special effects, and tight close-ups. Some of the more effects-driven shots, particularly the blue-dominant ones like Flash's overhead rescue seen above, take on qualities similar to an Alex Ross painting while still retaining a film-like appearance. The overall effect of its visual impact can be staggering at times and the film has been thankfully spread across two triple-layered 4K discs; almost a requirement, considering that mammoth running time. Perhaps the only drawback here is what appears to be trace amounts of banding and black crush -- the latter is perhaps inevitable due to Justice League's heavily stylized and color-graded appearance, so it's difficult to penalize without risking a rebuttal.

NOTE: The screenshots in this review are sourced from the included Blu-rays and thus do not represent the 4K discs' superior image. For my thoughts on the 1080p transfer, please seem my separate Blu-ray review linked above.

Zack Snyder's Justice League 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

While it might be tempting to write off this new cut of Justice League's Dolby Atmos mix as identical to the Atmos track on the 2017 film... I really can't, because again this is such a fundamentally different experience that they're basically two separate entities. Still, the similarities are here: it's a suitably massive track with an overall sonic presence similar to Zack Snyder's previous DC films, showcasing an absolutely room-filling soundstage that makes great use of Atmos' height channels during fly-bys, intense battles, and bustling city scenes (including the fateful truck crash where Barry Allen first shows off his powers). Channel panning and overall separation are uniformly excellent with plenty of discrete activity, smooth transitions in multiple directions, and potent low end that reaches as deep as you'd expect during the film's biggest moments. Dialogue remains clean and crisp, while the supportive music cues by Tom Holkenborg sound extremely bold without drowning out conversations or background effects (except for stylistic purposes, of course). Overall, it's a terrific mix that, pound for pound, stands alongside most of the studio's comic book-sourced epics, and doubly impressive since Justice League maintains a weighty, immersive presence from start to finish.

Optional subtitles, including English (SDH), are included during the film as well as the bonus featurette listed below.

Zack Snyder's Justice League 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This four-disc set (!) ships in a dual-hubbed keepcase that might be a couple millimeters thicker than normal, but I'm not gonna get out a tape measure or anything. Annoyingly, the 4K and Blu-ray discs are tightly stacked on either side. Its appropriately bleak cover artwork is repeated on a matching slipcover, but only an HBO Max promotional insert is tucked inside -- no Digital Copy this time. The bonus featurette below can be found on both Disc 1s.

• The Road to Justice League (24:20) - Doubling as a short retrospective of his DC trilogy and an extended introduction for this new cut, director Zack Snder -- flanked by a few prominent cast members including Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Jason Momoa, and Ray Fisher, along with producers Charles Roven and Deborah Snyder -- sheds some light on his involvement with all three films. Snippets of candid on-set footage from each can be seen, but subject-wise it's obviously pretty surface-level -- no major dirt is dug up here.

Zack Snyder's Justice League 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Zack Snyder's Justice League was a long time coming, with fans clamoring for this elusive director's cut even before the almost completely separate 2017 film of the same name hit theaters. At more than four hours in total length, it's quite an undertaking -- at least in one session -- but is helpfully broken into multiple chapters to make things a little easier to digest. As for comparisons go, a conclusion is predictable: the much more full-bodied Snyder cut features better character moments, bigger action, fewer jokes, and other benefits... but at the expense of tight pacing, which does the end result no favors. But it's obviously worth watching for the franchise faithful, and Warner Bros.' welcome 4K edition serves up a rock-solid A/V presentation -- in a new aspect ratio to boot -- and one short but welcome bonus featurette. This one's clearly Recommended overall, but even more so to the legions of fans than demanded it.