Zack Snyder's Justice League—commonly referred to as the "Snyder Cut"—recently showed fans some love, dropping its eagerly-anticipated trailer on Valentine's Day.
Before we dive into the trailer breakdown, let's take a look at the buildup to its release.
What is the Snyder Cut?
Zack Snyder's Justice League is the upcoming recut of Joss Whedon's Justice League (2017). The movie is directed by Zack Snyder and edited by Dody Dorn, best known for Christopher Nolan's Memento. The film follows the continuity of Man of Steel and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (BvS), Snyder's two previous DC Movies.
Image via: @thesnydercut
Due to a personal tragedy, Snyder abdicated his role during the post-production phase of Justice League in May 2017. Joss Whedon, who created the screenplay, stepped in as the director and completed the movie in Snyder's absence. Adhering to mandatory studio notes, Whedon introduced a lighter tone, more humorous elements, and a significantly shorter runtime.
Unhappy with the film they ended up with, loyal DC and Snyder fans launched the "Release the Snyder Cut" movement, campaigning their desire for Snyder's version of the movie. Since being founded, the movement has become synonymous with pop culture, with an upcoming book documenting the entire story. In addition to advocating artistic integrity, the movement is equally revered for its charitable efforts, raising over $500,000 for the American Foundation of Suicide Prevention. Thanks to such broad awareness, the campaign succeeded, with Snyder announcing that HBO Max is releasing his cut in 2021.
During a conversation with Beyond The Trailer's Grace Randolph, Snyder described the opportunity as a way to "create a very pure and exact version of the movie."
Zack Snyder's Justice League will be released on HBO Max for US audiences on March 18, with international release information yet to be announced.
Teaser
Initially previewed at DC FanDome, Zack Snyder's Justice League presented fans its first look at the film with a two-minute-thirty-second teaser.
Cut to Leonard Cohen - "Hallelujah"—a song Snyder also used in Watchmen—the teaser atypically features no sound design. Despite the musical beats tightly accenting the visuals and looking like a professionally-cut trailer, the absence of non-musical audio gave the teaser a fan-made edge. This allowed the visuals to be brought to the forefront, showcasing some of the key differences without any distracting audio elements. The song was a great choice, echoing the feeling of fans rejoicing after the campaign's success.
Since its release, Snyder published a one-hour shot-by-shot breakdown. The teaser also inspired many fan-made trailers, most notably, Jon Garza's cut, which Snyder mentioned he enjoyed.
Countdown Teasers
Following Snyder's Super Bowl announcement, three countdown teasers dropped, promoting the trailer's release. All three videos featured short, high-octane montages cut to a bombastic Junkie XL music cue, with each video revealing a jaw-dropping moment.
The first countdown teaser showed black-suit Superman's heat vision in full effect, blasting downwards in a quick glimpse before the end card:
The second countdown teaser was the first look at Darkseid, who appeared omnipotent, standing tall amidst destruction during the infamous invasion scene:
The third and final teaser revealed Batman standing on a tank-like vehicle, resembling Frank Miller's Batmobile, which Zack Snyder calls the "War Machine":
The three countdown teasers were sensational, providing new information in an extremely condensed time frame. The editing was fantastic and utilised the music cue effectively for each cut. For the trailer's release, Snyder told Grace Randolph that he planned to "turn the hype engine to 11 and have everybody lose their minds". The countdown teasers certainly delivered on that statement, leaving fans anticipating the trailer more than ever before.
Official Trailer
After much anticipation and buildup, the world was finally presented with the official trailer on Valentine's Day:
Open
Following a one-second studio card, the trailer opens with an overhead shot of Superman's death in BvS. The camera slowly zooms in, revealing Superman's agonising pain as his surroundings are destroyed to their very core. Epic orchestral vocals are paired with a slow-motion Superman death cry, bringing the breathtaking visuals to life. After a cut to black, we hear Lex Luthor say, "the bell's been rung", symbolising that now is the time to strike. Four wide scope shots follow, highlighting decay and destruction, as Superman's wailing cry continues to bellow in the distance. The section concludes with Luthor saying, "the God is dead" before a tumbling tomb crumbles to dust.
The trailer's open does a great job of continuing the BvS storyline and establishing an immediate tone for the movie. The wide scope shots suggest journey and adventure, whilst the destruction demonstrates conflict and struggle. The dialogue from Luthor gives the antagonists an early advantage, allowing sufficient space for the Justice League's game plan to develop. Superman's scream not only served as a reminder of his death but also symbolised the pain the world was experiencing. The scream's prominence was increased by the audio panning from left to right. This worked particularly well between 21 and 24 seconds, where the scream's panning matched the sound wave's movement.
Act 1
Act 1 begins with two one-second studio logos, perfectly-timed to hit and braaam sound effects. Subsequently, Batman appears during the nightmare sequence, providing a warning about an incoming attack. The ambush is teased by Wonder Woman anxiously observing an inscription of Darkseid, the film's core antagonist, shortly before his arrival.
Darkseid's reveal in the second countdown teaser was jaw-dropping but failed to achieve the same effect in the trailer. Previously seeing him did dilute its impact, but the execution could have emulated the teaser's delivery. In the countdown teaser, Darkseid briefly appears before a cut to black perfectly lands on a musical downbeat, stamping home an exclamation mark on his arrival. Utilising a downbeat and a shift into a bigger section of the music cue would have created a more prominent appearance and launch into the second act. Steppenwolf's hammer smashing at 51 seconds would have been a great place to achieve this result. Hearing Darkseid's voice for the first time would have also been a much-welcomed addition and was something many fans anticipated.
Nonetheless, the first act effectively answered Luthor's threats with Batman's premonition whilst pointing to the antagonists' awareness of the problem at hand. The length and pacing felt well-timed, delivering an adequate amount of exposition and character introductions.
Act 2
Act 2 consists of two core sections, beginning with Steppenwolf's hammer smashing the ground beneath him. In the first section, the trailer's second act did a good job of raising the stakes and introducing the conflict. For the first time since Superman's death cry, the trailer utilises sound design, bringing the action to life and increasing the intensity. This was a solid addition and would have been great to see progress throughout the trailer.
Consequently, Batman explains that he's "building an alliance" shortly before the Justice League characters appear. Doubts and conflict arise with Alfred questioning the strength of Batman's team before warning: "If you can't bring down the charging bull, then don't wave the red cape at it". Alfred's line is poetic and one of the best in the trailer. Together with hinting at Superman's revival, the line provides a great story thread, transitioning into the proceeding section.
The second segment of Act 2 begins with a black and silver Superman logo over London's Tower Bridge, followed by an ID shot of Lois Lane. Shortly after, Johnathan Kent delivers an inspirational quote over a montage containing the first Superman shots since the open's BvS death scene.
The second section of Act 2 was designed to act as the calm before the storm prior to launching into the third act. In theory, this could have worked brilliantly. After increasing the soundscape for the first section, the editor dials down the effects to focus on the emotion. This worked well, but utilising this technique needs a big payoff in the following act—more on that later.
Act 3
The trailer launches into the third act with black-suit Superman's flight scene before cutting to Cyborg soaring through the air. The third-act launch visually demonstrates an evident rise in action, showing three consecutive flight shots at the beginning of the montage. In the trailer's second act, Superman's life and capabilities had been questioned. By introducing a physical change paired with a decisive action, the trailer teases resolution to the previous conflict.
The third act saved many of the best shots for last, most notably Frank Miller's Batmobile and Superman's heat vision, both seen in the previous countdown teasers.
Despite showcasing many breathtaking visuals, the third act could have greatly benefitted from some sound design. The third act of a trailer should always be the wild ride to the finish. The final stretch did not feel as big as it could have done by having more expansive soundscapes earlier in the trailer. The music cue did build to a crescendo with hits and strings, but the character's actions and emotions missed an opportunity to be brought to life. That said, Batman and Wonder Woman's interaction worked well, adding an element of humanity and character development to the section.
Button
Following the title card after the third act's conclusion, we are presented with a button featuring Jared Leto's new-look Joker. During an interaction with Batman, Joker proclaims that "we live in a society, where honour is a distant memory", implying Batman has devolved to a hero without honour. The reveal concludes with a suspenseful head turn, followed by a sinister orchestral stab.
The Joker button ended the trailer with a strong turn, introducing a new antagonist after hinting at resolution in the third act. Additionally, the nightmare scene's set up in Act 1 is given a substantial payoff and a new meaning to Batman's premonition. Adding Joker to the Snyder Cut was a retrospective decision and has fans talking for multiple reasons. This moment was a great choice to end on, and the execution was excellent.
Final thoughts
To conclude, the Zack Snyder's Justice League trailer successfully presented a clearly different version of Whedon's film. Condensing any film down to a two-minute preview is a difficult task. With the Snyder Cut being four hours long, the trailer did a solid job exploring multiple story arcs and showcasing its stunning visuals.
Straying away from introducing the heroes individually—as seen in the 2017 trailer—the Snyder Cut trailer primarily focused on the antagonists and the Justice League collectively combatting them under Batman's command. In terms of exposition, this worked well. That said, perhaps replacing one or two of Batman's lines with a different hero would have added some variety. Hearing Wonder Woman was great, but outside of the visuals, there was an absence of supporting cast involvement. Snyder has described Cyborg as "the heart and soul of the movie". Hearing a powerful Cyborg quote during the third act would have been an excellent addition.
For a film with so much incredible action, the core area the trailer could have developed further is its sound design. The absence of non-musical audio in the teaser worked well. However, only introducing sound effects for the first two acts of the trailer presented some inconsistencies. As well as hits and whooshes to accent the action, grunts and screams from the Justice League would have added a layer of emotion and sonic variety, especially in the third act. Structurally, this would have also defined the segments more clearly, creating a stronger, more progressive story.
Aside from the trailer itself, the countdown teasers worked exceptionally well, dialling the hype train to the level Snyder aspired to reach. It was great seeing the Joker moment saved for the button, which was a pleasant surprise and one of the best moments in the trailer.
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