Injustice tells the story of a heartbroken, merciless Superman (Justin Hartley) waging war on war itself after Joker (Kevin Pollak) blows up Metropolis, taking with it the lives of Lois Lane and her unborn child with Superman. Batman (Anson Mount) decides the Joker can still be redeemed and has him locked away in Arkham Asylum. However, Superman isn't so forgiving, and shortly after invades the asylum to execute Joker himself. The movie centers around this polarity of Batman and Superman's world views. It's a "civil war" of sorts within the Justice League that sees old friends become bitter enemies.
Injustice starts out great. Superman and Batman have very different world views, neither of which are necessarily right or wrong. However, so much more could have been done with such an enticing premise. There are some strong real-world political themes at play, including brief references to the Israel-Palestine conflict and the world's nuclear arms race. At one point, Superman sets out to destroy all guns in the world, an ambitious (although short-sighted) endeavor that alludes to the controversial real-world issue of gun control. However, I feel like the film could have done more with these real-life issues. Instead, the main antagonist of the movie turns out to be a very fictional, very boring (not to mention cliché) opponent. I was extremely disappointed that such great potential was essentially thrown down the drain in the second half of the movie.
This film attempts to combine the "best of both worlds" of the Batman and Superman franchises, similar to Zack Snyder's 2016 Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. I'm not going to lie, I'm a sucker for superhero "crossover" stories (more so in the DC universe than Marvel). However, this one wasn't done very creatively. Superman ends up teaming up with a Batman villain (whose name I won't say) in what feels like an unnecessary extension or even spin-off of one of the live-action Batman movies released in recent years. This is the turning point of the movie. From that point on, it's all downhill (and not in a good way). This team up honestly ruins the movie for me, and although the idea may have been good on paper, I felt it was completely unnecessary and poorly executed.
Some of my other gripes are over-dramatic killings, hit-and-miss attempts at comedy, and some gleaming plot-holes (which I shall discuss in that order). I get it, this isn't a movie for the kiddos, but the whole "blood splatter on camera lens" effect gets old quickly. None of the parts that were supposed to be funny really made me laugh, although Green Arrow (Reid Scott) and Harley Quinn's (Gillian Jacobs) relationship is somewhat comical (pun intended?). As for the plot holes, while they are not entirely obvious, they are indisputably there. There are also elements of the plot that are just too convenient for the writers, which I won't go into.
Overall, I was disappointed with this latest effort from the DC animation studios. They took a great idea and ruined it. Extremely fictitious elements are what give superhero movies in general a bad wrap, and this is a prime example of just that. Despite the fact that this is an animated film, I feel the writers could have been more creative by making the plot more rooted in reality. The animation and voice acting in general are good, though nothing too special, although I couldn't help but think at times that Superman could have been cast better. I won't be giving this one another watch.
Injustice starts out great. Superman and Batman have very different world views, neither of which are necessarily right or wrong. However, so much more could have been done with such an enticing premise. There are some strong real-world political themes at play, including brief references to the Israel-Palestine conflict and the world's nuclear arms race. At one point, Superman sets out to destroy all guns in the world, an ambitious (although short-sighted) endeavor that alludes to the controversial real-world issue of gun control. However, I feel like the film could have done more with these real-life issues. Instead, the main antagonist of the movie turns out to be a very fictional, very boring (not to mention cliché) opponent. I was extremely disappointed that such great potential was essentially thrown down the drain in the second half of the movie.
This film attempts to combine the "best of both worlds" of the Batman and Superman franchises, similar to Zack Snyder's 2016 Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. I'm not going to lie, I'm a sucker for superhero "crossover" stories (more so in the DC universe than Marvel). However, this one wasn't done very creatively. Superman ends up teaming up with a Batman villain (whose name I won't say) in what feels like an unnecessary extension or even spin-off of one of the live-action Batman movies released in recent years. This is the turning point of the movie. From that point on, it's all downhill (and not in a good way). This team up honestly ruins the movie for me, and although the idea may have been good on paper, I felt it was completely unnecessary and poorly executed.
Some of my other gripes are over-dramatic killings, hit-and-miss attempts at comedy, and some gleaming plot-holes (which I shall discuss in that order). I get it, this isn't a movie for the kiddos, but the whole "blood splatter on camera lens" effect gets old quickly. None of the parts that were supposed to be funny really made me laugh, although Green Arrow (Reid Scott) and Harley Quinn's (Gillian Jacobs) relationship is somewhat comical (pun intended?). As for the plot holes, while they are not entirely obvious, they are indisputably there. There are also elements of the plot that are just too convenient for the writers, which I won't go into.
Overall, I was disappointed with this latest effort from the DC animation studios. They took a great idea and ruined it. Extremely fictitious elements are what give superhero movies in general a bad wrap, and this is a prime example of just that. Despite the fact that this is an animated film, I feel the writers could have been more creative by making the plot more rooted in reality. The animation and voice acting in general are good, though nothing too special, although I couldn't help but think at times that Superman could have been cast better. I won't be giving this one another watch.