It's no secret that I haven't been the biggest supporter/advocate of this DTV line since Bruce Timm stepped down over two years ago. The projects released since his departure have all been fine efforts, but were severely lacking in many areas and just seemed to be going through the motions. Outside of the few undeniable bright spots (The Flashpoint Paradox, Assault on Arkham), my interest has been slipping more and more. I keep hoping Tucker and Co. will find solid, consistent footing soon and so far this year, they seem to be doing just fine.
The most important thing I can say about this movie is that, without a shadow of a doubt, it is much, much better than Son of Batman (a movie that has only gotten worse on repeated viewings). If you can, dismiss last year's dismal opening act and approach Batman vs Robin with fresh eyes. The film is highly effective in pushing the story forward, while giving us more time to spend with some of our favourite characters. As with most of these productions, the story is rushed, thanks to both a restricted budget and truncated running time, but it gets the job done for the most part.
As the movie opens, we see Robin living up to his father's own nickname as ''world's greatest detective'', by hunting down the latest creep due to face justice (''not vengeance''). There's kids in cages, others as monsters/doll hybrids and a suitably eerie version of The Doll-Maker, who thinks he's helping the kids in his own twisted way. Basically, the usual stuff these DTV's have been trying to get away with lately. Despite much bravado from the Boy Wonder, the Doll-Maker is ultimately dealt with by a new face to the party... the mysterious and deadly Talon. Thus, Robin's curiosity is peaked and he goes on a tumultuous journey to find himself and the film throws implied sex, violence and swearing at us along the way.
The script isn't perfect, but at least J.M. DeMatteis tries to infuse the film with some humour, heart and personality, amidst all the fighting and grumpy Batman moments (Boy, did Bats give Alfred a hard time in this one). The Court of Owls weren't as creepy as they could've been, but their essence was captured pretty successfully in the adaptation process, giving it enough fresh spins to keep it interesting for us comic book readers. The one thing I was glad they wisely decided against was The Talon being Bruce's half brother... it brought the story down a notch in the comics and it would have done the same here.
The animation was simply stunning. Once again, Jay Oliva proves why he is a master in this field and turns out another great, slick looking animated feature on a ridiculous budget. You can see his fingerprints all over this one, especially with the fight choreography. The fights were wonderfully staged and highly dynamic without getting into ridiculous animé territory. There were a few moments that stretched believability when Batman staring falling from great heights and magically getting up again in seconds, but those are easily overlooked. It's the small touches, like when Batman hesitates to hug the child in the beginning of the film or when Alfred questions whether or not to put his hand on a young Bruce's shoulder, that really makes the film memorable.
The 'answer-studio' delivers again, with fluidity and punch, but one complaint I do have is the way they animate mouths and mouth flaps. It's too animé influenced for my taste. It's hard to explain, but it's a small pet peeve of mine. It's particularly noticeable in the scene where Bruce is talking to the court.
The voice cast was solid across the board, except for one weakness, and it's a significant one... Jason O' Mara. As a fellow Irishman, I should be rooting for this guy, but he simply isn't doing amazing work as The Dark Knight. He's fine, but fine shouldn't be good enough for Batman. I'm not someone who demands that Kevin Conroy voice Batman in every project WB animation produces, but if you are going to replace him, at least do it with someone that's GREAT. Andrea Romano has done this time and again with Diedrich Bader, Anthony Ruivivar and even Bruce Greenwood. So how did she manage to misjudge things this time around? I know he's slowly improving, but he still sounds lethargic and bored in his line readings. He was completely lacking in the ''Get the **** out of my cave'' bit. What should have sounded bad-ass, just sounded like a guy trying to be bad-ass. Plus, that bit at the end when he was threatening Talon sounded a little too Wolverine-like for my taste.
Oh well, maybe I'll warm up to him as time goes on, because he's here to stay.
Special shout-out to Conroy who gave a beautifully understated performance as Thomas Wayne, especially that moment in the unsettling flashback scene.
This review sounds a little more negative than I intended it to be, but I'm just pointing out niggling flaws for the most part. You may love O'Mara and love the more animé-ish direction the animation is going, in which case... great! You'll have a ball with this one. Batman vs Robin combines a fun, intriguing story with top-notch animation/direction (Thanks again, Oliva!), to give us another exciting trip to Gotham City. It's certainly a step in the right direction and if they fix a few remaining problems, produce stronger/tighter scripts and work with O'Mara more, we could have something truly special with this continuity moving forward. Certainly if the story moves in the direction I think it is (Hint: Dick's going to have a lot more to do).
It doesn't reach the dizzying heights of Wonder Woman, Under the Red Hood or The Dark Knight Returns, but Batman vs Robin deserves a place on every fan's shelf.