Review
Justice League: Gods and Monsters
"Justice League: Gods and Monsters" is the latest project from living legends Bruce Timm and Alan Burnett. Working with the U.S. government, the Justice League goes unchecked and employ their violent methods with no hesitation. However, a sudden string of murders involving prominent scientists all points to the Justice League as the perpetrators. They are forced to race against the clock to exonerate themselves and find the real culprit before the full force of the government comes down on them and the world falls victim to an ambitious conspiracy.
Forget Clark Kent, Bruce Wayne and Diana Prince. They have no role in this movie other than being on the cover of the DVD in the background. Superman is the genetically engineered son of General Dru-Zod and Lara. Batman is Kirk Langstrom, who cured his cancer but turned himself into a vampire-like being, and literally feeds on criminals. Wonder Woman is Bekka, granddaughter of Highfather, the leader of the New Gods of New Genesis. And together, they are the Justice League, a government task force. This isn't an origin story. This isn't year one. Not 50 years later. "Justice League: Gods and Monsters" tells a major event in the middle of this team's journey.
Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman are the perfect fighting team. No one can stop the Justice League. They do whatever they want on missions. Judge, jury and executioner. They work with President Waller and General Steve Trevor but it's clear they don't work for them. Superman even proposes taking over the world and instituting a new world order. Then they get framed for several murders. Not just any murder, but the murders of the smartest people on the planet who all happened to work on a precautionary government project aimed to take down Superman. The culmination of story beats made the movie surprisingly personal for Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman and their respective baggage becomes crucial as the finale draws near. Superman learns the truth about his parentage and is forced to make a clean cut from his past to save the world -- literally and figuratively. Batman is forced to fight his best friend -- who has gone off the deep end and turns out to be the real monster. Wonder Woman has to relive old wounds and decide if she's going to run away again or take a stand even if it means her death.
To enjoy this movie, ignore all preconceptions. The advertisements and press releases overplayed the current trend of grim dark comic book movies. Believe the hype and a standing stereotype that Bruce Timm is this bloodthirsty loon that only wants to make cartoons for adults and kill, kill, kill all our precious characters -- you won't derive any entertainment from this movie at all. Ignore that nagging feeling at the back of your mind that elements of this movie seems all so familiar... a Justice League fighting the government led by Amanda Waller and they work together at the last minute to fight a mad genius. And no, this movie is nowhere like that other alternate universe where the Justice League goes morally gray and takes over the world. That one was a cautionary tale. This one is a mythology. Go into this movie with an open mind, and you'll be blown away.
Shane Glines, Bruce Timm, and James Tucker had a tough task with character design. It's enough you have a new alternate universe to write about, but then you have to basically give everyone new looks. But it looks like this team took that in stride and starting from scratch again, the characters looks slick and slimmed down. They're really boiled down to their core traits. There's no question who's who. Superman is Superman. Batman is Batman. Wonder Woman is Wonder Woman. Luthor is Luthor. Waller is Waller. Sivana is Sivana. Magnus is Magnus. Moi Animation, likewise, seems to have gone above and beyond. The movie is just beautiful. Colors. Shading. Lighting. Improved use of and incorporation of CGI animation. Frederik Wiedmann is yet again in top form with the movie's music. Sam Liu marks his directorial return to the movie line with "Justice League: Gods and Monsters". The movie could have moved at a frenetic and breakneck pace, over the top acting, and action action action, but Liu lets the movie breathe and flow at the pace it needed to. Liu made this 76 minute movie into one of those 2 hour thrillers where you never check your watch and are glued to the screen the whole time.
Benjamin Bratt could have gone full on Latino with his take on Superman and gone down that road of being too corny and stereotypical sounding. Instead, Bratt's take is a subtle hint of his adoptive heritage - indicative of someone not raised by his birth parents and grew up in a different culture. Plus, Bratt has the gravitas to be Superman. Michael C. Hall plays off Batman as a cold and detached person, blocked off from humanity and a workaholic. Tamara Taylor's Wonder Woman is a perfect regal warrior but with a shadow of vulnerability.
The only real issue I had with the story was the revelation of Magnus as the villain and his essentially out of the blue plan to unite the planet. It's true the groundwork of the plan was seeded in flashbacks -- Magnus' work with nanites and Luthor's post-graduation speech to them to change the world -- and Magnus' exposition dump in the last act. But it all still felt like too big a leap in logic to accept this person as the big bad. I think a flashback in place of Magnus' exposition might have worked better. Magnus basically saying a nagging wife made him crazy and evil? Visually, you would have immediately accepted him as the true villain like seeing him gradually become unhinged, kill Tina, and dispose of the body. There also could have been a bit more explanation about how or why Luthor ended up in a satellite accumulating knowledge. There's enough in the movie to suss out that he isolated himself to work on all the Kryptonian intel he stole but he could have used a bit more time.
If you didn't like how this movie skimmed over some back stories or you simply just want to know more -- there's good news. There are two ways to learn more. One. As you read this, DC Comics is in the middle of a 6 week "Justice League: Gods and Monsters" mini-series. These tell the origin stories. Want to know what happened after Kirk was injected? The Batman issue fills that in. Want to know what happened after that migrant couple ran off with baby Superman? The Superman issue fills that in. Want to know what happened after Bekka fled Apokolips in a Boom Tube? The Wonder Woman issue fills that in. Want to know what the Justice League's first adventure was? The three issue "Justice League: Gods and Monsters" series lays it out. Two. Machinima teamed up with Blue Ribbon to do a digital animated shortform series titled "Justice League: Gods and Monsters Chronicles." These are three shorts about 3 minutes each released online only. Each focuses on one hero - Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman in solo stories that take place before the movie. And Chronicles isn't done. It's been renewed for a 10 episode second season which takes place after the movie. Stay tuned, it comes out sometime in 2016.
In terms of the special features, there is a sneak peek at the next movie, a feature on the origin of this movie, a general feature about alternate universes in DC Comics, two episodes from two classic DC animated series, and trailers.
The Sneak Peek at the next animated movie in the line is a robust advertisement for Batman: Bad Blood. The sneak peek is filled with finished footage, animatics, storyboards, production designs, and cast and crew segments. Supervising Producer James Tucker, Director Jay Oliva and DCE Creative Mike Carlin distill the movie to key points that should have the fan base rolling with anticipation. The movie is adapting elements of Batman R.I.P., Batman and Robin, and Batman Inc. - another movie heavily inspired by Grant Morrison's work on the Batman comics but the story is wholly original and not a direct adaptation. A few months after the events of "Batman vs. Robin," Batman goes missing and believed dead in the midst of a gang war dominated by a team of supervillains led by the mysterious Heretic, who seems to know a lot about Batman. Nightwing is pulled back to Gotham City after moving away, Damian Wayne ends his sabbatical at a monastery to return to Gotham, Alfred poses as Bruce Wayne with hi tech holograms, and two new masks join the Bat Family, Batwoman and Batwing. Their stories intertwine and Dick Grayson, taking up the mantle of Batman, leads the ragtag team to find Batman and defeat Heretic. Jay Oliva says it best, the movie has an element of James Bond and takes some cues from the spy thriller genre. Did I mention nuns with swords and guns?
"Calculated Risks: The Making of Gods and Monsters" takes you through the movie's origins as a television show pitch that was deemed too risky. But if you've read articles online or watched interviews leading up to the movie release, this feature repeats what you've already heard. The noteworthy aspect of when they elaborate on the dead ends they hit and bringing in Geoff Johns to brainstorm characters and story. "Alternate Realities: Infinite Possibilities" schools viewers on DC Comics' storied use of alternate universes throughout the years. If you're a long time comics book reader and have been through all the big events and read your fill of Elseworlds, you're good to skip this.
"The Fourth World: The New Gods" featurette, previously appeared as a special feature on the Superman/Batman: Apocalypse release several years ago. The two episodes from the DC Vault are the Legion of the Super-Heroes episode "Phantoms" and the Superman: The Animated Series episode "Brave New Metropolis." Both are relevant to Gods and Monsters. "Phantoms" features Drax, an evil Superboy counterpart who is freed from the Phantom Zone and is heavily implied to be the son of General Dru-Zod. "Brave New Metropolis" featured an alternate universe where a morally gray Superman watched over a Metropolis transformed into a totalitarian state. There are trailers for "The Man from U.N.C.L.E.", "Teen Titans Go!", "Batman vs. Robin," and "Justice League: Throne of Atlantis." A standard definition DVD and Ultraviolet digital download copy is also available.
Warner Bros. Home Entertainment also released a Best Buy exclusive Deluxe Edition Blu-ray. In terms of collectibility, it features a sticker on the packaging to tell you which copy of 60,200 you have and the set comes with a Wonder Woman figurine. Also included are digital copies of the "Wonder Woman" animated movie and "Batman: Mad Love" #1 comic. You'll definitely get more for your money if you purchase this over the regular Blu-Ray/DVD/Digital release.
The bonus features are no frills and a little of a let down. A feature with the character designers would have been informative. Going over the rejected designs, the evolution of the final looks -- that sort of thing. A behind the scenes with composer Frederik Wiedmann would have been great. I really enjoyed that feature on the "Justice League: Throne of Atlantis" release. While it is understandable Machinima wanted exclusivity, but it's a pity the "Justice League: Gods and Monsters Chronicles" digital shortform series was not included as a bonus feature. Likewise, there could have been at least digital previews of the other prequel content, the six issue tie in comic book series that delves into the origins of Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, and the formation of the Justice League. Or a sample of the soundtrack or selected scenes with just the music playing. Long time readers of my reviews know what my next recommendation will be. A commentary reel!
"Justice League: Gods and Monsters" is more than just another DC movie and more than just a "Bruce Timm is back!" love fest. It is masterpiece that paints another masterpiece! It is the culmination of the best and brightest talent in the animation field working together to go back to the basics in order to birth a brand new universe. "To a new world of gods and monsters!" This movie is highly recommended.
Rating
Main Feature: 4 out of 5
Special Features: 2.75 out of 5
Average Rating: 3.38 out of 5