If you've got a problem with Zack Snyder offering up his near-mythical cut of 2017's Justice
League, well, Superman has a problem with you.
Speaking with the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Henry Cavill, who has portrayed Big Blue in
the films of the DC Extended Universe, offered up a concise and thorough justification for
why Snyder's cut of the film should be seen. Cavill also had strong praise for Snyder as
a filmmaker, and an interesting analysis of the director's perceived shortcomings.
In case you're somehow unaware of the rocky road Justice League took to the screen, some
background: Snyder, who previously directed 2013's Man of Steel and 2016's Batman v Superman:
Dawn of Justice, was forced to depart Justice League midway through production due to a
family tragedy. Stepping in to finish the film was Avengers director Joss Whedon, whom
most observers agreed was pretty qualified at least, on paper. Unfortunately, Whedon
apparently under mandate from Warner Brothers simply took a baseball bat to Snyder's film,
rewriting around 80 pages of its script, and tossing huge chunks of narrative out the window.
Entire character arcs, like that of Ray Fisher's Cyborg whom Snyder has called "the heart"
of his movie, via Twitter evaporated. Other characters, like Darkseid, disappeared altogether.
The finished product barely resembled the film Snyder envisioned.
"I don't care how many demons he's fought in how many hells. He's never fought us not us united."
Justice League became, perhaps, the highest-grossing flop in history, despite being the first live-action
appearance of one of the most legendary superhero teams in history. Following a brief round
of reshoots, and a complete re-edit by Snyder using precisely none of Whedon's footage,
HBO Max will present Snyder's version of the film as a four-part miniseries sometime in
2021. And Cavill, for one, couldn't be happier about it.
Cavill began his defense of the Snyder Cut by strongly insinuating that Whedon who has
since come under fire for allegedly running a hostile, borderline-abusive shoot, via Variety
was simply never the right guy for the job, being less invested in the characters than Snyder.
Cavill said:
"When it comes to adaptations and stuff, it's important to me that things are... faithful
to the source material. When you are just a carriage on someone else's train, it can
be a dangerous place to be in. When you are the train itself when you are [Lord of the
Rings director] Peter Jackson, when you are...Zack Snyder, when you are [Dune director] Denis
Villeneuve it is, I'm sure, absolutely amazing. Because it's your vision."
The keyword here is "vision."
Few would argue against Snyder's talent as a visual stylist, or even that he's capable
of pulling off virtuoso sequences. For evidence, look no further than his feature debut, the
2004 remake of Dawn of the Dead, which sports one of the most terrifying opening scenes
in horror movie history. But the filmmaker has endured criticism for jumbled plotting
and hokey dialogue particularly with regard to Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and
Cavill feels that such criticism tends to overlook the forest for the trees. The actor
makes the case that Snyder is actually an underrated storyteller one that simply employs
a different set of tools than most.
Cavill dished:
"Zack's attention to detail, Zack's visual talent, is extraordinary. And the way he tells
stories, you see it through the visual. He's such an exceptional crafter of moments. And
love him or hate him, everyone talks about the movies that he makes...I've learned a
lot from his version of storytelling, in the sense that he relies on those moments very,
very much. He's very much [in the] visual medium, and he's so good at it. Zack's visuals
are second to none, and it's something which I'm going to take with me."
By all accounts, Snyder's cut of Justice League is sure to be radically different from the
version we saw in 2017, so we'll get to see just what Cavill's talking about when Snyder's
cut hits HBO Max next year. For now, we'll be on the lookout for an official release
date announcement, and will keep you informed and, as always, we'll be keeping the faith.
"Thank you."
"For what?"
"For believing in me."
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