This film, created in the style of Batman: The Animated Series, is one of the best superhero/comic book films to ever be made. It can even be said to rival or in some cases, and I'm talking to you Schumacher, far surpass the live-action films that have been made.
During a conference of crime bosses held in a Gotham City skyscraper, gangster Chuckie Sol (Dick Miller) is killed by a mysterious cloaked figure shortly after Batman (Kevin Conroy) bursts in on the meeting. Batman is blamed for the death. Councilman Arthur Reeves (Hart Bochner) tells the media that Batman is an irresponsible menace, then attends a party at the mansion of billionaire Bruce Wayne, Batman's alter ego. Reeves jokingly taunts Bruce for having allowed an old girlfriend, Andrea Beaumont (Dana Delany), to get away. In a flashback to Bruce's college days, we see him meet Andrea in a cemetery while visiting his parents' grave. Bruce has vowed to avenge his parents' murder by dedicating his life to fighting crime. He dons a mask and black ninja-styled outfit and foils an armored car robbery, but is discouraged that the criminals do not fear him. Around the same time, he begins a romance with Andrea. Eventually, Bruce decides to quit his plan on becoming a crime-fighter and proposes marriage to Andrea. However, Andrea mysteriously leaves Gotham with her father, ending her engagement to Bruce in a Dear John letter. Believing that he has lost his only chance of having a normal life, Bruce officially dons the cape and cowl and the moniker of Batman. In the present, the killer finds and kills another gangster, Buzz Bronski (John P. Ryan). Batman discovers evidence linking Andrea's father with a number of organized crime figures. The killer later targets Salvatore Valestra (Abe Vigoda), the mob boss for whom both Sol and Bronski once worked as enforcers, but is beaten to the punch by the Joker (Mark Hamill), whom Valestra had foolishly consulted for help; Batman is blamed again and has a close call with the police after a brief confrontation with the killer. Rescuing Batman in her car, Andrea explains that she and her father had been hiding in Europe, from the Valestra mob, to whom he owed a lot of money. Carl Beaumont (Stacey Keach) eventually repaid them, but that did not satisfy them. Batman believes that Andrea's father may be the killer vigilante
Some might think me a bit biased. Batman is my favorite comic book character. I am biased in the sense that I am likely to be far more critical of adaptations of Batman than I am with Superman or The Green Lantern just to name a couple. It's easy to screw up the source material however this film manages, with its dark backgrounds and gothic layout, to do the material justice while still being able to hold you in what ends up being quite a tragic and powerful film. The simplest and most central theme in the film is loss. This can be a difficult theme to pull off without feeling superficial or heavy-handed. It's a very fine line and the filmmakers walk that line beautifully and have perfect balance.
The voice-acting in the film is as close to perfect as is to be expected in I grew up watching the Batman cartoon every day after school and hearing Kevin Conroy's voice alongside the drawings of Batman. To me, and a lot of others, there is no other Batman besides him. He takes Batman to dark, deep and powerful place. By contrast his work as Bruce shows the idea of a character who wants to have happiness but can't feel it so he puts on a phony façade. Dana Delany in particular brings a reality to Andrea that is at times heartbreaking. The good Batman films and television episodes embrace the tragedy of its characters. That's what sets Batman apart from other comic book characters. Pathos with a small underpinning of hope.
★★★1/2
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