He's a global pop culture icon, the seminal billionaire playboy by day and masked vigilante and anti-hero by night whose ordeal of being orphaned by crime as a child set him on a mission to destroy evil. But what happened after Bruce Wayne's parents' murders and before he truly became Batman as we know him? These are the missing pieces which Batman: Gotham Knight tries to fill into the puzzle.
This is an anthology film consisting of six short cartoons with a strong anime feel which four Japanese animation studios teamed up to make in association with DC Comics and Warner Bros. In the first cartoon, Have I Got a Story for You, four street kids meet up at a skate park to share their stories of encountering a so-called "bat-man" earlier that day. Secondly in Crossfire, two new members of Commissioner Gordon's Major Crimes Unit, Crispus Allen and Anna Ramirez, disagree over Batman's motivations and agenda before being embroiled in a street war between feuding American and Russian gangsters. Next, in Field Test Batman tries a new invention of Lucius Fox's out which may or may not end up working too well. In Darkness Dwells, probably my favourite segment, introduces the Killer Croc in a sewer battle against the Caped Crusader. Then in Working Through Pain, Batman is given a more human face as we see him try to do just that while he reflects on his romance with a woman named Cassandra. Finally, in Deadshot he must defeat the rooftop sniper of that name whose crimes remind him of his parents' deaths.
Ever since childhood, Batman has been my favourite superhero (at age 6 I even nagged my mum for two days straight so she'd buy me a Batman doll), but for the whole decade since this film was released direct to DVD I hadn't known of it until I received it for Christmas last year. Then again, I've rarely read comics in general. Anyway, Batman: Gotham Knight is flawed but unique and stimulating. Over its 73-minute duration it does show the Dark Knight's graduation evolution in image, mood and weaponry, although I'm not sure the stories all fully interlock cohesively. However, each one features visuals as detailed and distinctive as you'd expect from a Japanese-US co-production, and each narrative is faithful to the source material for my money. I was also, initially disappointed to find the best-known villains aren't even mentioned, but I think now that choice was taken just to give the lesser-known and more contemporary ones more exposure here.
As I said, Batman: Gotham Knight has its drawbacks, mainly in its plotting. But nonetheless, it's certainly no Batman & Robin (although outdoing that is no tall order). With its non-stop action it maintains the energy and excitement adequately, it stands on its own from most other animated incarnations and its adult-oriented spirit proudly invokes Batman's dark origins without letting up. It's a fun treat that may have even deserved a theatrical release - and not just because it's a superhero movie.
No comments:
Post a Comment