• Category Archives Movie Reviews

  • A.P. Fuchs’s movie reviews, ranging from horror to superhero to sci-fi and a bunch of other stuff.

  • Canister X Movie Review #24: Chronicle (2012)

    Posted on by A.P. Fuchs

    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Chronicle (2012)
    Written by Max Landis
    Directed by Josh Trank
    Runtime 84 min.
    5 out of 5

    Andrew Detmer’s got a tough life: he’s bullied at school, his mom’s dying of cancer, and his dad is an alcoholic. Andrew also likes to film things and his friend, Steve, gets him to film something him and Matt have found in the woods: a strange deep hole with a weird blue crystalline object inside it. After the boys develop telekinetic abilities, all bets are off as they discover exactly what they are capable of. The problem, however, is that with great power comes great temptation and Andrew begins to discover not only the extent of his power but what is deep inside of him. Soon, the group of friends are divided and one has gone off the deep end.

     

    This movie is the boss. This is very much in the vein of Unbreakable, that is, the story of people pre-superhero or pre-supervillain, how they got their abilities, the discovery of their powers, the honing of them, and the ultimate decision as to what to do with them.

    Filmed via “shaky cam” documentary style, Chronicle looks like a home movie but carries the strong story and special effects of a major blockbuster. Actually, it has a stronger story than most major blockbusters, but that’s another topic. This flick is completely down-to-earth despite its out-of-this-world premise. By doing it documentary style, the character development of Andrew (Dane DeHaan), Steve (Michael B. Jordan) and Matt (Alex Russell) is through the roof and you care about each one, hope for each one, and get mad at each one when they do something you think you wouldn’t do yourself. Well done, boys. Well done.

    Telekinesis is the name of the game in this movie, that is, the ability to move and control things with your mind. While we’ve seen this power on screen before, this flick really gets into the potential of that ability from simply causing objects to float all the way to making yourself fly. Telekinesis would be the power to choose if one was presented with it because the majority of superpowers can ultimately come from it: flight, strength, stopping objects from hitting you, forcing bad guys to stop their actions, and more.

    What makes this flick stand out is its intense study into what having such an incredible power does to a person, whether for good or ill. This is something we seldom see in standard superhero cinema as usually you got the hero or villain get their powers and already start using them based on their personality or because of how they’re raised, or they are used a certain way because of a recent event. This flick asks the question—even answers it—does absolute power corrupt absolutely?

    I’ve never seen a documentary-style superhero movie before. Correction: I’ve never seen a documentary-style superhero/villain origin movie before and I am curious if others exist. Will have to track them down because I thoroughly enjoyed Chronicle, was captivated by it, and it brings a level of realism to the material that even your most-seriously-attempted-at-realism superhero movies can’t portray. It’s about everyday people suddenly getting a powerful ability with everyday people reactions, temptations, and usages.

    Such a well done flick. So good. You need to see this. What Blair Witch did for horror Chronicle does for the superhero genre.

    Highly recommended.


    Movie Reviews Superhero Movies 📎and tagged

  • Canister X Movie Review #23: Catwoman (2004)

    Posted on by A.P. Fuchs

    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Catwoman (2004)
    Written by John Brancato, Michael Ferris and John Rogers
    Directed by Pitof Comar
    Runtime 104 min.
    2 out of 5

    Patience Phillips overhears news of the terrible side effects of a skin cream that is being manufactured by the company she works for, Hedare Beauty, and is quickly silenced—fatally—for her eavesdropping. However, she comes back from the dead thanks to an Egyptian Mau cat and discovers she has cat-like abilities. Disguising herself as Catwoman, Patience seeks to learn the truth behind her own death.

     

    Do you have any idea how excited I was when I heard they were making a Catwoman movie? I mean, it could be the greatest cat-burglar movie of all time loaded with super slick espionage, martial arts, sneaking around, Batman mythos references and/or cameos, strong-female-led action, cool costume(s) and more.

    And then they made the movie they did.

    Almost wish I could make this whole review two words—“no comment”—but that’d be cheating you guys.

    This movie was not a Catwoman movie. I just don’t understand what they were trying to do here. Had this been a fan film and some attempted new take on the character, okay, fine, whatever, put it online and let people decide, but this was supposed to be the real deal. She wasn’t even called Selina Kyle in this. Instead, she was “Patience Phillips.” They tried to jazz up what is supposed to be a very down-to-earth origin and give it a mythology of its own. Okay, points for trying something new and superhero or supervillain origins are often tweaked or changed for the big screen. What makes Catwoman as a character awesome is the fact that she’s human, like Batman, and is basically his opposite. Not so in this one. She’s got cat-powers and while it was visually cool to watch her jump around and scale buildings and stuff, it’s just not who she is.

    Halle Berry playing Catwoman is just fine. She’s sleek, sexy and pulls off the part. The problem is the story is not very good, the costume is terrible—how slinky and impractical can you get?—and there’s really nothing in this that ties it into the Batman universe. This is supposed to be a spin-off, but even spin-offs have a connection to the main source. i.e. the Elektra spin-off movie from Daredevil. Regardless of how you feel about that one, it’s still a spin-off and is known as such.

    This was definitely a comic book movie in that they went for “comic booky” as the feel of it. Felt more direct-to-video to me, seemed rushed and just fell flat.

    Catwoman is an awesome character and was resurrected in The Dark Knight Rises in a much more real world way. I hope that someday—hopefully sooner rather than later—another Catwoman flick is made and they really try to get it right. It has huge potential. Sadly, it was missed with this version here.


    Movie Reviews Superhero Movies 📎and tagged

  • Canister X Movie Review #22: Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)

    Posted on by A.P. Fuchs

    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
    Written by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely
    Directed by Joe Johnston
    Runtime 124 min.
    4 out of 5

    It’s World War II and the US Army needs to up its game in its war against the villainous Nazis under the command of Adolf Hitler.

    Enter Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), a little guy from Brooklyn with all sorts of health problems, but who has possibly the strongest sense of morals and courage than any man on the front line. Unfortunately, due to his fragility, Steve is not allowed to join the American army despite multiple tries. A scientist experimenting in a super soldier serum for the US army notices this and offers him a chance to take part in a dangerous procedure that, if it goes well, will grant Steve superhuman-like abilities and enable him to be an ultimate man, athlete and warrior. Steve accepts and transforms into the world’s first super soldier: Captain America.

    Meanwhile, the first test subject of the serum, Johann Schmidt—aka the Red Skull (Hugo Weaving)—has come into possession of the Tesseract cube, a powerful energy source rumored to be from Asgard. His plan? Nothing less than overthrowing Hitler himself and taking over the world.

    If only we had a super soldier to stop him. Wait . . . we do.

    His name is Captain America.

     

    Like all good fanboys, I saw this movie in the theatre. Having grown up on the cheesy Captain America movies starring Reb Brown and, later, the 1990 version with Matt Salinger, a part of me, I admit, was waiting for a repeat of the 1990 film (in the general sense). I was more interested in how Captain America: The First Avenger would tie into the then-upcoming The Avengers and this movie didn’t disappoint.

    The introduction of the Tesseract—which would be key in The Avengers—was real smart on the filmmakers’ part because not only did it point to the forthcoming ensemble film, but also gave a quick link to the Thor movie as well.

    Watching Chris Evans as Steve Rogers was fantastic. He really suits the role and played it perfectly. I wasn’t sure how the once-Human Torch—all witty and sarcastic—would fare as the famous super soldier, and I’m glad Chris Evans proved he can play a kind of Superman-like character as well. Seeing him play both the small, frail Steve Rogers (facially, anyway, as someone else’s body was used), to playing the suped-up Steve made the film truly a story about how our greatest power lies within as opposed to externally.

    Likewise, Hugo Weaving as Red Skull did a great job, especially since playing villains is no strange task to Weaving (Agent Smith, anyone?). Even with the German haircut he looked different never mind later when his red skull visage was revealed.

    The story was simple and, like the first Spider-Man movie, I left the theatre underwhelmed. After seeing it a second time, I saw it for what it was and really enjoyed it. Unfortunately, the end battle was anti-climactic. It didn’t need to be an all-out brawl between Cap and Red Skull, but it felt brief considering these two are the heads and tails of the same coin. Some sort of super soldier/titan clash would have punched up the ending. Speaking of which, the ending of this movie has one of the best last lines to a flick ever. It was the kind of line I try to end my own novels on, one that finishes the tale but also has a punch to it.

    As far as superhero stories go, the World War II setting gave the genre a breath of fresh air movie-wise as, thus far, pretty much every super flick to come out recently is all set in the modern day. Alternate times and/or worlds with a superhero figure are few and far between. The Spirit is the only one that comes to mind in this regard.

    After this movie and The Avengers, I’m excited to see Captain America: Winter Soldier, which is presently set for 2014.


    Movie Reviews Superhero Movies 📎and tagged

  • Canister X Movie Review #21: Captain America (1990)

    Posted on by A.P. Fuchs

    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Captain America (1990)
    Written by Stephen Tolkin
    Directed by Albert Pyun
    Runtime 97 min.
    3 out of 5

    Taking part in a secret super soldier experiment in the 1940s, Steve Rogers becomes the American icon Captain America. After an altercation with the Red Skull, he is trapped in ice for fifty years before being thawed out in 1993. Upon awakening, Steve must come to grips with being a man out of time and also that the Red Skull is still alive and is leader of a powerful crime family. Steve must track down the Red Skull, with each clue giving more insight into his own past and bringing him one step closer to his arch enemy to settle a fight that began half a century before.

     

    This flick is your classic Captain America story, that is, his origin, his World War II beginnings, battling Red Skull, being frozen, awakening in the future and reconnecting with his old enemy who is still active.

    I remember seeing this as a kid and liking it. Saw it recently a few years back and still liked it. It’s not the greatest superhero movie, but it still holds its own all these years later.

    It’s very much Steve Rogers’s story as he’s Captain America for a little bit then isn’t for a good while, then is again in terms of him getting into costume. As a kid, you don’t care about story and just want to see the superhero. As an adult, you see the big picture so don’t mind the non-costumed parts. It’s a story about a journey, both for Steve and even for Red Skull as you watch Steve wrestle with himself for being from the past and how everything’s changed, and also the different things he finds out as he searches for his enemy.

    The Captain America costume is very rubbery, but it’s way better than the one that appeared in the 1979 movies and looks pretty good overall. The shield rocks and when Captain America throws it, it’s got that cool swooshing-through-the-air sound effect, adding to its power.

    I was totally fine with Matt Salinger as Steve Rogers. He had that all-American sensibility about him, was naïve in the right ways, learned in others, and filled out those big red boots nicely.

    This is a solid Marvel movie that was made well before the whole Marvel Cinematic Universe of today and should be on the shelves of every superhero movie enthusiast out there.

    Recommended.


    Movie Reviews Superhero Movies 📎and tagged

  • Canister X Movie Review #20: Blankman (1994)

    Posted on by A.P. Fuchs

    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Blankman (1994)
    Written by Damon Wayans and J.F. Lawton
    Directed by Mike Binder
    Runtime 92 min.
    4 out of 5

    Two brothers. One a nerd. One a Karate expert. Both grown up and living with their grandma.

    Darryl and Kevin Walker (Damon Wayons and David Alan Grier) have lived in the rough part of town with their grandma since they were kids. As boys they’d run around the apartment with towels tied around their necks, aping Batman and Robin. Now, grown up, Kevin works at the TV station doing over-the-top news stories about aliens while Darryl works as a repairman and has a knack for inventing. After their grandma is killed along with several others while working to support the campaign of a wholesome, upcoming mayor, Darryl vows to make a difference in his city and invents bulletproof long johns, transforming himself into Blankman. He even makes a costume for his brother . . . who quickly refuses to join him. Taking cues from the campy 1960s Batman series, Blankman sets out to help others and uses this super alter ego to work through his grandmother’s death. Meanwhile, Kevin lets Darryl go about his crimefighting business since he’s too busy trying to woo beautiful reporter Kimberly Jonz (Robin Givens), who does real news stories several floors above him. Of course, tensions rise as Kimberly seems to have a thing for Blankman and admires the superhero’s heroic efforts.

    Eventually, Kevin learns who was behind their grandmother’s death: the city’s crime boss, Michael Minelli (Jon Polito). This time, Kevin asks to join Darryl on his crusade and since Darryl is the ever-faithful brother, he produces the outfit Kevin rejected and Kevin becomes Other Guy, Blankman’s sidekick. The two take it upon themselves to hunt down Minelli and bring him to justice, making him pay for what he did once and for all.

     

    Blankman is superhero comedy at its finest. It’s also inspiring as it’s the story of everyday guys trying to do the right thing even if it means putting on a costume and helping others. Damon Wayons and David Alan Grier are hilarious and the chemistry between the two works well. If you didn’t know any better, you would think they were brothers in real life.

    This flick isn’t your usual superhero spoof, though. It took itself seriously in that it wasn’t tongue-in-cheek, but a deliberate superhero comedy with serious undertones. Everything from the social outcast that rises up, to the standing up for what’s right in a world that’s cynical and jaded, to going out of your way to help your fellow man, Blankman hits it hard on all points.

    The jokes and humor are laugh-out-loud funny, the sad moments make you ache inside, and David Alan Grier’s facial expressions are priceless.

    Like I mentioned in my review of The Phantom, sometimes it’s nice to unplug and watch a superhero movie that’s lighthearted, easygoing, and loads of fun.

    There’s plenty of action and excitement in this movie to satisfy those looking for those things, but it’s real strength lies in its heart and that is about two boys rising up to become men in a world that took away the one person they held the most dear.

    As a fair warning, this isn’t a kid’s movie as there’s grown-up humor, innuendo and some language in it so is recommended for ages 14+.

    I’ve been a Blankman fan from the beginning and though it’s been nearly twenty years since it came out, I’m still rooting for a sequel.


    Movie Reviews Superhero Movies 📎and tagged

  • Canister X Movie Review #19: Blade: Trinity (2004)

    Posted on by A.P. Fuchs

    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Blade: Trinity (2004)
    Written by David S. Goyer
    Directed by David S. Goyer
    Runtime 113 min.
    3.5 out of 5

    Things come to a head in this thrilling final chapter in the Blade Trilogy, pitting Blade against Drake aka Dracula, the king daddy of all vampires. Teaming up with Hannibal King and Abigail Whistler, the trio seeks to take down Dracula before he can create more daywalkers and eliminate Blade forever.

     

    If you’re going to bring things to a head and have a final showdown between the good guy and a major bad guy, you need to ensure that your major bad guy is a big deal and you don’t really get any more big deal than Dracula. Created by Bram Stoker and based on the historical and infamous Vlad the Impaler, Dracula was the first vampire ever and has since become not only the most famous one, but has tons of media under his namesake including movies, books, TV shows, cartoons, songs—everything. And that’s just him never mind the countless media sporting all the vampires he inspired. Taking a vampire hunter like Blade and putting him up against Dracula makes good sense to me.

    Except the Dracula in this movie is pretty so-so, which doesn’t cut it, in my opinion. I was expecting an ultra-powerful vampire, one that would give even the Reapers in Blade II a run for their money in terms of villain awesomeness. Instead, I was given a strong vampire, but not the ultimate vampire. Too bad, too, because having him as a bad guy is an awesome idea.

    As always, Wesley Snipes leads the flick as the titular hero, picking up right where he left off in Blade II and staying consistent in character start to finish.

    Having Ryan Reynolds as Hannibal King—I’m a Reynolds fan. Put him in the right role and you’re guaranteed something good. Not sure how he stacks up against his comic book counterpart, but for this flick, not only was he tough as all get out and kicked all sorts of butt, but the comedic elements he brought had me laughing out loud more than once and yet such jokes worked in this movie and didn’t seem out of place.

    Jessica Biel as Abigail Whistler—who doesn’t like a strong woman who can hold her own and fight vampires? I appreciated the seriousness she brought to the role and was a nice counterbalance to Hannibal King.

    Kris Kristofferson was briefly back as Whistler, Abigail’s father. Won’t say more as I don’t want to spoil anything for those who haven’t seen the flick yet.

    This movie has solid action throughout, but I wish the climactic battle between Dracula and Blade was more epic. Seemed average, but that could just be me. Really liked this movie on the whole, though. It was the Dracula angle that brought it down a notch solely because there was more they could’ve done in terms of raising the stakes with such a villain.

    In the end, it’s a decent send-off for Blade and a pretty good bookend to the trilogy.

    Go check it out.


    Movie Reviews Superhero Movies 📎and tagged

  • Canister X Movie Review #18: Blade II (2002)

    Posted on by A.P. Fuchs

    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Blade II (2002)
    Written by David S. Goyer
    Directed by Guillermo del Toro
    Runtime 117 min.
    4 out of 5

    A major virus is sweeping the through the vampire community and transforming its hosts into creatures called Reapers, who have a thirst for blood worse than vampires, are near invulnerable, and who can also pass the virus on to victims of their own. Worse, they feed on both human and vampire alike. Desperate to stop these creatures, the vampire community strikes a truce with Blade and gets him to help them fight these awful creatures. As Blade carves his way through the Reapers, he finds out their sinister origin and must put a stop to the Reaper vampires once and for all.

     

    The thing with sequels is you gotta go bigger and better than the first one. It’s not always easy and usually fails, however there are exceptions and Blade II is such an exception. Instead of just simply pitting Blade against more vampires, he now has to fight alongside them and stop a common enemy. How does that go? “The enemy of my enemy is my friend”? That’s what’s happening here and is a unique take on the vampire mythos and takes Blade to the next level.

    Wesley Snipes is back as the Daywalker, and does everything right in this flick like he did in the first movie: tough, sweet action, martial arts, swordplay, solid acting and more. It’s always great when you can see the actor enjoys what they’re doing—or convinces you they are—instead of merely phoning it in as is sometimes the case when an actor keeps reprising a role.

    Kris Kristofferson is back, too, which is awesome because Whistler is a big part of the first movie and this one might’ve felt hollow without him. How they bring him back after what happened in the last movie was also clever.

    The Reapers—total killers with sweet SFX, brutal savagery and they make the regular vampires look like a bunch of modern day angsty vamps by comparison. Always a good thing when you up the ante on the bad guy.

    I really liked this sequel, especially because, like I said, it had a fresh take on the slayer-vs-vampire mythos and I’m all about fresh takes. The story moved along at a good clip, kept me engaged, and makes me have a good time every time I have a Blade movie marathon.

    Awesome stuff, Blade II.

    Recommended like the first.


    Movie Reviews Superhero Movies 📎and tagged

  • Canister X Movie Review #17: Blade (1998)

    Posted on by A.P. Fuchs

    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Blade (1998)
    Written by David S. Goyer
    Directed by Stephen Norrington
    Runtime 120 min.
    4 out of 5

    Half-human/half-vampire Blade makes war on the undead—that’s the vampire undead, I’m talking—and tries to dismantle the vampire underworld piece by piece. He soon meets Karen, a hematologist, who was bitten by a vampire. Before the change occurs, she researches how a possible cure can be attained. Meanwhile, Deacon Frost, a rising star in the vampire community, believes he can become even more powerful by awakening the blood god La Magra. The problem is he needs the blood of the “daywalker”—Blade—to achieve it.

    Blood and carnage ensue as Blade tries to stop the vampire world from rising to supremacy while also battling the bloodthirsty vampire within himself in this thrilling monster superhero movie extravaganza.

     

    For me, Blade was the “prequel” movie to the start of the superhero box office comeback, which would later be kicked off by X-Men. It was almost as if studios were testing the waters with a serious superhero movie using a lesser known character and disguising him as a “slayer” to see how audiences would react. That’s my superficial first impression, but then when you get into Blade and watch it you soon find out there is far more here than just a slayer-vs-vampire flick. Is he a superhero? Yes, but not your conventional one. There is no secret identity, no costume per se—though he does sport a cool trench coat and sword—and no standard supporting character in the vein of a love interest. Instead, you get a conflicted man who’s part vampire who’s trying so desperately to tame the beast within while also doing what’s right: killing vampires and helping those who get caught in the crossfire. Sounds like a superhero to me.

    Wesley Snipes as Blade is sheer awesomeness. He’s tough as nails, got the martial arts moves, is dark and handles himself like someone who has the weight of the world on his shoulders. Which is true, of course, as he’s doing his best to keep the vampires at bay, namely the ambitious ones who would seek to subdue, even eradicate, the human race.

    Kris Kristofferson is dynamite as Whistler, Blade’s father-figure, friend and mentor. Talk about a tragic origin for this guy and one that tugs at the heartstrings. He’s the perfect example of a man trying to make things right because something so wrong was done to him and those he loved. Plus “Kris Kristofferson” is a cool name so he gets points just for that.

    I liked Stephen Dorff as Deacon Frost, a cocky villain who knows how powerful he is and is tired of others trying to “keep a good vampire down.” He’d make an amazing Bat-villain, in my mind, just by the way he plays villains—confident, dark, a tad witty—maybe Riddler? I mean, the real Riddler, the one who’s serious and not a slapstick goofball like in Batman Forever.

    Blade’s exciting from start to finish, with action sequences and slayer-vs-vampire moments that make you want to hit the rewind on the remote and watch ’em again. I’m really glad they made two other sequels because Blade’s a character with endless story possibilities because both him and his universe go beyond the simple slayer-vs-vampire motif. Like a Transformer, there’s more to him than meets the eye and this flick does a great job of showing that. No wonder it did so well at the box office and earned about triple its budget.

    Recommended.


    Movie Reviews Superhero Movies 📎and tagged

  • Canister X Movie Review #16: Batman: Year One (2011)

    Posted on by A.P. Fuchs

    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Batman: Year One (2011)
    Written by Tab Murphy
    Directed by Sam Liu and Lauren Montgomery
    Runtime 64 min.
    4.5 out of 5

    After spending many years abroad, Bruce Wayne returns to Gotham City to fulfill the vow to rid it of crime that he made to his deceased parents when he was a boy. At the same time, Chicago cop James Gordon moves to Gotham to start with the GCPD. Soon, Bruce adopts the identity of the Batman and makes war on Gotham’s crime families, with James Gordon hot on his tail as the cop tries to take down the vigilante crime fighter.

     

    I love origin stories. The mythology of characters, their history, their motivations, the events leading up to the creation of a super identity—all of it’s gold in my book. Batman: Year One is such a story, giving you not only Batman’s origin, but the chance to walk a mile in his shoes during his first year as a crime fighter. You get to see him test the waters, make mistakes, have some wins and losses, and watch as he earns the trust of Gotham’s finest.

    This movie is a down-to-earth story about Batman and James Gordon, very much a crime story versus a superhero-vs-supervillain tale. Batman deals with real world criminals in real world ways. You also get a glimpse into the hard life he leads, what he gives up to be Batman, and how he balances life as a fool in the public eye so he could be a fear to the criminal underworld at night.

    You also get to see a different side of James Gordon, the marriage trouble, his humanity, and the plight of being a good cop in a bad town. His portrayal makes him every bit a hero as Batman in this story.

    This flick is based on the one-shot comic book by comics superstar Frank Millar and matches the book’s style for the most part, really bringing it to life.

    This is a story of beginnings so the pacing is different than what most people are used to, and instead of having a beginning, middle, big lead up to a climax then end, it has—to me, anyway—more of a beginning, middle and then part of an end because it’s really a prequel to all the other Batman stories that come after it. Which is fine. It works, but I remember going, “Is that it?” when it ended after I first watched it.

    I’m glad that Batman’s first year was brought to the small screen and I hope more first year stories are made for other heroes. Superman next would be great.

    Recommended.


    Movie Reviews Superhero Movies 📎and tagged

  • Canister X Movie Review #15: The Batman vs Dracula (2005)

    Posted on by A.P. Fuchs

    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    Click Here to Order from Amazon.com
    The Batman vs Dracula (2005)
    Written by Duane Capizzi
    Directed by Michael Goguen
    Runtime 83 min.
    4 out of 5

    What starts as a treasure hunt by the Penguin soon turns into a near-apocalyptic ordeal when he accidentally revives the legendary Dracula. Immediately, the prince of darkness begins to feed, snatching innocent citizens of Gotham from its streets.

    Darkness blankets the city and the Caped Crusader is all who stands in the way between Dracula and the city’s doom.

     

    Wow. That was my first reaction when watching this. This direct-to-DVD release doesn’t view as your standard Batman cartoon. This truly is a monster tale and views more like a horror movie than a superhero flick.

    The vampires in this film are scary, looking like something between a vampire and a zombie. Dracula himself is neat, trim and suave, yet carries a presence of death.

    This DVD also introduces Batman’s love interest, Vicky Vale (who appeared both in the comics and in the 1989 movie). I have yet to discover how much of a role she will have in the half-hour episodes of The Batman series (I have only watched up to season three), but it was great to see her on screen. It was also wonderful to see Bruce Wayne dealing with a female lead in a realistic way and having once again come face-to-face with Batman getting in the way of his personal life.

    A surprising touch to this film was the Joker, not so much the character but what happens to him. Cool indeed.

    This is a solid Bat-flick, one which is definitely meant for an older audience, not for kids. Thirteen or fourteen and up, I’d say.

    This flick is a keeper, one every true Bat-fan should have.


    Movie Reviews Superhero Movies 📎and tagged