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DVD Review: Batman Gotham KnightA Worthy Addition to Nolan's Franchise or a Pointless Cash In?As everyone is falling over themselves to see The Dark Knight, DC unleash a Batman version of The Animatrix.
Following Chris Nolan's extremely successful re-invention of the famous comic book hero, the world has gone Batman mad and this release intends to fill in some of the gaps after Batman Begins with six interlocking animated tales of life in Gotham. But it should be warned, this DVD is definitely not for kids; it's more violent than Nolan's movies, with bloody scenes throughout, and perhaps a little darker too. A Detailed Look at the BatWhat this release offers most is a further exploration of the character as each story develops. The first two parts have an interesting premise, in that it shows The Dark Knight through the eyes of other people. The opening episode, Have I Got A Story For You, features a group of teenagers all retelling their own exaggerated version of Batman which is smart and humourous in equal parts. Cool and Calculating DeadshotThe second half is where things really come to life. The final episode in particular is brilliant and certainly wouldn't have been out of place in the 90s Animated Series (no surprising, as it was penned by one of its writers Alan Burnett). It's a shame that its cool gun-totting villain Deadshot is disposed of so quickly as he would easily make a decent secondary bad guy in a future film. The other stand-out is the action-packed In Darkness Dwells, written by one of Nolan's collaborators David Goyer, which shows the fate of Scarecrow following Begins and briefly introduces the monstrous Killer Croc. Repeating The Animatrix Mistakes Like The Animatrix, Gotham Knight ticks all the technical boxes, the Japanese directors have created some superb animation (the shots of the city are breath taking) and the voice acting is top notch, but it also shares its flaws. The main problem with The Animatrix is that each episode felt short and under-developed in order to fit them all in; Gotham Knight repeats this mistake. Also the character's appearances change episode to episode under each director, which is a little confusing; one minute Bruce Wayne is a square-jawed mountain of muscle, the next he looks like a teenager from a Japanese anime in the weakest segment, Field Test. DVD ExtrasThe DVD's sole extra, a laid back commentary track with DC's Gregory Noveck, Former Batman Editor Dennis O'Neil and Batman voice actor Kevin Conroy, is very good. Unlike most commentaries they don't really discuss what's on the screen, apart from the occasional awe at the stunning visuals, it's more like listening in on three friends chatting about a common interest. While the extremely knowledgeable Noveck does talk about the different writers and directors, a making of documentary or a look behind the scenes would really have shown the effort that went into producing each episode. A DVD Every Batman Fan Should Be WithoutHowever, for all its problems this should still worthy addition to the new Batman mythology and one which no fan should be without. There is some good storytelling and fantastic animation, it's all just too brief.
The copyright of the article DVD Review: Batman Gotham Knight in Animated Films is owned by Steven Cookson. Permission to republish DVD Review: Batman Gotham Knight in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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