ed-421

What a dose of Nostalgia. I heard that the opening credits incorporated many classic comic book covers with some fantastic animation, so I took a look this morning before heading to more important tasks -- but I could not stop watching. Fascinating, funny, festive, friendly, and very alliterative, the actors, writers, and animators knocked this out of the park.

I think I spotted at least 50 sly references, and I'm sure I missed many others. Labels, labels, labels galore. I was thoroughly amused throughout. One thing I've noticed is that nearly everyone is staying spoiler-free, but the twists are like punchlines to good jokes. None of the dozens of punchlines are particularly surprising, but they are all fun, and many of them require the set-up, animation, and acting to be meaningful. For example -- "Begora" is one of these punchlines. Explaining why it's funny wouldn't be funny, so why ruin the joke?

The movie does get a bit dark. In one particular scene, Robin is horrified by a punch that doesn't follow Marquess of Queensberry rules. Robin's reaction to that punch and subsequent actions keep the movie grounded and friendly. I have to give special acclaim for Burt Ward, here -- his exuberance and delivery hasn't changed an iota.

Does the movie get some things wrong? Like the Joker's hidden mustache? Yes and perhaps. There are dozens of things that are not quite like the 60's show, and hundreds of things that are spot-on perfect. I don't recall hearing the Riddler's music cue, but the Batman theme is incorporated well in many places. The producers have already mention that some of the "mistakes" are intentional, such as the colors of Robin's logo being flipped in a throwaway shot, an homage to mistakes in previous animations. I will be watching this many times.

The sequel has already been announced, with William Shatner as Two- Face.

This is the most enjoyable movie I've seen in years. Highly recommended.

I watched this more than a year ago, and it's stuck with me.

1. Zombies, of a sort. They never move while you're looking at them (hence STILL). They move a lot while not being watched. If they touch you, you join their ranks.

2. Sandwiches. Normal sandwiches, shot as if they were the focus of some sort of erotic kink.

3. The radio broadcasts, utterly clueless to what is going on.

4. Society disintegrating as more and more people become Still, and some of the side effects.

5. Some people figuring out the rules that the Still must follow.

The camera moving away from one of the Still was always a bad sign. Nothing was particularly terrifying, but the mood of the series really pulled me in. And it's stayed with me.

Recommended.

In a seemingly normal small town, a loud sound is heard in the sky.

Almost immediately, many people get gruesomely sick. After the sickness, people go STILL.

The Still or sort of like zombies, but they never seem to move while people are watching them. They just stand there, staring.

When people look away from them and then look back, they are usually much closer. When they get close enough, they can grab a person, and then they join the ranks of the Still.

Effective use of sandwiches and repeating news broadcasts. I like the series so far.