La Ligue des Justiciers - Le paradoxe Flashpoint

Reviewed by: Dare Devil Kid (DDK)

Rating: 3.8/5 stars

DC and Warner Bros. seem to make much better animated direct-to-home videos than they do full-length feature films (with the rare exception of the "Batman" films). Another grand entry in the legacy of DC home videos and a treat for all the DC superhero fans that is sure to resonate across diverse age groups.

With the plot particularly emphasizing on "The Flash" as the central character of how the story unfolds, this one promises to be a special treat for fans of the red-suited speedster like me; who've only ever been treated once before (a riveting T.V. show back in 1990) to a worthy visual medium of the fastest man ever.

I just finished the movie minutes ago and couldn't wait to write a review.

The acting is superb.

The writing excellent.

The music is great.

The animation is fresh.

Oh, and for those of you who like their stories with a little darkness to them, hold onto your seats because this is movie delivers.

If you are ANY sort of DC fan and have not seen this movie, go NOW.

GO!

Thank me when you're done.

This was so amazing. That ending pulled on my heartstrings. Never has an animated movie done this to me.

I know men and women(!) from all walks of life who watch DC Animated shows/movies religiously. A lot of us were expecting a Flash-specific movie after the awesomely climatic culmination of events at the end of the JLA series season 4 (Divided We Fall)... which pretty much told us DC fanatics what we already knew all along... that the Flash is probably the most powerful superhero in the DC universe, period. So why don't we know more about him? This movie serves three amazing purposes, each executed to perfection; first, bring the DC animated movie series to an even darker, more violent, mature place and audience; second, give us a glimpse into the Flash's personal back-story, top villains, and character development; and third, to showcase a period in DC comic book history that is crucial to further plot developments. But really, its just a beautiful film and great opportunity to showcase some of the newest animation tactics, and to give the animators some freedom to be a little more 'adult' in their drawings. This is definitely the best of the DC animated movies thus far, (that's saying a LOT, btw), and is truly one to get excited about watching. New Earth is portrayed hauntingly as a gritty, sullen place to exist... Aquaman is finally given full credit and accurately shown as a nigh-invulnerable multi-powered heavyweight... the Amazonians are beautiful and fearsome... and for the first time ever I was actually a little creeped out by the true alien that Superman is. But you'll get a little creeped out by all the characters, and that's the point (except the Flash, of course!). It was great to see the interpretation of the New Earth variants well voiced and drawn, especially Slade and Black Manta. Also huge kudos to the producers for making Yo Yo's voice the same as Harley Quinn's. I totally agree.

And there are some great ones out there, all of them are worth watching in some shape or form even if they don't completely work. Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox does work and brilliantly, for this viewer it's one of the better animated straight-to-video superhero films. There is very little to criticise it, except that some of it did feel a little rushed, Superman could have been fleshed out more and Professor Zoom was defeated too easily. The anime-inspired animation is wonderful though, if you enjoy the animation style of Young Justice- I do- you'll enjoy the animation here. The atmospheric colours and fluidity are simply remarkable. The music is haunting and beautiful at the same time, giving intensity to the action scenes and giving weight to the more emotional and dramatic scenes. While the dialogue is really smart and intelligently written and the story is hugely compelling right up to the end and packs a real emotional punch. The action sequences have an epic intensity to them, the moral ambiguity seen in the characters and story is interwoven very well and the complexity of the characters- they are much more than what they seem- is to be admired, especially Flash- especially in the final 10 minutes- and a more bad-ass Aquaman(loved that). There are lots of familiar characters that pop up every now and again, which comic book and superhero fans will really appreciate. And of course the voice acting is superb, with Justin Chambers really making us identify with his character, having Kevin Conroy back as Batman is a huge plus and there's also the suavity and command that Cary Elwes brings to Aquaman. C. Thomas Howell also shines in one of his best, maybe even his best, film in recent years(considering that he's been in a lot of bad movies, especially from The Asylum, lately that's saying a lot)- he is menacing and very malicious as Zoom, his taunting of Flash is subtly chilling and one of the high points in the writing. Overall, while not entirely perfect Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox is fabulous. 9/10 Bethany Cox