Justice League: War
DVD cover
Directed by	Jay Oliva
Produced by	Sam Register James Tucker Alan Burnett
Screenplay by	Heath Corson
Based on	Justice League: Origin (2011–12)  by Geoff Johns, Jim Lee and Scott WIlliams
Starring	Alan Tudyk Jason O'Mara Michelle Monaghan Justin Kirk Christopher Gorham Shemar Moore Sean Astin Steven Blum Zach Callison Melique Berger Rocky Carroll Ioan Gruffudd George Newbern Bruce Thomas
Music by	Kevin Kliesch
Edited by	Christoper D. Lozinski
Production company	Warner Bros. Animation DC Entertainment
Distributed by	Warner Home Video
Release dates	February 4, 2014 (2014-02-04)
Running time	79 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$3.5 million
Box office	$5,155,325[1]

Justice League: War is a direct-to-video animated superhero film featuring the DC Comics superhero team the Justice League, and an adaptation of the story Justice League: Origin by Geoff Johns and Jim Lee, the first story in DC's 2011 DC Universe reboot. It was directed by Jay Oliva, scripted by Heath Corson. It is the 18th film in the DC Universe Animated Original Movies series and the first in a new series of shared DC Animated Universe Movies.^{[citation needed]} The film was released for downloading on January 21^[2] and was released on Blu-ray and DVD formats on February 4, 2014.^[3] It had its world premiere at the Paley Center for Media on the same day.^[4] On August 11th, 2015, Warner Home Video re-released the film on a combo pact, which includes a DVD and Blu-Ray copy, a digital copy, and the graphic novel it's based on.

The film depicts an invasion of Earth by the alien Darkseid and the subsequent formation of the titular superhero team to counter it, which includes Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Green Lantern, Cyborg and Shazam. A stand-alone sequel, Justice League: Throne of Atlantis, was released in January 2015.

Plot[edit]

A series of strange abductions have occurred in Gotham City, Central City, Coast City and Metropolis among others. Video footage suggests that Batman, a wanted, costumed vigilante, is behind the incidents. When a mysterious, burly, cloaked kidnapper abducts a woman, Green Lantern (Hal Jordan) arrives to confront the kidnapper and saves the woman when she is dropped from above. Green Lantern then attacks the kidnapper, revealing it to be a monstrous Parademon. The creature defeats Green Lantern soundly, and as he is about to be killed, Batman appears and attacks the Parademon, trying to interrogate it. The Parademon then attacks both heroes. They escape from the city's police and chase the creature into the sewers, where it charges a Mother Box and explodes. Batman and Green Lantern examine the box, deduce that it is of extraterrestrial origin, and decide to ask Superman for an answer. Another Mother Box, supplied by The Flash (Barry Allen) is being studied at S.T.A.R. Labs. Doctor Silas Stone, father of Vic Stone, deliberately misses his son's football game so he can study the box. Arriving in Metropolis, Batman and Green Lantern fight Superman—who has fought a Parademon previously and believes the heroes are working with it. The battle spreads over a portion of the city; it finally stops when Batman calls Superman "Clark". Superman uses his x-ray vision and recognizes Batman as billionaire Bruce Wayne. The three heroes then begin to collaborate. On planet Apokolips, Darkseid orders Desaad to begin an invasion of Earth in response to the superheroes' discovery of his plans.

Vic arrives at S.T.A.R. Labs and argues with his father Silas, who believes that football has no importance in a world that is changing with the appearance of metahumans, and states that he will never come to one of his son's football games due to his devotion his own work. At the Daily Planet, Superman, Batman, and Green Lantern realize the invasion has begun when the box activates and several Boom Tubes appear throughout the world, including S.T.A.R. Labs. While Vic is holding the Box being studied by his father during their argument, it activates and explodes, creating a Boom Tube. The explosion fuses the technology inside the Box to Vic's fatally wounded and mutilated body. With several Parademons attacking, Silas is forced to take Vic to an emergency room to save him. Silas loads Vic into a technologically advanced medical bed and uses experimental nano mechanical and tissue grafting technologies on Vic in desperation, though this seems to fail when his heartbeat flatlines. Countless Parademons appear around the world, attacking everyone on sight. The box's technology spliced with Vic's body fuses itself with the various technologies, as well as computers, around the room, transforming Vic into Cyborg, with a body now made from technology capable of transforming and adapting itself and obtaining new features, such as weapons. Just as the Flash arrives to save the scientists, Cyborg's systems reveal details of Apokolips, Darkseid, and the invasion plan. He sees that the Parademons are actually the inhabitants of countless worlds conquered by Darkseid. The inhabitants are captured and spliced with Darkseid's technology, allowing it to control and repurpose their genetics and physical makeup, transforming them into mind controlled monsters and together serve as highly expendable army for conquering other planets. Vic's body was affected by the same technology but it had not been programmed to create a Parademon, and fused with other materials and instead. At his foster home, teenager Billy Batson sees a Parademon outside and mystically turns into the superhero Shazam. Air Force One is attacked in the air, but is saved by the Amazon princess Wonder Woman (Diana Prince) and Superman. After the heroes gather, Cyborg reveals that the invasion is a prelude to the terraforming of Earth. Darkseid arrives and proves to be a powerful opponent who defeats each hero effortlessly.

Darkseid uses his Omega Beams while fighting Flash and Superman, with the latter being unable to outmaneuver the beam and is hit, incapacitated and captured by a Parademon. Batman stops Green Lantern from going after them on his own, as his ego has caused him to charge at Darkseid without thinking and be quickly defeated and injured to the point where his arm breaks. Batman then persuades him to think about the many lives at stake rather than his own image as a hero and to help the heroes work together after he unmasks himself and reveals that his parents's murders were what motivated him to fight evil. Batman unmasked deliberately allows himself to be captured to save Superman. Green Lantern, acting as a leader, assembles everyone and decides that to defeat Darkseid they must destroy his eyes first, stripping him of his power to use his Omega Beams. Bruce is taken through a portal and arrives on Apokolips, proceeding to escape the Parademon and stop Desaad from turning Superman into a Parademon. Because of a brainwashing process being done on him using Darkseids technology, Superman becomes unstable and highly aggressive, resulting in him crushing Desaad to death and attacking anything insight, including other Parademons and Batman. Batman reasons with Superman, helping him reassert his own personality. On Earth, after Darkseid's eyes are disabled, Cyborg connects with the Mother Box to reopen the Boom Tubes and send the tyrant and his army back to their home world. Though the Parademons are gone, Darkseid remains. Superman and Batman arrive and together they force the tyrant into the portal. With the world saved, the once-maligned superheroes gain the public's trust and are honored at the White House. The President of the United States asks whether they have a name. Shazam abruptly announces the name "Super Seven", to which the others object. After a short debate the team of superheroes agree to take the name of Justice League.

In a post-credits scene, an Atlantean ship emerges from the ocean and Ocean Master appears carrying the dead body of his king, possibly killed when the Parademons assembled in the sea during Darkseids arrival on Earth. He believes that the surface dwellers on Earth are responsible for his death, calling it an act of war from the surface, for which he vows retribution.

Cast[edit]

Differences between the comics and film[edit]

There are some differences between this film and the comics:

• Shazam/Captain Marvel appears in the place of Aquaman.
• In the comics after Victor Stone wins the football game, his team is going to State Finals. In the film, they are going to nationals.
• Scientists find the Parademon in Metropolis after it fights Superman in the comics. In the film, The Flash brings it to them.
• In the graphic novel, Aquaman blinds Darkseid's second eye with his trident, after Wonder Woman takes out the first. In the movie, Flash takes out the second eye using a crowbar.
• In the movie, Superman breaks Desaad's neck (while under mind-control).
• Ocean Master does not make an appearance in the comic, but he does in the film's post-credits scene.
• In the comic, Flash suggests the name "Super Seven". In the movie, Shazam is the one who gives the suggestion.
• Steppenwolf makes an appearance in the comic, but he does not in the film.
• The Flash meets Batman, Green Lantern and Superman in the comic, but in the film, he meets Batman and Green Lantern after he helps them take out Parademons

Soundtrack[edit]

The soundtrack to Justice League: War was released on February 4, 2014. The music was composed by Kevin Kliesch.^[5]

Tracklist

Reception[edit]

Justice League: War received a positive response. IGN gave a total score of 8.8/10, calling it a "great modern origin story that will win you over with its action and humor."^[6] CraveOnline gave it a rating of 9.0/10.^[7] Conversely, Brian Lowry of Variety believes it did not reach the high standards of other DC Animated Movies; he wrote, "the interplay yields its share of moments but ultimately proves too frenzied and chaotic to deliver more than a few revisionist thrills".^[8]

Sequel[edit]

A follow-up, Justice League: Throne of Atlantis featuring Matt Lanter as Aquaman / Arthur Curry, was released in January 2015 with several of the first film's cast reprising their roles; notable changes include Alan Tudyk, Michelle Monaghan, and Justin Kirk, who will be replaced by Jerry O'Connell, Rosario Dawson, and Nathan Fillion in the roles of Superman / Clark Kent, Wonder Woman / Diana Prince, and Green Lantern / Hal Jordan, respectively.

References[edit]

External links[edit]

• Justice League: War at the Internet Movie Database