Batman: Under the Red Hood

The story line has been amazingly written (rewritten since it's a comic book adaptation) with exceptional direction. Even as an animated movie it is on par with some of the best live-action productions. The voice acting is exceptional as well. But what draws you in most is the ease and fluidity with which the story has been told. The flashbacks add a more emotional element otherwise not seen in most batman production. The audience is able to look slightly more into the mind of batman. Though what makes this movie a true masterpiece is the dramatic finale. Only complaint is that some of the points in the plot are a bit obvious which tends to render some of the scenes moot.

A must watch for any batman fan and extremely entertaining for the rest.

I love Batman, and I loved this movie. I did think it is a little too short though, and Joker's voice did take some time to get used to which is more to do with that I felt the voice didn't completely gel with the character design. Minor faults aside, what we do have is one of the better Batman movies (or anything to do with Batman for that matter) in my view, along with Mask of the Phantasm, the original Batman, Return of the Joker and Batman Begins. If we include series too, Batman:The Animated Series is your best bet.

The best asset of Under the Red Hood is the writing. It is just fantastic. Not only is it intelligent and smart but it is very deep and complex and delves into the characters far more effectively than any of the Nolan and Schumacher movies in my opinion. For example, Batman is not only dark, charismatic and brooding as he should be, but the writers brought a certain edge and poignancy to him too. The villains in general are also well developed.

I was also very impressed with the animation. It has a dark, haunting visual style, with smooth backgrounds, well drawn characters and atmospheric colouring, not to mention a beautifully realised Gotham City. The music is great too, very rousing and quite powerful and fits with each scene appropriately. The story is engrossing, with a great idea and well-choreographed sequences. Also the flashbacks actually add to the story in alternative to distracting from it. The voice acting is very well done from pretty much all, Bruce Greenwood does something quite special with Batman while staying true to the character, while Nightwing- wonderfully voiced by Neil Patrick Harris- is fun and witty and his frustration with Batman is done well.

Overall, a very well done animated film. 9/10 Bethany Cox

This film is basically the movie to the graphic novel (so practically perfect.) Only now they have gotten rid of the unnecessary bits from the comic. I also loved the ending to this film, so bitter-sweet and emotional. To all Batfans, or anyone who likes a good movie, I recommend this.

... review please, let me ask you something respectfully!: What do I have to do to get to watch more of these remarkable cartoons?!?! Shall I donate? You need a lucky mug in the studio? Write a permission? Whatever needs to be done consider it done! Because I just love these fantastic stories! The music, the art direction, the characters, the cast, everything was just great! And for a certain level I enjoyed it more than the movies! Don't get me wrong! I love the movies as well! The Burton ones, the Nolan ones are fantastic! (Let's just not talk about the Schumacher ones already!) These titles belong to these directors. It is their vision. This one is very creative as well, but this one is the real BATMAN!

The movie is not flawless though. Of course sometimes they do simple things, and there is no problem, I mean it is a cartoon, so they can get away with it! But one thing is for sure: Warner Bros. has realised that there are two groups of Batman fans out there, and one of these groups is all grown ups now! This cartoon is for them! I definitely wouldn't watch it with my child - there is blood. A lot of blood. - but for us it is like reading a comic book! They both come to life before our eyes.

I was waiting for this one and I was very happy to see it eventually! So if anybody would read this from the fantastic team of creators of this great tale: Please make more! You got one definitive fan! And I'm sure that I'm not alone! :D

Seriously, I can't listen (or in that case read) to this crap anymore, that the creators of this film were copying or stealing from Nolan. Listen guys, there have been a Batman before TDK and there were some pretty dark and violent stories told about him like "Killing Joke" Millers "Dark Knight returns", "Knightfall" or in this case: "A death in the family", which is pretty much the source material for this incredible satisfying story. There are a lot of characters and story lines packed in this very short film but thanks to a great script and a great pace by the director nothing felt rushed and every character had his moment to shine. The movie was awesome and at least in my opinion much more entertaining and satisfying than Nolan's over-hyped "The dark knight". While Nolan's film was dark and depressing and pretty much a showcase for Heath Ledger's incredible performance, this is dark and somber as well but tells a powerful, engaging story in which you feel for the characters. Especially the last scene showed that Batman is much more than just a "High Tech-Rambo in a leather suit" but a very conflicted, torn human being. For fans of the Batman-comics highly recommended.