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hafitalAs promised, here are my thoughts on the Justice League movie. :D Okay, so I'm two weeks later than I intended.... haha. [insert that insane looking emoji with the bugged eyes and tongue sticking out]
First off, this might be my favorite DCEU film, not counting Wonder Woman (which is a better all around film). Yes, that surprised me, too. I was prepared to be bored. Honestly, the entire DCEU just has a really hard job, imo, and I'm a generous viewer, not particularly inclined to be hypercritical of an OTT superhero film. I mean, they are behind the eight ball right from the get go. At least with me, these films are a hard sell. Partly because I REALLY REALLY loved Superman as a kid. Really loved him. Huge huge fan of Christopher Reeve's Clark Kent. He will always be Superman for me. Always. So every time I see Superman performed by a different actor (and not to single out Cavill; he's fine. it's literally anyone else other than CR), it's... well. Not the same.
To a lesser degree I have that problem with Batman, too. But at least with Batman we have a gazillion other films with a constant rotation of Batmans, it's easier accepting Affleck in the role. But... well, more on that behind the cut. Yet, I am very much attached to Christian Bale's Batman. I admit it. I loved that guy. I loved that trilogy. Everything about it. It pretty much gave me everything I could ever want with Bruce Wayne/Batman, (except for the lack of Robin. )
ANYWAY. I ramble. Friends, I even watched Justice League TWICE! And not only that! I went and.... (wait for it)....searched AO3 and read fic. *GASP*. I even searched out Bruce/Barry... I know. I have no idea who I am right now. there isn't much, though, for that pairing on ao3, and most of it is ridiculous.
Okay, so I wrote down some notes during my rewatch. *squints at my hastily written post it notes*
First, things I loved:
~Despite whatever I said above, I am still programed to instantly love both Superman and Batman, so, you know, yay, Batman! Yay Superman!
~ I adored every scene between Bruce Wayne and Barry.
~ I know we're supposed to be rooting for Bruce/Diana, but I feel like they do not have any real chemistry in that way. I mean, besides the fact that Gal Gadot has some chemistry with everyone. But, as a romantic pairing, Bruce/Diana leaves me cold. Bruce/just about anyone else, though?? A-OKAY. BRING IT ON.
~ I also loved Bruce's guilt/sadness/confusion over his role in Superman's "death". I appreciated it quite a bit in this film, not only for the slash implications, but also because I feel it helps with the bad taste I had after BvS . At least IMO, they mishandled Bruce's motivations in that film. But, JL righted the ship (heh) a bit.
~ I am ready for my two hours plus Aquaman solo film where it's just a damp Jason Mamoa beautifully shot in slow motion diving into waves and saving people from sailing ships in the ocean, and then stumbling onto land to drink a lot in rough but beautiful sea-side pubs where everyone stares at him before he's off again diving into the ocean to save some more people. When is the release date? This is happening, right? (one teensy request, but can he ditch the freaky contact lenses? not needed).
~ I saw a lot of people wanting Arthur/Diana, and, you know, okay, I guess. But am I the only one that feels like no one is worthy of Diana? Not yet, anyway. She was awesome. I LOVED her during her fight scenes with Pet Cemetery Clark. When he head butts her, and she's all "oh no you didn't." haha <3 times infinity.
~ I think it's supposed to be Superman and Wonder Woman as the official leaders of the Justice League, but I enjoyed seeing Bruce as the leader, quite a bit. And how it was Bruce and Diana as unofficial mom and pop. Which I guess does lend toward a pairing between them, but I don't think he's earned that yet. Anyway, I liked Dad!Bruce.
~And back to Bruce and Barry. Between the different pairing dynamics throughout the entire film, this one was my favorite. Starting with their introductory scene in Barry's squat, and especially the scene where Barry has his minor freak out and Bruce tells him to save one person. The dynamic between them made me love Affleck's Bruce immediately, largely because he took exactly the right tone with Barry. And I enjoyed Ezra Miller in the role. Maybe a bit too much the comedy relief, but eh. whatever.
~ It was nice seeing Themyscira again, although I hated seeing so many of the Amazons killed. :( Like, they don't reproduce. Stop killing them!
~ This was also the first time Cavill felt like Superman. I am not a fan of what they've done with the character in the DCEU. Why does Superman have to be so divisive???? I hate that. But, at least this time he got some cool looking fight scenes, and what I particularly liked was how strong he is. He outmatches EVERYONE. As he should. It's thrilling to see it. Now if they could just let him be a hero. And I'm fine with what's-her-name as Lois, but we can ease up on the angst already.
~ Haven't mentioned Victor Stone much, who I liked a lot. His backstory is disturbing to me, though. I think it's rather horrific, actually. But he has a team/family now and doesn't have to skulk around his dad's apartment.
~ In general, I am a fan of the team dynamics in JL. I want more of that. It's what sold me on the MCU, let's be honest. I am all about the team dynamics. More of this. Much more. And, one thing JL gave me that the Avengers didn't, is at least in JL (ignoring BvS), there is very little in-fighting. The less in-fighting the better imo. Please leave the fighting with the villains please. Fight the real bad guys.
Things that made me laugh:
~ I am still laughing at Bruce riding a pony through Iceland, all by himself (and with no pack) to find Arthur Curry. Like, how far did he go? Was that really the only way he could get there? Do they rent ponies at the airport???? This multimillionaire was like, I'm gonna ride a pony! See if I don't.
~ Steppenwolf has to be the most OTT superhero film villain yet? Okay, maybe he's on par with Ronan from GotG, but at least we had Lee Pace in that role, and he's incredible in everything he ever does so not a fair comparison. I couldn't quite take Steppenwolf seriously. His CGI face was a bit offputting. *hums Born to be Wild...* eta: i expect a JL vid to this now.
~ I also laughed at Pet Cemetery Clark. Probably more than I should have. He's in his pjs! Thank goodness they let him keep his chest hair. hahahaa.
~ Barry really was my favorite. His face in pretty much every scene is a constant "wtf? wtF? wTf? WtF?" haha. He's just one big question mark the entire film.
~ Not having explored the comics much, I was like what the heck are mother boxes?? for most of the film but then I kind of loved that they are called mother boxes. I did some google reading to catch up on what they are.
Things I would have changed/could have done without:
~ Like I said before, leave the freaky eye contacts. distracting and unnecessary.
~ This is an unfair comment because there's nothing that can be done about it, but it's hilarious to me that Affleck is taller than Henry Cavill. Somehow I don't think Batman is supposed to tower over Superman. Also, BA looks uncomfortable in his Batman costume. :/ I feel bad for him. In general, Affleck is a better Bruce Wayne than he is Batman. He's more comfortable as Bruce. And I actually do fault the costume for this (as much as BA's general air of ennui that sort of comes and goes and creeps in.) If he could move with greater ease he could get some physicality into the role. They had this problem a bit in the other Batman films, but it's more pronounced in the DCEU, imo. Don't know why they don't CGI it more. Part of it is, of course, that Batman always looks a bit stiff. It's like part of his image I guess, but it works against the actor imo.
~ Mostly I wish the DCEU didn't always feel like it's playing catch up.
~ As much as I loved Barry, I did wish the way they shot him running in his speedforce or whatever didn't look quite so ridiculous. He runs hilariously.
~ This is not so much a critique but a comment on how, with every speedy superhero character (and there's always seems to be one) that there has been on film, with the possible exception of The Incredibles, they use slow motion to show super speed. I find that fascinating. And weird.
~ I am always wanting a map, or maybe just a quick geography lesson. Every superhero universe is wackadoo imo. (I'm still confused where Asgard is supposed to be. Nothing explains it. I've searched! Can I fly to Asgard? Isn't it in another realm??? what does that mean......) Where is Gotham in relation to Metropolis?? How far is it to Central City? Did Bruce drive? Or did he take a plane to see Barry? Where are WE??????? lol.
And finally, a fic rec:
:D :D Not sure why I twigged to Bruce/Barry (and just typing that is hilarious) but I really did love their scenes together in JL. I also liked Bruce/Arthur, but I haven't yet checked out the fic for that. Bruce/Clark also, but I am kind of a hardcore Clark/Lois girl so I don't know if I can really get behind that seriously. I just cringe at the idea of how Lois will be treated in fic.
Anyway, there was like only 40 or so fics under the Bruce/Barry (trying to stick with DCEU) tag on AO3, so after discounting the ones that are in a different language or one where the tags are longer than the fic, the a/b/o fics or vampire fics or I don't know, or the ones that are just "drabbles", and the incomplete fics, there was like only 5 stories that were worth a read. And of those, I can comfortably recommend 1.
~ Hardest Thing to Keep from You, by natacup82 -- Barry/Bruce, explicit. 10k plus words. Summary: "All Bruce wanted was to get Barry to separate his civilian life from his new life as a hero, things don’t really go as planned."
Bruce convinces Barry he should come live at Wayne Manor. This is by far the best story in this pairing, in the DCEU, and it's the only one I bookmarked. And the only one in character for both Bruce and Barry.
There were a couple others that were okay, but I didn't bookmark them and I can't remember which ones they were now. whoops.
Well that's me succeeding at a decent amount of procrastination lol. Now, back to editing.
First off, this might be my favorite DCEU film, not counting Wonder Woman (which is a better all around film). Yes, that surprised me, too. I was prepared to be bored. Honestly, the entire DCEU just has a really hard job, imo, and I'm a generous viewer, not particularly inclined to be hypercritical of an OTT superhero film. I mean, they are behind the eight ball right from the get go. At least with me, these films are a hard sell. Partly because I REALLY REALLY loved Superman as a kid. Really loved him. Huge huge fan of Christopher Reeve's Clark Kent. He will always be Superman for me. Always. So every time I see Superman performed by a different actor (and not to single out Cavill; he's fine. it's literally anyone else other than CR), it's... well. Not the same.
To a lesser degree I have that problem with Batman, too. But at least with Batman we have a gazillion other films with a constant rotation of Batmans, it's easier accepting Affleck in the role. But... well, more on that behind the cut. Yet, I am very much attached to Christian Bale's Batman. I admit it. I loved that guy. I loved that trilogy. Everything about it. It pretty much gave me everything I could ever want with Bruce Wayne/Batman, (except for the lack of Robin. )
ANYWAY. I ramble. Friends, I even watched Justice League TWICE! And not only that! I went and.... (wait for it)....searched AO3 and read fic. *GASP*. I even searched out Bruce/Barry... I know. I have no idea who I am right now. there isn't much, though, for that pairing on ao3, and most of it is ridiculous.
Okay, so I wrote down some notes during my rewatch. *squints at my hastily written post it notes*
First, things I loved:
~Despite whatever I said above, I am still programed to instantly love both Superman and Batman, so, you know, yay, Batman! Yay Superman!
~ I adored every scene between Bruce Wayne and Barry.
~ I know we're supposed to be rooting for Bruce/Diana, but I feel like they do not have any real chemistry in that way. I mean, besides the fact that Gal Gadot has some chemistry with everyone. But, as a romantic pairing, Bruce/Diana leaves me cold. Bruce/just about anyone else, though?? A-OKAY. BRING IT ON.
~ I also loved Bruce's guilt/sadness/confusion over his role in Superman's "death". I appreciated it quite a bit in this film, not only for the slash implications, but also because I feel it helps with the bad taste I had after BvS . At least IMO, they mishandled Bruce's motivations in that film. But, JL righted the ship (heh) a bit.
~ I am ready for my two hours plus Aquaman solo film where it's just a damp Jason Mamoa beautifully shot in slow motion diving into waves and saving people from sailing ships in the ocean, and then stumbling onto land to drink a lot in rough but beautiful sea-side pubs where everyone stares at him before he's off again diving into the ocean to save some more people. When is the release date? This is happening, right? (one teensy request, but can he ditch the freaky contact lenses? not needed).
~ I saw a lot of people wanting Arthur/Diana, and, you know, okay, I guess. But am I the only one that feels like no one is worthy of Diana? Not yet, anyway. She was awesome. I LOVED her during her fight scenes with Pet Cemetery Clark. When he head butts her, and she's all "oh no you didn't." haha <3 times infinity.
~ I think it's supposed to be Superman and Wonder Woman as the official leaders of the Justice League, but I enjoyed seeing Bruce as the leader, quite a bit. And how it was Bruce and Diana as unofficial mom and pop. Which I guess does lend toward a pairing between them, but I don't think he's earned that yet. Anyway, I liked Dad!Bruce.
~And back to Bruce and Barry. Between the different pairing dynamics throughout the entire film, this one was my favorite. Starting with their introductory scene in Barry's squat, and especially the scene where Barry has his minor freak out and Bruce tells him to save one person. The dynamic between them made me love Affleck's Bruce immediately, largely because he took exactly the right tone with Barry. And I enjoyed Ezra Miller in the role. Maybe a bit too much the comedy relief, but eh. whatever.
~ It was nice seeing Themyscira again, although I hated seeing so many of the Amazons killed. :( Like, they don't reproduce. Stop killing them!
~ This was also the first time Cavill felt like Superman. I am not a fan of what they've done with the character in the DCEU. Why does Superman have to be so divisive???? I hate that. But, at least this time he got some cool looking fight scenes, and what I particularly liked was how strong he is. He outmatches EVERYONE. As he should. It's thrilling to see it. Now if they could just let him be a hero. And I'm fine with what's-her-name as Lois, but we can ease up on the angst already.
~ Haven't mentioned Victor Stone much, who I liked a lot. His backstory is disturbing to me, though. I think it's rather horrific, actually. But he has a team/family now and doesn't have to skulk around his dad's apartment.
~ In general, I am a fan of the team dynamics in JL. I want more of that. It's what sold me on the MCU, let's be honest. I am all about the team dynamics. More of this. Much more. And, one thing JL gave me that the Avengers didn't, is at least in JL (ignoring BvS), there is very little in-fighting. The less in-fighting the better imo. Please leave the fighting with the villains please. Fight the real bad guys.
Things that made me laugh:
~ I am still laughing at Bruce riding a pony through Iceland, all by himself (and with no pack) to find Arthur Curry. Like, how far did he go? Was that really the only way he could get there? Do they rent ponies at the airport???? This multimillionaire was like, I'm gonna ride a pony! See if I don't.
~ Steppenwolf has to be the most OTT superhero film villain yet? Okay, maybe he's on par with Ronan from GotG, but at least we had Lee Pace in that role, and he's incredible in everything he ever does so not a fair comparison. I couldn't quite take Steppenwolf seriously. His CGI face was a bit offputting. *hums Born to be Wild...* eta: i expect a JL vid to this now.
~ I also laughed at Pet Cemetery Clark. Probably more than I should have. He's in his pjs! Thank goodness they let him keep his chest hair. hahahaa.
~ Barry really was my favorite. His face in pretty much every scene is a constant "wtf? wtF? wTf? WtF?" haha. He's just one big question mark the entire film.
~ Not having explored the comics much, I was like what the heck are mother boxes?? for most of the film but then I kind of loved that they are called mother boxes. I did some google reading to catch up on what they are.
Things I would have changed/could have done without:
~ Like I said before, leave the freaky eye contacts. distracting and unnecessary.
~ This is an unfair comment because there's nothing that can be done about it, but it's hilarious to me that Affleck is taller than Henry Cavill. Somehow I don't think Batman is supposed to tower over Superman. Also, BA looks uncomfortable in his Batman costume. :/ I feel bad for him. In general, Affleck is a better Bruce Wayne than he is Batman. He's more comfortable as Bruce. And I actually do fault the costume for this (as much as BA's general air of ennui that sort of comes and goes and creeps in.) If he could move with greater ease he could get some physicality into the role. They had this problem a bit in the other Batman films, but it's more pronounced in the DCEU, imo. Don't know why they don't CGI it more. Part of it is, of course, that Batman always looks a bit stiff. It's like part of his image I guess, but it works against the actor imo.
~ Mostly I wish the DCEU didn't always feel like it's playing catch up.
~ As much as I loved Barry, I did wish the way they shot him running in his speedforce or whatever didn't look quite so ridiculous. He runs hilariously.
~ This is not so much a critique but a comment on how, with every speedy superhero character (and there's always seems to be one) that there has been on film, with the possible exception of The Incredibles, they use slow motion to show super speed. I find that fascinating. And weird.
~ I am always wanting a map, or maybe just a quick geography lesson. Every superhero universe is wackadoo imo. (I'm still confused where Asgard is supposed to be. Nothing explains it. I've searched! Can I fly to Asgard? Isn't it in another realm??? what does that mean......) Where is Gotham in relation to Metropolis?? How far is it to Central City? Did Bruce drive? Or did he take a plane to see Barry? Where are WE??????? lol.
And finally, a fic rec:
:D :D Not sure why I twigged to Bruce/Barry (and just typing that is hilarious) but I really did love their scenes together in JL. I also liked Bruce/Arthur, but I haven't yet checked out the fic for that. Bruce/Clark also, but I am kind of a hardcore Clark/Lois girl so I don't know if I can really get behind that seriously. I just cringe at the idea of how Lois will be treated in fic.
Anyway, there was like only 40 or so fics under the Bruce/Barry (trying to stick with DCEU) tag on AO3, so after discounting the ones that are in a different language or one where the tags are longer than the fic, the a/b/o fics or vampire fics or I don't know, or the ones that are just "drabbles", and the incomplete fics, there was like only 5 stories that were worth a read. And of those, I can comfortably recommend 1.
~ Hardest Thing to Keep from You, by natacup82 -- Barry/Bruce, explicit. 10k plus words. Summary: "All Bruce wanted was to get Barry to separate his civilian life from his new life as a hero, things don’t really go as planned."
Bruce convinces Barry he should come live at Wayne Manor. This is by far the best story in this pairing, in the DCEU, and it's the only one I bookmarked. And the only one in character for both Bruce and Barry.
There were a couple others that were okay, but I didn't bookmark them and I can't remember which ones they were now. whoops.
Well that's me succeeding at a decent amount of procrastination lol. Now, back to editing.
