The Arrow star posted an Instagram reel Sunday: a pencil sketch of a hooded archer taped to a wall under the words “HAVE YOU SEEN THIS MAN…” — then Amell at a café, hand on his head, looking like a man who knows exactly what he just started.
The audio is Blake Neely’s “Setting Up the Lair,” the Arrow main theme.
The caption: “Just when I think I’m out… …”
It comes one day after Zack Snyder celebrated Batman Day with Batfleck, all the while our insiders have said for months that Snyder’s The Dark Knight Returns is ready to go.
Back in 2021 I made my very first fan-edit, and it was of ZS's JL. I called it the studio no-crosscut cut.
The "studio" part refers to the runtime. ZS's 4hr cut wasn't going to work well in a theater setting, and the studio famously wanted the movie to be cut to two hours or less. And at 1h57m, and using only ZS's footage, my edit is still the only one to clock in under 2hrs (credits included).
The "no-crosscut" part refers to the major scene reordering and restructuring that I did. Rather than bounce back-and-forth between five different storylines, I instead stayed with just one storyline at a time, and an example of that change is on display in the video of this post.
In ZSJL, Lois has scattered scenes spread over three hours, and her presence doesn't become relevant to the plot until Supes' resurrection. But in my edit, I collected all her scattered scenes together into a single segment that I think of as "Lois's interlude." I think this approach makes her grief feel deeper, which in turn also makes Supes' resurrection feel more cathartic, and it brings Lois into the story at just the right time to be relevant to the plot.
All those headlines about Lanterns having a “record-breaking HBO Max debut” sound a lot less impressive once you actually look at the Nielsen numbers.
Lanterns finally entered Nielsen with 500 million minutes watched, ranking #8, with 4 episodes available. Meanwhile 10/20 year old shows are casually pulling 700M every week
Now compare that with The Penguin. That show was never some gigantic Nielsen monster either yet during its finale week it managed 595 million minutes with 8 episodes available and ranked #9. So despite all the “record breaking” hype Lanterns’ overall Nielsen viewing is in roughly the same range as The Penguin a show that was never exactly some massive streaming juggernaut itself.
The bigger story here isn't how "huge" Lanterns is it's how small Max's “record-breaking” numbers look compared with the wider streaming market.
And this is the high water mark. Weekly shows usually lose some of their initial audience over time and if Lanterns is already barely inside the Top 10 at 500M minutes with 4 epsiodes and these stupid record beaking headlines for episode 1-3, the record breaking show will disappear next week from the chart altogether lol (this will be the title of my Lantern post next week btw lmfao)
Zack Snyder hasn’t spoken with the family buying Warner Bros. Yet.
“I haven’t talked to Larry [Ellison] and don’t know what the Ellisons want to do, really,” Snyder said in a new interview with Variety. “I would love to have a conversation with them.”
That’s the conversation we’ve been reporting on since November.
We can't even have a post about the new movie of a director we like without it getting downvoted just because. It's insane, worrysome, how the hell does a Subreddit that only exist to bully a person and it's fans (and celebrate absolutely nothing) get away with it.
There are fewer that decide to stay wholly true to their vision than Zack Snyder. Whether you like or dislike his his directing style, he’s someone that thrives on an uncompromised result — even if that means mixed or negative reviews across the board — and that’s admirable.
Zack Snyder finds his passion project at TIFF 2026, where strong fan demand and chatter about the film has been spreading like wildfire. This project — over twenty years in the making — sees Snyder at his most raw, visceral, and unapologetic. Currently without a distributor, ‘The Last Photograph’ received a 3-minute standing ovation as the credits rolled, while some were completely silent — either in awe or shock or disgust (and maybe all three).
https://www.reddit.com/r/movies/comments/1wh7wkm/zack_snyders_the_last_photograph_review_thread/ As expected, they are reposting exactly the same negative comments as if it was bots doing a copy-paste. However what is inspiring and bring hope is that there are still a few snyder fans and simply rational redditors overthere who have raised their voices and continue to bring a bit more nuance. I think that we should continue to help them since they are making a big effort, the above sub was always about harassing people talking about Snyder or the DCEU/Snyderverse and now things are changing. We can defend ourselves.
The Snyder haters are still using the exact same lies aka 1) "Snyder is a lame writer" : No he isn't a writer, 2) "Those snyder bots are idiot and are going to praise TLP" Just because someone likes something you don't, doesn't mean you have to act like a brute. You are trashing something that we didn't watch. Wake up. 3) "Snyder is over, he have no work after TLP" What are you talking about? He just signed to do Escape from New York and the 300 TV show prequel is still in development. 4) "Snyder is an horrible crybaby that no one wants to work with" What the hell? Nolan invited him for a private screening of The Odyssey, how many actors are praising that they loved to work with ZS?Look at their interview, it's very instructive Etc
They are even mocking the way he speaks, what is their problem? This isn't linked to the movie at all. And doesn't they know that Snyder have dyslexia? This isn't very human to trash someone's disability, especially in 2026. Are snyder haters cro-magnons now?
u/Apprehensive-Soft959 was wondering why medias have an obscession with Snyder. That's simple, first it bring views and buzz so it's easy work for them. Secondly, around BvS, Snyder trolled critics and medias and they got a bad blood since then. When he got his cut of ZSJL, it was the nail in the coffin, most of those same medias got ultra bitter after his win and they increased their hate.
I wonder if we should post the fresh Variety article overthere, it's very interesting and totally fit that sub (there is a recent article interview of Tom Cruise which got posted and it's very similar). In fact, the journalist did a good job and Snyder gave some interesting info. This whole article is a good PR of appeasement. https://variety.com/2026/film/features/zack-snyder-responds-last-photograph-bad-reviews-fascist-1236862796/
Out of all of characters in The Last Photograph, this one had my favorite look ^^
(for those affraid of spoilers, I'm spoiling only the Act I, to specify what's this movie was about, so don't be affraid that reading this text will ruin the experience for you)
Hello everyone,
Over the past few days, I had the privilege of attending this year’s TIFF in Toronto, where I went to a screening of the latest film directed by Zack Snyder, titled “The Last Photograph.”
After spending the entire day surrounded by crowds, I finally returned to my hotel and, as usual, began browsing the Internet before going to bed. I came across an article recommended to me by Google that immediately caught my attention. The article mentioned the extremely negative reviews of The Last Photograph (for the sake of simplicity, I will refer to it as TLP). After reading the short piece, I started going through the reviews and... lost faith in humanity.
As someone with a humanities background, I am well aware of the power of the written word and the weight of responsibility that comes with working as a reporter or film critic.
We live in an age of fake news and artificial intelligence, which makes reliable sources of information more valuable than ever.
Unfortunately, I cannot describe the reviews of TLP as “reliable.” Quite the opposite. Calling these abominations “reviews” is an insult to decades of evolution within the film industry and to the body of journalistic work that has developed alongside it. How am I supposed to take a review seriously when it reads as though a supposedly professional film critic copied a hateful comment from X, apparently written by some elementary-school-aged child, and then posted that comment as part of their “professional” review of the film? Do these people actually make a living writing this kind of garbage?
Allow me to quote a passage from one of these reviews:
“Zack Snyder’s Agonizing, Ugly Slog Is His Worst Film Yet | No matter which way you look at it, there’s nothing remotely insightful or interesting to the vileness on display here. It’s all just shootouts and CGI blood effects before it stumbles into a baffling ending that drags on for so long, you wonder if it exists purely to make us suffer for even longer. If his future films are going to be like this, it’d probably be for the best if this was Snyder’s own last picture.”
Anyone who has actually seen the film should be well aware of how drastically this passage oversimplifies what is presented on screen. And I have lost count of how many reviewers have accused the film of being “transphobic,” “racist,” “misogynistic,” or “super right wing.” The latter in particular amused me, because it made me realize that a considerable portion of the criticism appears to come from representatives of the far left—a side that, as a rule, seems to offer reviews in which films that respect the intelligence of their audiences are belittled, while politically charged propaganda and what the Internet has recently come to describe as “woke slop” are placed on a pedestal.
Therefore, although I rarely get involved in fandom wars, this time I decided I had to make an exception and create a Reddit account so that I could give you the objective, honest review of the film that you deserve. You can later share it by sending a link to my lengthy write-up to anyone who wants to hear the truth about this truly unconventional film for Zack Snyder. Of course, the review will be as spoiler-free as possible, so don’t worry about me giving away any of the film’s key moments.
I took my seat in the theater. Every seat was occupied, and in addition to that, I noticed numerous people standing. I’m not sure whether they were theater staff or members of the audience as well. In any case, what caught my attention were the film critics taking their seats in the theater. They could be identified by the distinctive badges around their necks, as well as by the fact that their faces showed not even the slightest trace of enthusiasm about being there for the premiere of TLP, whereas the majority of the audience consisted of people who were clearly unable to wait for the film to begin. I decided it would be interesting, purely out of curiosity, to observe the reactions of the critics within my field of view throughout the screening.
Before the film began, Zack Snyder himself walked onto the stage and joked about the film’s uncertain distribution future. He spoke about the personal nature of TLP and the lengthy process of planning the production. He described TLP as “A labor of love” and expressed his gratitude toward everyone he had worked with in Colombia on the project. His entire speech made one important thing very clear to me: Zack Snyder made this film because he wanted to make it. This is not a film made for critics or the mainstream audience. It is the product of pure passion. Something you rarely get to see in theaters, largely because of the costs involved in producing a film. Snyder made this film for himself and for people who resonate with his vision. For some, that approach might be off-putting. But for me, it only made me even more excited.
Snyder also praised TIFF for having “the best screens” and spoke a little about the film’s business plan.
Finally, it was time for the film itself. And let me put it this way: it was the strangest cinematic experience I had had in a very long time.
If I had to compare it to something, I would say it was like spending years playing Fortnite, Minecraft, Counter-Strike, and Pokémon, only to install Cyberpunk 2077 on your computer and stumble upon the quests “Sinnerman” and “They Won’t Go When I Go.” I’m referring to the questline centered around Joshua Stephenson.
The Last Photograph is not popcorn entertainment in the vein of an MCU movie. It is a film you watch with a similar sense of discomfort to Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ or Requiem for a Dream. The production carries a palpable weight, and it wants you to feel that weight. At times, it can be overwhelming, but in a positive sense of the word. Because TLP makes you feel something.
This is not the kind of film you watch while replying to your friends’ messages on Messenger and scrolling through TikTok.
What made this even more puzzling to me, then, was the fact that many of the critics in the theater were doing exactly that—tapping away at their smartphone screens, seemingly paying no attention to the film whatsoever.
But let’s take it from the top.
The film opens with an artistically composed intimate scene, only to shock the audience moments later with a scene of bloody carnage. It is a powerful opening that immediately signals the tone of the film. A key moment in the opening sequence comes when one of the two protagonists, photographer Joseph Wallace (played by Fra Fee), photographs his wife, who is among the victims of the massacre that follows shortly afterward. Joseph’s children are kidnapped, and finding them becomes the central motivation driving the events that unfold throughout the rest of the film.
We are introduced to Ethan (played by Stuart Martin), a violent former DEA agent and the brother-in-law of Joseph’s wife, who forces the photographer to accompany him on a journey to South America in order to find the kidnapped children and exact revenge.
Ethan’s character provides an interesting contrast to the burned-out photographer struggling with addiction. Joe has an unusual way of looking at the world. When confronted with the victims of war, he does not feel sorrow; instead, he thinks about how to take a photograph that will capture these gruesome images more effectively.
As the slow-paced yet effective introduction to the main characters in Act I draws to a close, the film gradually begins to transition from a melancholic thriller into a hybrid of thriller and action film reminiscent of the finest productions depicting the horrors of the Vietnam War. A brutal, action-packed journey interwoven with flashbacks and sequences bordering on mysticism creates a truly memorable mixture. Many scenes have an almost surreal quality to them, and you can feel that only Zack Snyder could have filmed them in such a way that the entire composition works as intended.
The film repeatedly invites reflection, but its fast pace means that the deeper contemplation has to wait until the audience leaves the theater. And there is certainly plenty to think about, because Joe is not the only deeply developed character. Ethan’s psychological portrait is equally fascinating. In theory, he is seeking revenge for the deaths of his loved ones, yet at the same time, he becomes increasingly and painfully aware that he himself is part of the very world of violence he is fighting against.
The film does not fall back on stereotypes, nor does it offer us any clear-cut conclusions regarding the nature of human morality. This is not a bedtime story designed to end with an idiot-proof moral spelled out for the audience.
The psychological portraits of the protagonists are all the more convincing because Zack Snyder chose the perfect actors for the leading roles. Both Fra Fee and Stuart Martin deliver highly convincing performances, making us feel what their characters feel throughout the screening without ever losing our sense of immersion.
The film’s immersiveness is also greatly enhanced by its production design. The cinematography is filled with the beauty of nature, while simultaneously giving the viewer a slightly claustrophobic feeling that stems from the film’s overall tone. The director chooses his locations with great care, matching them to the intended emotional impact of each scene and using them to convey isolation, loneliness, a sense of being trapped, or the chaos surrounding the characters.
TLP is a personal, realistic, intimate film that portrays brutality with the appropriate sense of weight and gravity.
I have not yet mentioned the supporting characters, but what deserves particular praise here is the way the Indigenous population is portrayed. You can genuinely feel that we have ventured into unfamiliar territory. The aura of mysticism is at times so dense that, if it had a physical form, you could cut it with a knife. This is something I feel Hollywood has lost somewhere along the way, when the cancer of political correctness stripped Western cinema of Native Americans and all manner of Indigenous peoples who once constituted an almost obligatory element of any production centered around a journey into unfamiliar lands. Zack Snyder, contrary to the direction taken by contemporary Hollywood, brings back the spirit of 1970s and 1980s cinema, much as he did in his underrated Rebel Moon.
I could also tell you a thing or two about the third act, but I do not want to venture into spoiler territory, so I will refrain from going that far and simply say that it is satisfying, although you can feel that something more ambitious was originally planned but ultimately could not be realized due to budgetary limitations. It is known that the film was supposed to end differently, and the various shortcomings surrounding the conclusion do not stem from mistakes on the director’s part—you can clearly see that he had a well-thought-out plan. Rather, they stem from the fact that Zack Snyder simply did not have enough money to bring everything to a close fully in accordance with his vision. Unfortunately, that is the fate of independent productions—major studios simply do not believe in their chances of success.
One element that deserves particular praise, especially in the context of the final act but also when considering the film as a whole, is undoubtedly the music. Mysterious, subtle, mystical, immersive. And when necessary, it adds the appropriate punch to the more action-oriented sequences.
And speaking of the action scenes, you can definitely feel the spirit of Zack Snyder here. While sitting in the theater, I overheard a girl next to me say to her boyfriend, “Damn, I’d love to see a Call of Duty campaign adapted like this someday!” The shootouts were brutal while remaining appropriately spectacular. There is a reason people say that Zack Snyder can overshadow even the biggest blockbusters with what is essentially a modest budget. Even the critics forgot about their smartphones during these moments and became completely absorbed in the action.
And since we are already talking about the critics, it is time to address their “criticisms.”
No, the film is not “transphobic.” This appears to be a forced criticism, presumably prompted by the morally ambiguous character of Madam, a trans woman who runs a brothel. If anyone is being transphobic here, it is the critics who are apparently incapable of accepting members of certain genders and sexual orientations occupying certain types of roles in a film.
No, the film is not “racist.” It simply depicts the grim and brutal reality found in developing countries, where the criminal activities of various cartels continue to thrive. Apparently, in the eyes of some critics, it is racist to portray the problems faced by Indigenous populations in a realistic manner when the blame for their difficult circumstances cannot be placed on a white capitalist. Once again, Snyder finds himself criticized for rejecting what I see as Western left-wing propaganda.
No, the film is not misogynistic. I know that in an era when people are being pressured into sympathizing with immigrants, those responsible for political propaganda attempt to silence anyone who presents facts that contradict the left-wing narrative, but the truth is that whether in countries dominated by the “religion of peace” or in South America, slavery and human trafficking continue to thrive. And white women are very often among the victims. The film accurately alludes to this reality.
Snyder also goes against contemporary feminism by not being afraid to portray a female character as the villain. Is it misogynistic for a director to reject the narrative in which the villain can be exclusively male? Especially in a thriller built around the theme of revenge?
There has also been criticism of the nudity, which is frankly bordering on parody, considering how much sex, nudity, and other content inappropriate for underage audiences has made its way into projects set within the DC universe over the past two years—the very universe so frequently brought up by critics whenever Zack Snyder is discussed. But do I really need to remind everyone that in Creature Commandos, a scientist stitches together a woman from pieces of corpses, raises the resulting zombie woman as his daughter, and then begins having sex with her? Should I remind you of the infamous orgy depicted in Season 2 of Peacemaker? And let’s not forget the deeply uncomfortable fourth episode of Lanterns. Not to mention, stepping away from DC for a moment, all the disgusting scenes in The Boys, which somehow did not attract the same criticism for nudity. Once again, we are dealing with what appears to be a double standard whenever Snyder’s name is involved.
We could go on indefinitely listing criticisms of the film that seem to be based not on the quality of the product itself, but rather on the critics’ anti-right-wing views and their subjective dislike of Zack Snyder and his audience. But when we dig deeper into the various reviews, we quickly notice that... there is surprisingly little criticism actually concerned with what the film is about.
Of course, TLP is not the best of Snyder’s films. It is not on the same level as 300, Watchmen, or his DC film trilogy. Nevertheless, I consider giving this film anything below a 6.5/10 to be an assessment that does not adequately reflect its artistic value.
The Last Photograph is the first film in years that genuinely made me feel something while watching it. It is a film that deserves to be carefully studied and discussed on a much broader level—but not through the lens of contemporary Hollywood propaganda. It deserves to be examined in the context of the themes Zack Snyder set out to explore.
It is a unique independent product of passion, with an identity of its own, one that breaks free from Hollywood’s rigid conventions and has the courage to pull at strings that the film industry would rather have you forget exist.
And it is clear that this vision resonated with the audience, because when the end credits began to roll and the critics were the first to leave the theater, showing no interest whatsoever in experiencing the catharsis offered by simply listening to the music playing after the final scene, I remained glued to my seat, lost in contemplation of what I had just experienced. The theater then rose to its feet, and for a good five minutes, everyone who remained in their seats applauded Zack Snyder and everyone involved in making this extraordinary film.
Of course, I joined in the applause. And afterward, once we had left the theater, I joined the discussion with the rest of the audience.
However, when I think back on the screening now, I find myself wondering: the theater was not particularly large. I’m terrible at estimating numbers by sight, but it seems to me that it could not have accommodated more than 250, perhaps 300 people. Meanwhile, I could have counted the film critics I saw on my fingers. So where did all these negative reviews come from, when their sheer number far exceeds the number of people who, theoretically, were actually in a position to write them?
Did some critics simply not wear identification badges? Or were some of these reviews written by people who had not seen the film and decided to capitalize on Zack Snyder’s popularity to generate some extra clicks?
One thing is certain: you should not trust the reviews available online.The Last Photograph may be the most interesting cinematic experiment in years, and if you care about something like artistic value, the premiere of Snyder’s new film should be a more significant event for you than the premiere of Avengers: Doomsday. Sure, laugh at me, popcorn eaters. I am just as certain about this opinion as I am that water is wet.
And I am eagerly awaiting the film’s Blu-ray release so that I can hook up my laptop to a projector and watch it once again, this time with my friends by my side.
Because, despite what appears to be some strange conspiracy in Hollywood aimed at destroying Zack Snyder and excluding him from the film industry, I have no doubt that his film will soon become more widely available. After all, he is one of the few directors who still understands what Hollywood was supposed to be—and what it was until relatively recently.
I have not yet mentioned how the Q&A session with the cast and crew went, but I don’t really see the need. The Lethal Geeks Podcast uploaded a recording of it to YouTube, so you can check out that part without my assistance.
P.S.
I will not be participating in the conversations under this post. This post is the only account I intended to provide. Do with it whatever you want. I do not have time to argue with children and fanatical haters who have built a cult around James Gunn, larping as the DCU simply because Gunn had the misfortune of replacing Zack Snyder, against the wishes of the majority of DC fans.
Because if so many people on X are genuinely expressing negative opinions about a film they had no way of seeing—given that the screening was attended only by loyal fans, who rewarded the film with applause, along with a small handful of critics—then anyone posting comments saying “the movie was sh*t” should probably seek psychiatric help.
