What an adventure! That's how we could summarize the release of this director's cut of Justice League. It is impossible to begin this criticism without explaining the context in which it is delivered to us. So let's go back.
Resurrection.
2013. Man of Steel is released. This film by Zack Snyder, supervised by a Christopher Nolan crowned with the success of his Dark Knight trilogy, tries to bring Superman up to date. A great success, this epic vision worthy of a live adaptation of Dragon Ball Z is chosen as the starting point of the DC equivalent of the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe). This was followed by Batman V Superman, which was shouted down at its release, but re-evaluated following the Blu-ray release of a 30-minute long version. This Christic and Nietzschean opera did not achieve the success of an Avengers at the box office, leading Warner to steer these future productions towards something more colorful and humorous. If this could sometimes prove to be a decision favorable to certain films such as Wonder Woman or Aquaman, as part of Justice League, this decision turned out to be a nightmarish decision. 
Supervised by two executive producers, Snyder was also supported by Josh Whedon, before being replaced by the manufacturer of the first two Avengers. Snyder, facing a family drama, eventually left production, while Whedon turned over much of the film, ending up with a two-hour run. The result? An abomination, trying to mix the style of two extremely different filmmakers, resulting in one of the worst superhero movies of the modern era. Following the demonstration of an army of fans on the Internet (going so far as to rent an advertising screen on Time Square), Warner Bros, in search of a strong appeal product for the launch of the studio's streaming platform, HBO Max, finally gave in and gave an envelope of $ 70 million, to allow Zack Snyder to make his true version of Justice League lasting 4 hours. So, what is this Zack Snyder's Justice League, which comes at the right time to start the lockdown for Parisian and northern cinephiles, worth? Focus. 
An epic superheroic opera
First observation: this Snyder's Cut is a blockbuster quite correct, which competes with the Marvel competition without difficulty. These two extra hours allow to expand the characters of Cyborg and Flash, who are among the big winners of this new montage. If, the characterization of these characters remains quite agreed, it works effectively enough to make them more endearing. Ezra Miller's Flash becomes a much more exciting hero to watch. This new version really showcases these powers, thanks to the realization of Snyder, always on the hook when it comes to iconizing superheroes. Still, humor is not always a success, being imposed by forceps by Warner executives. The real surprise lies in the improvement of Steppenwolf, who is finally a credible villain. In search of redemption to be forgiven to Darkseid, the monster becomes at the same time more human and more interesting. He finally becomes a credible threat to heroes. This enhancement of Steppenwolf finally allows to have a credible justification for the reunion of superheroes. In addition, the presence of Darkseid creates a real sense of danger, and a pre-apocalyptic atmosphere. If the Justice League doesn't come together, a Mad Max-like future is coming. This allows the Climax to finally take on more value and efficiency, the heroes coming close to disaster. On the other hand, the characters of Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman, are not grown by this new version, retaining the same flaws as in the JOSHtice League. In the end, the real winner here is its director.
The return of an outcast.
Zack Snyder is one of Hollywood's most recognizable blockbuster directors. Possessing a crazy talent for creating shocking images rivaling the excesses of the greatest comic books, Snyder knows how to image a story, and iconize superhero characters. The choice of the 4/3 ratio (square format) allows to have a frame approaching the boxes of comics. Justice League benefits from the return of the filmmaker at the helm, who takes his style to the extreme: slowed down absolutely everywhere, worked frame, giving a divine stature to these heroes. On the other hand, we must compensate with visual effects, poorly polished, a dull music, overmeaning, and some errors of taste that we would have done well (product placement for Mercedes, not even worthy of a Michael Bay). If a 4-hour version was not necessarily essential, it still allows the characters to take more scale, and Snyder to reveal the omnipotence of his staging. As for the ten-minute epilogue, it appears more like a note of intent to a potential Justice League 2 than a real conclusion. As it stands, it feels more like seeing the opening scene of a potential sequel, than a conclusion. 
So, was all these years of waiting worth it? A thousand times yes. Epic, operatic, sometimes gore, this Snyder's Cut keeps some trace of Warner's involvement in the project, while remaining a Zack Snyder film. Not a perfect film, sometimes even wobbly, but an excellent superhero film, generous and much more fascinating than many other films of the genre. A must see for fans of DC Comics, and Zack Snyder's stylized approach. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vM-Bja2Gy04
