Good review, but I'm kind of an inversion of you. In the comics, I viewed the Red Hood as the Only Sane Man in the DC universe. I mean, he does have a point. How many people has Batman indirectly killed because he never took out the Joker once and for all? I'm sure it's in the triple digits now. In the movie, Red Hood becomes less sympathetic because 1. they took out his best Strawman Has A Point lines where he makes the same point about the Joker that I just made, and 2. the new subplot about breaking the Joker out of prison, which got a guard murdered. Also, once the ridiculous stuff from the comics was taken out, that also meant taking out all of Red Hood's darkly-comedic lampshading of said ridiculous stuff.
That said, I agree that this is probably the best DC animated movie so far, and I'd love to see a sequel too; ideally one that focuses on the more sypathetic aspects of The Red Hood's motives.
Dudes This was the Third best Batman Film of all time and i positively loved your review.
I'd it was So Okay Its Average. It seemed a bit like they were deliberately pushing the limits, blatantly playing Follow The Leader to The Dark Knight and Nolan's Darker And Edgier style. Hood needed more screen time - instead they gave us a ten-minute long fight with Amazo. What was the fucking point? they could've substituted Amazo with anything from drugs to guns to some completely pointless Mac Guffin to get the exact same result in a quarter of the time. And they really should've gotten rid of that pixie-boots-and-underwear costume in the flashback. Kinda ruined the realistic feel.
Brilliant performance by Demaggio, though. Didn't think anyone other than Hamill could do such a faithful job. Black Mask was hilarious; some changes from the comic version but all for the better - I hope we see him again soon in the DCAU. Ackles was...eh. Didn't really sound like Ackles, most of the time. I was kinda expecting Dean Winchester-y growling, and was disappointed.
Best DC animated movie? Definitely not. That position is still held by Mask Of The Phantasm in my book.
Tyler Durden is my bitch.
I was actually rooting for Red Hood the whole movie. Though I was a little frustrated when Red Hood "spoiler" misses his chance to kill Joker thrice.
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I thought this was actually the best Batman thing/film I've seen to make an argument for why Batman shouldn't kill the Joker because it didn't need to explicitly make it's point. It allows you to see the dangerous roads you walk with that attitude by having the Red Hood walk them, and I feel it's strengthened by having the Red Hood be hugely sympathetic all the way through. It wouldn't work if he ever did something that felt like too much of a stretch but even taking a shot at Batman and trying to blow, him Batman and the Joker up felt like a natural progression of his character.
The easiest answer for why Batman shouldn't kill the Joker though is this: Why should it be up to him? He's handed the Joker to the authorities plenty of times and they've had the opportunity to give him the chair. They know that he will kill and kill again and if anything, people in the government and police are at higher risk of being killed by the Joker than anyone. There's nothing stopping the people of Gotham/America for asking their governor/president to make an exception to the law due to dire circumstances for the Joker, but they don't. Whatever their reasoning, why is it up to Batman to tell them they're wrong when it's their own lives at risk?
Sometimes the trick to these questions is realising you're not the only person with responsibility in the world.
=D There's an invisible hottip in the second paragraph. I forgot to include the *. If corrupt officials were preventing the state from executing the Joker, then that would be an interesting dilemma. I still don't think the answer is for Batman to kill somebody, but it would become a lot more ambiguous if the people wanted Batman to kill the Joker. Maybe they should ask why none of them were stepping up themselves
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Actually made me like the character
Now, I am an enthusiastic Batman fan. That said, I'm not a big fan of the new incarnation of the Red Hood. Mostly because of who the character turns out to be, and how he was made the way he is in the comics. If you're a die-hard Batman fan, or just really observant, you can figure out who it is rather quickly.
But this film, cutting out all the silly parts of the comic that felt out of place in a Batman book, and actually providing a more... well, Batman-ish explanation, has actually made me really like the character of the Red Hood. I kind of hope DC release a sequel to this film so we can see more of him.
Spoiler-free synopsis: A new crime boss has arrived in Gotham. He calls himself the Red Hood, and he is a combination of criminal mastermind and vigilante, a Batman who has no problem with killing criminals. And as Batman attempts to find out the true identity of the well trained newcomer, the outcome will have repercussions on one of the greatest tragedies in the Dark Knight's past.
Now, without spoiling it, this is by far one, if not the best, animated films featuring Batman in a starring role. Comparisons have been made that this is the animated equivalent of "The Dark Knight." While I feel that can be a little generous, the quality of this film cannot be ignored. We have well animated chase and action sequences, and the choreography of the fights actually had my jaw on the floor and my hand on the remote control rewinding so I could see again how that sequence went.
Story-wise, this has a lot of what makes a good Batman story. What that means is it is dark and atmospheric, has its moments of humor, tragedy and drama. And like any good Batman story, it asks the question of why Batman is the way he is, and what drives him that way. While I highly recommend this film to Batman fans, I must warn parents NOT to just put this on for their small children. There are scenes of brutal violence and drug references. This is as dark as it can get while not going to an R-rated. Now that you've been warned, go and enjoy this film.