Review by C.J. Bunce
Thankfully for fans of Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns
The graphic novel is broken into two parts in the film, with the arguably weakest of the two halves in this first film–all the fun of The Joker, Superman, Green Arrow and Batman on horseback is saved for Part 2, due out by year-end 2013. We begin as with the novel, a car race with Bruce Wayne at age 55 doing his best Paul Newman impression as a racecar driver. He wrecks and were he anyone else he’d have been killed. Young director Jay Oliva and writer Bob Goodman adhere closely to the Miller story, incorporating 1980s era fashion, futuristic street language (“Slice and dice, slice and dice!”), and talking head TV reporters that give us all the backstory and fill us in on all the details to amplify the plot throughout the film. This includes interviews with Lana Lang, now head of The Daily Planet.
It’s ten years since Gotham last saw the Batman. Bruce Wayne has been funding the reconstructive surgery and rehabilitation of Harvey Dent, a former mayor who turned into the psychotic villain Two-Face after an accident resulted in the loss of half his face. A gang called the Mutants are the foe, the crime element that pulls Batman out of retirement along with Dent vanishing upon release from prison. Commissioner Jim Gordon has one month before retirement. Bruce Wayne has many regrets, and in particular we hear several references to the death of Robin Jason Todd. Todd was murdered by The Joker years before in the Batman comic book series, later compiled as a trade paperback in A Death in the Family
The animated film really highlights how much of Frank Miller’s work Christopher Nolan swiped for The Dark Knight Rises
The sound work stands out–like the best of radio plays–voicing and sound effects and music come together to make this sound like a live action movie. In fact if you flip off the lights and just listen to the film it brings us that much closer to what we all want–the live action version of this story.
The color and design are ripped off the pages of Klaus Janson’s original novel artwork. The blues and gold hues of the stormy Gotham come to life, reflecting the key visual aesthetic of the graphic novel.
The Blu-Ray/DVD set includes preview of The Dark Knight Returns Part 2, including discussion with the director, producers and actors. Here are some of the features:
- Standard and high-definition versions of the feature film
- UltraViolet Digital Download and Streaming Version
- Sneak Peak at The Dark Knight Returns, Part 2, the next DC Universe Animated Original Movie
- Featurette – “Her Name is Carrie … Her Role is Robin” – An all-new featurette. Experience the role of Robin, through the eyes of a female warrior.
- Featurette – “Batman and Me: The Bob Kane Story” – A documentary comprehensively chronicling the remarkable life of the creator of Batman.
- Two bonus episodes from Batman: The Animated Series handpicked by producer Alan Burnett: Two-Face, Parts 1 and 2
- Digital Comic – Batman: The Dark Knight Returns (partial digital comic)
Part 2 is due out in late 2013. The Dark Knight Returns, Part 1