Batman: Assault on Arkham (DVD) – Movie Review
With Son of Batman still fresh in our minds, it’s already time for another Batman movie review. Batman: Assault on Arkham has recently been released on DVD and whilst most movies have Batman as the central character, this movie tries to put the villains first.
Batman: Assault on Arkham immediately starts off with a conflict situation between the mysterious Riddler and Amanda Waller, otherwise known as the wall. Amanda is part of the government that normal people should not know anything about and the Riddler seems to be their biggest enemy at the moment. He has something that belongs to them and they seem to be willing to do everything in order to get it back. When Batman crashes the party and dumps the Riddler back in Arkham asylum, Waller is going to take drastic measures in order to get back the information the Riddler has stolen.
With this in mind, Waller assembles Task Force X, otherwise known as the Suicide Squad. Task Force X is a secret government initiative to complete dangerous missions with the help of notorious criminals, which prove to be the perfect disposable soldiers. Shortly after Waller’s agents are rounding up the necessary criminals or outlaws in order to complete the job (This makes you wonder why Batman even exists if the government can do this in the course of one day). The team consists out of Deadshot, Harley Quinn, King Shark, Captain Boomerang, Black Spider, Killer Frost and KGBeast. The last of the list is swiftly removed when his head is blown off, after showing doubt that Waller was in control of the operation. The villains are kept under control by a small explosive device that has been implanted in their neck, in case of escape, conceit or simply at one of Waller’s whims.
When the chain of command is clear the unlikely band of warriors has to infiltrate Arkham Asylum to get back what Waller wanted back in the first place. Of course, seeing that these rogue criminals usually work on their own will provide the necessary tensions, disputes and fights. Nonetheless, they will have to work together to get through this ordeal alive and kicking.
Overall the flow of the movie leaves no time for you to sit back and relax again. You’ll find yourself watching one action scene after another, with the occasional break for some extra information about the story. You’ll constantly be on edge, which makes this movie that extra bit exciting.
Not only the action scenes get your adrenaline level up, the background music will get you pumped even more. Even when introducing the members of Task Force X, you’ll hear a fitting soundtrack for all of the characters, that simply scream for another action scene to follow.
The theme of the movie is an adult one. There’s a lot of violence in the movie, as well as some sensual scenes, that we’re not really used to in the animated universe of Batman. A fun touch, especially for the more mature Batman fans.
Not only the theme feels more adult, the animations do as well. Whilst Batman is overall a grim series, the characters seem a tad more grim as well. Animations feel very fluent and in some ways a tad more realistic, which makes the overall unrealistic plot more real. This attribute combined with the action scenes and the movie again pump up the overall thrill you’ll get by watching the movie.
Whilst the movie bears the title of ‘Batman’, the movie is more about the Batman universe. Of course Batman will star in the movie, even at certain key moments, but you’ll quickly notice that he is not the main character of this movie. Not only does this give us another perspective of the world we usually see through Bruce Wayne’s eyes, it also creates a bond with the villains you’ll see in the movie. You might even find yourself hoping some get out, even when they are in fact not your average goodie-two-shoes.
Voice acting performances again prove to be of high quality. You’ll be treated to performances by John DiMaggio (King Shark), CCH Pounder (Amanda Waller), Troy Baker (The Joker), Neil McDonough (Deadshot) and many more.
Conclusion
Batman: Assault on Arkham shows us that movies that solely revolve around heroes are not really needed to create a fun and action packed movie in the ‘superhero’ universe. The fact that the band of villains portrayed in this movie can carry the entire plot on their shoulders proves that movies such as this are a great initiative that could be explored even more. If we’re lucky, we’re might able to see a Task Force Y and Z appear. (Lame, I know.)
Batman: Assault on Arkham (DVD) - Movie Review,
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[…] a more adult audience to view their new line of animated flicks. Movies such as Son of Batman and Batman: Assault on Arkham already showed us what DC is up to nowadays and truth be told, it’s a great […]