Director: Jay Oliva
Distributor: Warner Bros Home Entertainment
Duration: 77 minutes
Batman vs. Robin (DVD) – Movie Review
The DC universe is getting bombarded with more and more animated movie releases and this makes us very happy campers. With many titles still in development, we now have another short Batman movie to quench our thirst for the time being. Batman vs. Robin will test the boundaries of a father and son bond. Take cover, fists will go flying very soon.
Damian Wayne (Stuart Allan), Bruce’s son (Jason O’Mara), who was trained by the legendary assassin Ra’s al Ghul himself has been living with his father for a short while and it seems there’s still a lot of tension between them. When Damian was still a part of the League of Assassins, he was trained to mercilessly kill his prey to achieve victory. His father Bruce, on the other hand, believes one should deliver criminals to the right authorities to see justice served.
When Damian sneaks out as Robin, Batman’s sidekick, to hunt down the ‘Dollmaker’, a psychopath who abuses children to make them his own little hellish dolls, he is once again confronted with the entire no-killing image Batman is to uphold. As conflicted as Damian is, he lets the Dollmaker (‘Weird Al’ Yankovic) live, but apparently his choice was not respected by everyone. A mysterious figure, Talon (Jeremy Sisto), appears and finishes the job for Robin. Apparently Talon is associated with the legendary ‘Court of Owls’, who perform from the shadows to form the world to their image.
Talon later offers Damian the choice of following him, to let out his true potential as an assassin, or to remain with Bruce and walk the path of law and order. Whilst Damian is trying to find the difference between right or wrong, Bruce also discovers that the Court of Owls might actually exist and he tries to dig deeper into the matter as well.
Overall the plot might sound more basic than it really is. You’ll truly see and feel the emotions of both Bruce and Damian who try to convince the other side that what they’re doing is the right thing to do. The movie finds the right balance between action scenes and parts that provide you with enough information to empower the story value.
Even though the movie itself has a rating that allows viewers from six years and up to watch the movie, it actually feels a bit too brutal to allow a too young audience to watch the movie. A lot of blood gets splattered around, limbs get removed and an overall dark and creepy vibe surrounds the entire movie. Don’t get me wrong, this makes the movie a lot better, more grim and way more convincing, as it shows that the life of a superhero is filled with hard choices, but the plot would probably be too hard and brutal for children to actually comprehend.
Animation wise Batman vs. Robin is simply outstanding with hardly any inconsistencies or scenes that appear to have less details to them. Action scenes are very fluent, sceneries always go well with the situation and characters look appealing. The only issue that should be mentioned is that many of the faces look quite alike but it never becomes really bothersome.
Acting performances are top notch, it’s clear that Jason O’Mara is getting used to his role as the new animated Batman and it’s already becoming hard to imagine another actor. (I guess this might be considered blasphemy according to some readers.) The young Stuart Allan puts down a convincing angry-ish Robin that is filled with conflicts. The cameo of ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic was actually a very subtle one, making it even more fun if you see his name pop up later in the credits.
Conclusion
Batman vs. Robin is everything Son of Batman missed. The overall vibe is quite grim but it is supported by great animations and qualitative acting performances. It feels as if everything was done to ensure the viewer would receive a great storyline with the fitting ‘shell’. Well worth the watch if you’re a fan of the DC Universe.
Batman vs. Robin (DVD) - Movie Review,1 Comment
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Nananananan Batman!
Not a kids movie, lots of good action !