Following the death of Superman, a being known as Steppenwolf comes to earth with an army of warrior bug demons to reclaim three boxes of power that together will spell the end of the world. Batman struggles to assemble a team of unique individuals to stop him, but can they be strong enough, even together?

The story behind Zack Snyder's JUSTICE LEAGUE is a remarkable one. In the middle of production of the DC extended universe's signature team-up, a family tragedy forced director Snyder to leave the project. MARVEL'S THE AVENGERS director Joss Whedon was brought in to complete the project, but the result was not met with great acclaim. The clash of directorial styles, the hurried effects, the muddled plotting and lacklustre villain all worked to disappoint fans. Those fans took up a campaign to get a so-called 'Snyder cut' released in the same way that the Donner cut of SUPERMAN was released on DVD. Universal and HBO Max have done just that, paying for reshoots and giving the original director the reins of a new version of the film.

It's almost unfair to compare the theatrical version and the 'Snyder cut' since they were both created under such different circumstances, but it's hard not to considering they are two versions of the same story.

Zack Snyder's JUSTICE LEAGUE is long (almost twice as long as the theatrical version), but surprisingly, the time doesn't drag as much as might have been expected. Yes, the film is certainly overindulgent with nothing being thrown away, even bits that profitably could. After all, do we need to see Barry Allen (The Flash) save an otherwise unimportant woman from a car accident in long, lingering slow motion? Do we need to see Batman having another dream about the future in the exact same way he did to stultifying boring effect in BATMAN VS SUPERMAN:DAWN OF JUSTICE? Do we need the coda with Lex Luthor when it is rendered immediately irrelevant by the unnecessary dream sequence that follows it? Do we need the incessant slowing down of the action to show someone's super moves? Yes, that technique can look cool and highlight great moments, but when it is used so many times, it becomes a bit, well, slow and tedious. The things is that Zack Snyder is all about the look of the film and not necessarily the story being told. If it looks good (and his films do usually look good), small matters such as pacing and character apparently don't matter.

The added scenes that fill out the running time do allow for some more character development, especially in terms of Ray Fisher's Cyborg. His backstory is not so much fleshed out as an entire origin ministory is inserted into the larger film. Again, the idea that less is more is not one that occurs to the director. By the time Marvel's superteam came together, they had all already been introduced and established, even the more minor players like Black Widow and Hawkeye. As a result, the story could be told without stuffing in everyone's history.

The changes also work in favour of Ben Affleck's Bruce Wayne. Because the story is given more room to breathe, so is he. His fear of not being able to lead the team, his guilt over the death of Superman, and his feelings of inferiority at the lack of powers are all suggested rather than laid out in Whedon's dialogue-heavy, quippy moments. Less well served are Jason Mamoa's Aquaman, Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman and Ezra Miller's Barry Allen, all of whom seem just about the same in both versions. Even these, though, fare better than Martha Kent, who is all but removed from the film. Her interaction with Lois Lane over the death of Superman is turned into a gimmick solely to introduce a character who has nothing to do with the rest of the plot. This cheapens the relationship between Martha and Lois. After all, why wouldn't they connect in the wake of Clark's death, as the two most important women in his life? This change makes no sense and diminishes the humanity at the heart of the film.

Humanity, though, is not what interests Snyder. Gone are the people threatened by the big attack on Steppenwolf's headquarters. Gone are the people mourning the loss of Superman. Snyder is concerned only with symbols, with the gods on the stage. There is no place in Snyder's vision for simple humans. The stakes are for the planet, but the people on that planet are barely glimpsed, except when filling out the Cyborg backstory. Only Lois shows genuine grief and that is mainly in the form of walking in slow motion through the rain. Symbology over emotion.

Size matters in Zack Snyder's films and nobody could ever accuse him of thinking small. This version of the film is full of the kind of bombast and self-belief in its own importance that weighed down MAN OF STEEL and BATMAN VS SUPERMAN:DAWN OF JUSTICE. Everything is dialled up to eleven and stays there. Subtlety is not a tool in the Snyder toolbox and neither is humour. There are many, many epic moments and scenes, but not everything has to be ridiculously overblown. Even the quiet moments such as Clark standing in a corn field are covered with layers of significant. It's like Snyder is spending the whole time shouting at the audience 'Look how important my film is!'. There is no finesse and there is no joie de vivre here. No wonder Whedon and studio felt it needed some jokes. Everything is oppressive and depressing, including the colour pallette. For pity's sake, throw in a primary colour every now and then, Zack.

The single biggest improvement in this version is Steppenwolf. Quite apart from the much better CGI realisation of the villain that gives him a more alien appearance and a natty set of living armour, his relationship to the big bad known as Darkseid, provides him with a much better explained motivation. The extra running time allows for this aspect of the plot to develop in a more leisurely and complete fashion.

The action is ramped up as well, giving the Amazons a much better showing in the first skirmish and providing each of the team something much more significant to do in the big finish. The addition of the 'antilife' equation, apparently created by slamming an axe into the ground, but capable of controlling whole worlds (go figure) muddies the waters considerably in order to set up future franchise instalments that may never come. Even so, the spectacle we expect from Snyder is present and correct and the climactic action sequences do feel a lot more satisfying.

The sense of self-importance, though, leads to too many 'tell, don't show' moments including long-winded voice overs and characters explaining the plot to each other. We know Batman's putting the team together, so why does he have to explain it to Wonder Woman in such excrutiating detail? Cyborg's father's recorded message to his son is a painful example of what voiceover is absolutely not supposed to do.

In all its flawed glory, there is no doubt that the 'Snyder cut' is an improvement on the theatrical release, sticking as it does to the singular vision of a sole director, but it has been transformed from a too-short rushed mess into an overblown, overindulgent hunk of bombast. There's nothing here that is going to have Marvel's top brass shaking in their shoes.