Batman. He is perhaps the greatest super-hero of all time. Whether you like your Batman cheesy and campy like the Adam West show from the 60s or the whimsical, yet dark nature like the Tim Burton films, I think we can all agree on one thing. Batman has been through many changes throughout the years, whether they are reboots or reinterpretations or TV shows displaying different versions of the Dark Knight, my personal favorite being the hit Batman: The Animated Series from the 90s. But just recently, I got to see an awesome direct-to-video film called Batman: Under The Red Hood. Does it hold a candle to such Bat-masterpieces like The Dark Knight, well, I'll tell you.
Like I said before, I loved Batman: The Animated Series from the 90s (Batman Beyond was pretty good as well) and I was really impressed with the animation of this film, really standard and nonchalant, but overall keeping the essence and feeling of the entire film, particularly during fight scenes. There were also times when I thought the animation looked exactly like the animation of the 90s show, but overall, the film had a unique style of animation that really made it stand out from most Batman flicks. The voice acting was also something to rave about. John DiMaggio did a fantastic job voicing the Joker, really reminiscent of Mark Hamill's voice of the character from the 90s show, but at the same time, much darker and deep. Bruce Greenwood also did well as Batman, very casual but intimidating.
The story of the film was very well written, filled with many climaxes and suspense to make your head spin. I was really suckered into the character development, as well as Batman's relationship with the villains. I was also surprised to see the original Robin, Dick Grayson in this film, now under the well-known ego of Nightwing and he even helps Batman out in a few great fight scenes. There was also a lot of references to some of Batman's most famous comic books, even some of the Silver Age. And whether you like Batman in black or blue, he always knows how to give us a good fight scene, and the fight scenes in this film were great, proving that even though the film is animated, it can still look good and sometimes look like reality. The fight scenes in this film make the fight scenes in that Last Airbender movie look like a kindergarten school play.
Overall, the film was pretty darn good. If you are looking for a good animated Batman film, but don't know where to start, look no further then Batman: Under The Red Hood. Out of 5 stars, I will give this film a 4.5 because there were a couple stiff ends, but they are very minor, but in the end, Under The Red Hood should satisfy any long time Batman fan. It might even be better than The Dark Knight! Nah, just kidding. It's on par with The Dark Knight in my opinion, and I strongly recommend it if you are a fan of the 90s show. Now if only they could get Mr. Freeze to stop saying all those ice related puns!
Oh and there was also a Jonah Hex short, but I don't really care that much for Jonah Hex if you know what I mean.
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