Batman: Gotham Knight
Anime. Batman. KEVIN CONROY. What more could a fangirl ask for?
Yesterday I got and watched the movie Batman: Gotham Knight, the first ever PG-13 animated Batman movie (well, actually that would be the uncut version of Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker), but whatever). What makes Gotham Knight unique is the fact is actually a series of six shorts, not a complete movie, similar to The Animatrix from 2003. The difference between the two is while Animatrix had several separate stories, the segments of Gotham Knight are actually interlocking with each story one flowing into the other - not to say that they can't be watched individually.
As I said, there are six shorts that make up Gotham Knight: Have I Got a Story For You, Crossfire, Field Test, In Darkness Dwells, Working Through Pain, and Deadshot. Right off the bat (oh man, I just noticed that pun!), I must say that all six have their own unique touch and style, and none of them resemble each other in the least. This makes watching the movie and interesting experience as it is constantly changing throughout.
The Shorts:
Have I Got a Story For You: This is the opening sequence, and while it's not my favorite, it was definitely the right choice as an opener. The character design is downright bizarre and automatically draws in the viewer, making them think: "Okay, this is not your average movie." The story was solid, even though it is basically identical to the storyline of the Batman: The Animated Series episode, Legends of the Dark Knight (which is included on the bonus disk). However, my favorite part of the episode wasn't the characters or even the story - it was the background. The scenery was fucking gorgeous, and Gotham City has never been - and probably never will be again - animated that beautifully. It was unlike any Gotham ever seen before, and was probably my favorite out of them all. Though definitely Gotham, it doesn't seem like it could be a real city; it was more like something out of a dream. Anyway, the strange style and tone of this sequence can probably be explained to be a byproduct of the mind of its director, Shojiro Nishimi, who worked as an animator on a variety of projects such as the highly acclaimed Akira, the second Case Closed (Detective Conan) movie, and, randomly, Tiny Toon Adventure: How I Spent My Summer Vacation. However, if you've ever seen the movie Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland, then you'll recognize this director's influence (Little Nemo, by the way, is the most fucked up, scary kid's movie that I have EVER seen). What I liked (beside the breath-taking backgrounds) was that it was like several stories within a story, and they all had a different feel. The only thing that bugged me about Have I Got a Story For You was the way the kids said "Yo" and "Sick!" every five seconds. True they were supposed to be skater punks, but it was a little ridiculous. There also wasn't much Batman in this segment. All in all this is way superior to its half-hour counterpart and is definitely worth watching.
Crossfire: While not as out-there as the previous segment, this one has its high points too. This one takes it down a little after the high from Have I Got a Story For You, so the animation is not that crazy, though there's heavy use of shadow which is kinda nifty. The voicing was much better in this one, and despite the lack of Batman, I did enjoy watching a story about two minor characters. The big part of this segment is the shootout at the end which was totally bad-ass. We got guys dropping off like flies with two cops caught in the middle, which was totally awesome. My absolute favorite part of this episode though is right after the end of the firefight where there is this totally cool shot of Batman walking out of the flames of the wreckage of a car like some demon out of the mouth of hell. It made me shiver, and while it was in delight, if I was the guy watching him I would have been scared shitless. Unfortunately, I can't say much about the director, Futoshi Higashide, as I have never seen any of his work (as an animator), which includes Air: The Motion Picture, Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack, and the second Project A-ko movie (all of which I've heard of, but never seen), but he does a fine job with what he was given, and though its nowhere near my favorite sequence, it's certainly not worst. Nothing in particular bothered me except, as I said, lack of Batman.
Field Test: I can sum this segment up with two words: Pretty Batman. Or, to be more accurate, Pretty Bruce Wayne. My inner otaku had a field day with this one, and, admittedly, the uber-bishounen Bruce Wayne is the only thing I could really focus on. I was squealing every five seconds and wanted to jump him every two. The story was kind of lame but not bad or great, so in many ways this was the weakest segment of them all. However, this had something that the rest of sequences lacked - a classic, fangirl-happy anime appeal. This one, unlike a lot of the others, just felt lie good ol' fashion anime episode - something that some people might not appreciate, but for someone like me who's been out of the anime-loop for a while, does. This might have to do with the director, Hiroshi Morioka, who worked on Tsubasa Chronicle, .hack//Legend of Twilight, and .hack//SIGN, which are series as opposed to movies, unlike our previous two directors. All and all, I liked this segment not as a movie lover, but as a fangirl. Besides the weak story, the only thing that annoyed me was the design of the batsuit. It just looked... weird. And wrong.
In Darkness Dwells: This is my second-favorite episode for two reasons - one, we get some actual Rouges Gallery villains, and two, we got some real fighting in it. I liked this one because we finally got to get down and dirty - literally. This one felt like a classic Batman story: a little detective work, a little hanging out with Gordon, a little ass kicking, and a little rescue work. Out of all of the sequences this one is probably the one that Batman fans will like the most. Our Rogues Gallery appearances were made by Killer Croc and the Scarecrow, respectively. I hated Killer Croc's design because he very much did not resemble a crocodile. Like at all. He was big, ugly, and scary - but not a big, ugly, scary crocodile. Plus, the fight was way too short to me - though Croc got a few good hits in, the fight was over too fast. The Scarecrow, on the other hand, I adored - his design was perfect and was everything it should have been in the first animated Batman series. He and Bats didn't exactly get a fight scene, but that's too be expected, as Scarecrow is not a fighter. Another upside of this episode was we got to really see some nice Gordon-Batman interaction, which is nice. People seem to forget that Batman gets away with a lot of his crap because he's pals with Gordon. The director is Yasuhiro Aoki who's work as an animator include Ah! My Goddess!: The Movie, Neon Genesis Evangelion, and the Sailor Moon R movie (the best of the three Sailor Moon movies, FYI). He also worked on a segment of The Animatrix. This is the first time I've felt the need to mention the studio, Madhouse, if only because a huge number of popular and great anime were produced by these people, including (but not limited to): Cardcaptor Sakura, Chobits, Death Note (actually not one of my faves, but everyone knows it), Last Order: Final Fantasy VII, Tokyo Babylon, Trigun, and X. PLUS the movies Metropolis, Millennium Actress, Paprika, and Perfect Blue. My only regret was that this segment was too short - they tried to do too much but didn't have enough time.
Working Through Pain: This is hands down my favorite sequence. It follows the previous segment more closely than the others, taking place only minutes later. In my opinion, this one has the most solid story out of all of them and gives Bruce the strongest characterization. Primarily flashback sequences, this isn't an all-action all the time piece, but is by no means slow. It gives Bruce a little more background in his training, specifically how to deal with pain - physically and emotionally. The character introduced for the story is utilized perfectly and for the few minutes that you see her, you get attached. You feel bad for everyone even though nobody dies or even really gets hurt - it is emotionally touching in a way the other sequences aren't. And even though the story is mainly focused on the flashbacks, the non-flashback moments are good too, even though it is almost all movement and there is basically no dialog. The best part, however is the end, not to give anything away, but Alfred had to go pick up Batman who's down in the sewers basically sitting in a trash heap pulling out discarded guns. When Alfred pulls away the grate and sticks his hand down and asks for Bruce's hand, Bruce looks up with these big eyes and an armful of guns and simply says: "I can't." I almost died - the look in his eyes was perfect, and he just looked kind of helpless. I didn't think I could love this segment anymore until the end - my heart just exploded. The director, Toshiyuki Kubooka, has worked on Gundam 0080: A War in the Pocket, Nadia: The Secret of the Blue Water, and the second and third Project A-ko movies. This is the only segment that doesn't really have anything wrong with it.
Deadshot: Naturally, following my favorite segment is my least favorite segment. Again, while nothing was particularly wrong with it, it simply did not strike my fancy. While we once again get a visit from a real Batman villain, it wasn't enough to save this one for me. Deadshot's sniping was pretty cool though, especially his first shot that introduces him. However, for being the greatest shot in the world, he got brought down pretty damn quick. For an international assassin, it's pretty odd that he only had one freaking gun on him. Seriously, there was hardly a fight. What really pissed me off though, was the end. Deadshot begs for his life - begs! - which is completely out of character for him. For those who don't know, Deadshot is one of those guys begging for death but doesn't want to kill himself. Instead, his costume literally has a target on it because he's hoping some day someone will finally manage to shoot him dead. Does him begging for his life make any sense? The story overall was also a bit flimsy, maybe even more so than Field Test and didn't quite fit in with the rest of the pack. This might be explained with the fact that the director, Jong-Sik Nam, also directed He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (okay, to be fair I've never actually scene He-Man, but still). So to sum up, my irritation was really mostly with the portrayal of Deadshot, but that might be the writer's fault more than the director's.
My Final Thoughts:
Overall I adored Gotham Knight. As an anime and comic book fan, I couldn't ask for any more. The real treat though was Kevin Conroy reprising his role as the Dark Knight - he was spectacular the whole way through (there is a reason why he voiced Batman for 15 years). But despite the orgasmic sound that is Kevin Conroy's voice (he can sing! Did you know he can sing?) I believe the next time I watch this movie, it'll be in Japanese. Though only really noticeable in the first two segments, the voices not matching the mouth movements gets annoying in a few places.
Rankings:
Yesterday I got and watched the movie Batman: Gotham Knight, the first ever PG-13 animated Batman movie (well, actually that would be the uncut version of Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker), but whatever). What makes Gotham Knight unique is the fact is actually a series of six shorts, not a complete movie, similar to The Animatrix from 2003. The difference between the two is while Animatrix had several separate stories, the segments of Gotham Knight are actually interlocking with each story one flowing into the other - not to say that they can't be watched individually.
As I said, there are six shorts that make up Gotham Knight: Have I Got a Story For You, Crossfire, Field Test, In Darkness Dwells, Working Through Pain, and Deadshot. Right off the bat (oh man, I just noticed that pun!), I must say that all six have their own unique touch and style, and none of them resemble each other in the least. This makes watching the movie and interesting experience as it is constantly changing throughout.
The Shorts:
Have I Got a Story For You: This is the opening sequence, and while it's not my favorite, it was definitely the right choice as an opener. The character design is downright bizarre and automatically draws in the viewer, making them think: "Okay, this is not your average movie." The story was solid, even though it is basically identical to the storyline of the Batman: The Animated Series episode, Legends of the Dark Knight (which is included on the bonus disk). However, my favorite part of the episode wasn't the characters or even the story - it was the background. The scenery was fucking gorgeous, and Gotham City has never been - and probably never will be again - animated that beautifully. It was unlike any Gotham ever seen before, and was probably my favorite out of them all. Though definitely Gotham, it doesn't seem like it could be a real city; it was more like something out of a dream. Anyway, the strange style and tone of this sequence can probably be explained to be a byproduct of the mind of its director, Shojiro Nishimi, who worked as an animator on a variety of projects such as the highly acclaimed Akira, the second Case Closed (Detective Conan) movie, and, randomly, Tiny Toon Adventure: How I Spent My Summer Vacation. However, if you've ever seen the movie Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland, then you'll recognize this director's influence (Little Nemo, by the way, is the most fucked up, scary kid's movie that I have EVER seen). What I liked (beside the breath-taking backgrounds) was that it was like several stories within a story, and they all had a different feel. The only thing that bugged me about Have I Got a Story For You was the way the kids said "Yo" and "Sick!" every five seconds. True they were supposed to be skater punks, but it was a little ridiculous. There also wasn't much Batman in this segment. All in all this is way superior to its half-hour counterpart and is definitely worth watching.
Crossfire: While not as out-there as the previous segment, this one has its high points too. This one takes it down a little after the high from Have I Got a Story For You, so the animation is not that crazy, though there's heavy use of shadow which is kinda nifty. The voicing was much better in this one, and despite the lack of Batman, I did enjoy watching a story about two minor characters. The big part of this segment is the shootout at the end which was totally bad-ass. We got guys dropping off like flies with two cops caught in the middle, which was totally awesome. My absolute favorite part of this episode though is right after the end of the firefight where there is this totally cool shot of Batman walking out of the flames of the wreckage of a car like some demon out of the mouth of hell. It made me shiver, and while it was in delight, if I was the guy watching him I would have been scared shitless. Unfortunately, I can't say much about the director, Futoshi Higashide, as I have never seen any of his work (as an animator), which includes Air: The Motion Picture, Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack, and the second Project A-ko movie (all of which I've heard of, but never seen), but he does a fine job with what he was given, and though its nowhere near my favorite sequence, it's certainly not worst. Nothing in particular bothered me except, as I said, lack of Batman.
Field Test: I can sum this segment up with two words: Pretty Batman. Or, to be more accurate, Pretty Bruce Wayne. My inner otaku had a field day with this one, and, admittedly, the uber-bishounen Bruce Wayne is the only thing I could really focus on. I was squealing every five seconds and wanted to jump him every two. The story was kind of lame but not bad or great, so in many ways this was the weakest segment of them all. However, this had something that the rest of sequences lacked - a classic, fangirl-happy anime appeal. This one, unlike a lot of the others, just felt lie good ol' fashion anime episode - something that some people might not appreciate, but for someone like me who's been out of the anime-loop for a while, does. This might have to do with the director, Hiroshi Morioka, who worked on Tsubasa Chronicle, .hack//Legend of Twilight, and .hack//SIGN, which are series as opposed to movies, unlike our previous two directors. All and all, I liked this segment not as a movie lover, but as a fangirl. Besides the weak story, the only thing that annoyed me was the design of the batsuit. It just looked... weird. And wrong.
In Darkness Dwells: This is my second-favorite episode for two reasons - one, we get some actual Rouges Gallery villains, and two, we got some real fighting in it. I liked this one because we finally got to get down and dirty - literally. This one felt like a classic Batman story: a little detective work, a little hanging out with Gordon, a little ass kicking, and a little rescue work. Out of all of the sequences this one is probably the one that Batman fans will like the most. Our Rogues Gallery appearances were made by Killer Croc and the Scarecrow, respectively. I hated Killer Croc's design because he very much did not resemble a crocodile. Like at all. He was big, ugly, and scary - but not a big, ugly, scary crocodile. Plus, the fight was way too short to me - though Croc got a few good hits in, the fight was over too fast. The Scarecrow, on the other hand, I adored - his design was perfect and was everything it should have been in the first animated Batman series. He and Bats didn't exactly get a fight scene, but that's too be expected, as Scarecrow is not a fighter. Another upside of this episode was we got to really see some nice Gordon-Batman interaction, which is nice. People seem to forget that Batman gets away with a lot of his crap because he's pals with Gordon. The director is Yasuhiro Aoki who's work as an animator include Ah! My Goddess!: The Movie, Neon Genesis Evangelion, and the Sailor Moon R movie (the best of the three Sailor Moon movies, FYI). He also worked on a segment of The Animatrix. This is the first time I've felt the need to mention the studio, Madhouse, if only because a huge number of popular and great anime were produced by these people, including (but not limited to): Cardcaptor Sakura, Chobits, Death Note (actually not one of my faves, but everyone knows it), Last Order: Final Fantasy VII, Tokyo Babylon, Trigun, and X. PLUS the movies Metropolis, Millennium Actress, Paprika, and Perfect Blue. My only regret was that this segment was too short - they tried to do too much but didn't have enough time.
Working Through Pain: This is hands down my favorite sequence. It follows the previous segment more closely than the others, taking place only minutes later. In my opinion, this one has the most solid story out of all of them and gives Bruce the strongest characterization. Primarily flashback sequences, this isn't an all-action all the time piece, but is by no means slow. It gives Bruce a little more background in his training, specifically how to deal with pain - physically and emotionally. The character introduced for the story is utilized perfectly and for the few minutes that you see her, you get attached. You feel bad for everyone even though nobody dies or even really gets hurt - it is emotionally touching in a way the other sequences aren't. And even though the story is mainly focused on the flashbacks, the non-flashback moments are good too, even though it is almost all movement and there is basically no dialog. The best part, however is the end, not to give anything away, but Alfred had to go pick up Batman who's down in the sewers basically sitting in a trash heap pulling out discarded guns. When Alfred pulls away the grate and sticks his hand down and asks for Bruce's hand, Bruce looks up with these big eyes and an armful of guns and simply says: "I can't." I almost died - the look in his eyes was perfect, and he just looked kind of helpless. I didn't think I could love this segment anymore until the end - my heart just exploded. The director, Toshiyuki Kubooka, has worked on Gundam 0080: A War in the Pocket, Nadia: The Secret of the Blue Water, and the second and third Project A-ko movies. This is the only segment that doesn't really have anything wrong with it.
Deadshot: Naturally, following my favorite segment is my least favorite segment. Again, while nothing was particularly wrong with it, it simply did not strike my fancy. While we once again get a visit from a real Batman villain, it wasn't enough to save this one for me. Deadshot's sniping was pretty cool though, especially his first shot that introduces him. However, for being the greatest shot in the world, he got brought down pretty damn quick. For an international assassin, it's pretty odd that he only had one freaking gun on him. Seriously, there was hardly a fight. What really pissed me off though, was the end. Deadshot begs for his life - begs! - which is completely out of character for him. For those who don't know, Deadshot is one of those guys begging for death but doesn't want to kill himself. Instead, his costume literally has a target on it because he's hoping some day someone will finally manage to shoot him dead. Does him begging for his life make any sense? The story overall was also a bit flimsy, maybe even more so than Field Test and didn't quite fit in with the rest of the pack. This might be explained with the fact that the director, Jong-Sik Nam, also directed He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (okay, to be fair I've never actually scene He-Man, but still). So to sum up, my irritation was really mostly with the portrayal of Deadshot, but that might be the writer's fault more than the director's.
My Final Thoughts:
Overall I adored Gotham Knight. As an anime and comic book fan, I couldn't ask for any more. The real treat though was Kevin Conroy reprising his role as the Dark Knight - he was spectacular the whole way through (there is a reason why he voiced Batman for 15 years). But despite the orgasmic sound that is Kevin Conroy's voice (he can sing! Did you know he can sing?) I believe the next time I watch this movie, it'll be in Japanese. Though only really noticeable in the first two segments, the voices not matching the mouth movements gets annoying in a few places.
Rankings:
- Characters (Characterization, acting, etc.): 5/5. Even with those stupid kids at the beginning, Kevin Conroy redeems all.
- Story: 4/5. A few were a bit so-so but all knew where they were going.
- Animation: 5/5. THE F-ING BACKGROUND WAS SO PURTY... plus, Pretty Bruce!
- Music: n/a. I really can't remember anything about it. My mind has gone blank.
- Overall: 5/5. I will be watching this again.
- Working Through Pain. It was just the strongest one overall, no doubt.
- In Darkness Dwells. Very good, but not long enough to beat the one listed above.
- TIE: Crossfire and Have I Got a Story For You. These are ties because as beautiful as the backgrounds were in Story, those kids were pretty damn annoying.
- Field Test. I love Pretty Bruce, but his story's not spectacular.
- Deadshot. I just didn't like it as much as the others, I dunno.