Batman: Year One

Bruce Wayne returns to Gotham after 12 years abroad. Lieutenant James Gordon transfers to Gotham where he finds corruption in the police department. Both decide to clean up the problems in their own way.

It's a fine adult animation of Batman. Gordon has the more interesting story. It's good animation. If anything, it needs to be longer than one hour. There are scenes that needs more fleshing out. Catwoman is fun. With more time, some of this could be even better. Overall, there is nothing big to complain about.

This is a dark, realistic and fantastic installment from DC. I was really immersed into the whole visual and direction of this movie. Sure, the plot maybe a bit slow but the story is really good. The movie focuses in on two primary characters, which is Bruce Wayne and Jim Gordon. Although the movie seems to focus more on Jim Gordon and his subconscious more than Bruce Wayne. It doesn't take away anything from this movie. Because I thought it was cool to delve more into the persona of Jim Gordon and where he comes from. Some people maybe against him being portrayed as this masculine though guy. But I thought it was refreshing to see him as this badass lieutenant. The animation for the most part is fluid and I just really liked the more dark and gritty atmosphere in this, which has more of an adult theme going for it. Although the action sequences are well done, that isn't the driving force of this movie. What drives this movie is the intricate and the direction of the two main characters and how it develops. Even the music score fit right into the environment and it actually does stand out.

8.2/10

Named as one of IGN's 25 greatest Batman stories of all time and one of the books that any Batman fan would swear by, Frank Miller's 1987 classic Batman Year One finally comes to life as a full length animated movie. Besides inspiring elements in various Batman animated shows since the 1990s, Batman Year One is also the main inspiration for the blockbuster hit "Batman Begins". So with its influence seen in all incarnations of Batman in the last 15 years, the producers are hard pressed to come up with anything original. So instead of just retelling Batman's origins, drawing influence from Batman Year One, the creative team decided to stick as close as possible to the source material and literally transfer the book into animated form.

To date, Batman Year One is easily the movie that is most faithful to its source material. Barring a few lines tweaked to flow more naturally in dialogue, the script is almost exactly the same as in the book. Whole scenes are reproduced shot for shot, as if the comic panels themselves came to life. One could literally watch this movie and read the comic side by side. Sadly, the plot itself is weaker than what one would expect, mostly due to the limitations of the audio/visual media.

Batman Year One contains two parallel tales. One follows Bruce Wayne, a millionaire playboy with a tragic past who returns to Gotham City after many years. The other follows Lieutenant Jim Gordon, a cop transferred to Gotham Police Department. Crime and corruption run rampant through the city, driving both Gordon and Wayne to bring justice to this lawless town through their own means. Initially, they are powerless against against a world of vice and sin, a world that does not want their help and would instead seek to crush their bodies and spirits. But both men soldier on in their quest. Wayne decides to become a masked vigilante; striking from the shadows against those that the authorities are powerless to touch. Meanwhile Gordon, knee deep among crooked Cops, struggles to expose the corrupted powers that be.

When it first debuted in 1987, Batman Year One was meant to be a realistic reinterpretation of Batman's origins. No fancy gadgets, no Batmobile, no crazy freaks. Batman does not befriend the police, and is in fact wanted as a criminal at one point. Those expecting long drawn out Batman brawls might be disappointed by the lack of appearances by Batman. Remember, the story is less about the icon and more about the man behind the mask. Also, the voice cast is possibly one of the weaker ones from DC animation. None of the performances really stand out, especially Benjamin McKenzie's Batman who seems to be doing a bad Christian Bale impression.

In true comic book fashion, the story is the very definition of brevity. Despite running barely over 60 minutes, the movie does a wonderful job of getting to the point of how both Wayne and Gordon struggle to keep their beliefs in a world devoid of morality. The power of a comic's visuals in telling a story without words is reflected very well in the animation. Scenes are loaded with impact and potential interpretations. Sadly, in an animated medium, one cannot mull over a page or let the imagination "set" to fully appreciate a scene's impact. Perhaps some would feel that the movie is too "to the point"; giving the audience the story instead of letting it play out over time.

On the flip side, what the animated medium takes full advantage of is bringing motion to static artwork. The animation by Korean studio "Moi Animation" is so smooth and seamless, a standard usually only seen in big budget theatrical feature films along the lines of "Rebuild of Evangelion" and "Sky Crawlers". The fight scenes are definitely the highlight of the movie. Fully animated, without a single cost saving short cut, it is almost like live action combat sequences out of a blockbuster. The art is no pushover either. It is David Mazzucchelli's original comic designs and characters, combined with an Asian anime flaire and aesthetics. This means small tweaks like giving characters more expressive eyes, sharper features and a less murky color palette. Purists would cry foul at the tweaks but they never detract from the original artwork's feel; it is still dark, gritty, and atmospheric as ever.

Being incredibly faithful to the source material means that one need not be familiar with the graphic novel to appreciate this show. If anything, this film allows those who would normally be averse to reading a comic book appreciate a timeless tale, integral to Batman lore. It is the same book, just a different way of reading it.

A few things off the bat... I'm a fan of DC comics Animation since TAS and Mask of The Phantasm. For the most part they have done a great job delivering exciting stories. Also, I have NOT read the Frank Miller 'Batman: Year One' 4 issue comic from which this was adapted from.

So here's my 2 cents... Animation: Sharp. Minimal use of soft focus than in previous features which is an improvement. Very little 'shakey cam' shots as used in previous films to create the illusion of action. Action and scenes are set up as you would expect in a well done live action film.

Voice Work: Kudos to the casting team. All voices sound top notch without sounding as if they're actors reading off a script in a sound booth. They genuinely sound invested in the scene and it shows. Minor complaints on Bruce's voice but you get used to it.

Music/Sound: Fantastic. Dark and atmospheric. Slowly plays tension through out the film. Until now, I had yet to hear a composition on one of these films that matches the talent of Shirley Walker who composed for Batman TAS in the 90's. The surround sound in this feature is put to full use more so than other animated DC films. Again, your getting feature film effort/quality here.

Story: Here's where I've read many complaints. This was definitely dark and different. Bear in mind I have never read the comic but from what I hear this is a faithful adaptation of those 4 issues. The story chronicles both Batman and Gordon's first year fighting in Gotham. How their relationship evolves and the decadence of Gotham is explored in detail. Don't expect a rosy colored Batman cartoon. This is a mature and dark story that happens to be told in animation.

Conclusion: Those of us that grew up as children watching Batman: TAS who are now adults. Many of us have admired how lately Batman's character has been presented in such mature forms as in Nolan's Dark Knight or Rock Steady's Arkham Asylum/City. This is why 'Batman: Year One' stands out above the rest in terms of animated films. In part, due to the excellent source material but equally in it's presentation in this particular medium. Batman: Year One is the wonderful product of more than 20 years of animated excellence. Definitely, a must have.

I am surprised at the user reviews here and they basically compelled me to write my own. Year one is one of the greatest batman story ever and the movie sticks closely to the source material. If you are unfamiliar with the comic, Year one basically details Bruce Wayne's first year after his return to Gotham City, twelve years after his parent's death. Running parallel to this is the story line of James Gordon, a lieutenant transferred from Chicago to Gotham City. The challenges faced by these characters as they embark on their respective paths and how those paths cross is where Year One shines. The animation perfectly brings David Mazzucchelli's muddy comic panels to life. The inclusion and portrayal of Catwoman might some but it is a very brief part of the story. Year One is an excellent movie and I would recommend this to any Batman fan.