Batman: The Dark Knight Returns (Deluxe Edition) [Blu-ray]

It’s a very faithful adaptation of one of the most famous and best Batman storylines, The Dark Knight Returns, so of course it’s a masterpiece and a must watch for any fan of the Caped Crusader. I didn’t watch all of the bonus features but what I did see was really cool.

For fans thinking they are being 'double dipped' by this DC Universe Animated Original Movie 'Deluxe Edition' release of 'BATMAN: THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS,' think again. You only need look at what you are getting for your money to realize Warner Bros. animation is offering up a totally new 'viewing experience' for this groundbreaking animated achievement, along with phenomenal new extras well worth the investment. The full-length, uninterrupted version of the film clocks in at 2 hours and 29 minutes. That makes this uninterrupted viewing experience the closest fans will get to a Christopher Nolan 'Batman' film, perhaps, for the last time ever. The fact that the entire version features a crew commentary track exclusive to this 'full-cut' means that fans get a creative perspective on the film as a whole. Had commentary tracks been recorded and released on each of the separate 'Part 1' and 'Part 2' releases, they would have inhibited the creators from discussing their overall approach to the creation, acting, directing, writing, and production work that went into the entire epic film, as each commentary would have focused exclusively on either 'Part 1' or 'Part 2.' Fans hear what it was like to tackle a a 2 and 1/2 hour animated film. The creative efforts that went into this project were phenomenal, expensive, and unprecedented for the DCUAOM team. This is a film that Warner Bros. Animation gave a high budget to and lost a significant amount of money on. The total gross for both 'Parts 1' and '2' was less than 5 million dollars. DCUAOMs used to gross 5 million PER TITLE, minimum. The inclusion of a 70 minute Frank Miller documentary focused on the creation of the graphic novel itself is the type of bonus material the DCUAOMs have virtually never included. Miller is notoriously 'tight-lipped' about his creations, and particularly, this historic graphic novel. The fact the documentary includes extensive new interview footage with Miller makes it the definitive documentary of the book - one of the most important graphic novels ever written. The carry-over of all bonus materials from the separately released 'Parts 1 & 2' is, of course, obligatory. Many fans, though, will enjoy the 4 exclusive collector cards included in the set which will feature never before seen artwork. Given the fact the graphic novel itself has seen various special anniversary, hard-cover and limited release editions, it seems perfect that the animated version is getting this treatment. Kudos to Warner Bros. Home Video for taking a second chance on this title by giving it to fans in a format they really wanted it in, including a comprehensive NEW commentary track, and a 70 minute definitive documentary on Frank Miller and the Graphic Novel itself. Given the low sales of the original releases, this might turn out to be another 'break-even' release for the division. And, if that's the case, it's the fans who will end-up being the sole winners yet again.

Great voice work!

For those of you who may be unaware, this is not an animated version of the more recent Christopher Nolan film, but rather an animated version of the 1986 comic miniseries with this title written by Frank Miller and illustrated by Miller and Janson. It is a widely acclaimed series portraying a gritty "future" Gotham with an aging Bruce Wayne. The thing that struck me immediately about this movie is how faithful it was to the comics in art style and story. It was exactly how I envisioned the comics would be if they came to life off the pages. The voice acting is spot on and the animation is done well. So why give it 4 stars instead of 5? I suppose that I would have given it 5 stars if this was my first time coming across this story, but like many others to whom this movie is likely targeted, I read the comic series first so the level of faithfulness to the source material was a double-edged sword for me. The other side of remaining so true to the comics in both story and art style is the fact that there's really nothing new for a person who has read the comics. The movie re-creates the exact scenes from the books nearly frame-for-frame and does nothing to insert significant new material to either that art or plot (which also remains exactly the same beat-for-beat). The fact that it is a perfect tribute to the series, in my opinion, also hurts it. This is just one person's opinion, but remember that this is a "future Gotham" envisioned in 1986. While it does fascinatingly get quite a bit right (perhaps owing to the consistency of human nature), there are parts of it that could have used a refresh to make it a more believable version of the future from our standpoint. Also some of the contrived slang that reads just fine in print simply doesn't work when you actually hear someone speaking that way. Regardless, I do think that they could have taken the opportunity to adapt the visuals and story a bit more. Of course, if they had done that you'd probably have some other reviewers complaining that they didn't stay perfectly true to the comics so I suppose that there's no winning in that scenario. Anyway, this is an excellent movie for anyone who enjoys Batman stories.

私が買った時の値段は今の半値位でした。原作読んだ人には特にオススメです。アメリカアニメではバトルシーンがめっちゃ出来が良いと思います。ストーリーもまぁ合格でしょう。

Nuff said...

Excelente película muy buena, en especial, las dos películas juntas en un solo disco

I probably don't need to explain to anyone reading this the importance of the graphic novel this film is based upon within the comic world. The animation does a near perfect job of capturing the mood and tone closely with the perfect decision to cast Peter Weller. His gruff and imposing tones sit well for an aging more brutal Batman and the everything unfolds as it should. The extras are also a sight to behold with the kind of stuff often omitted for the UK release including an 80 minute doc where Frank Miller & Grant Morrison are interviewed about the original book. Miller looks like he has lived a little too hard since the 80s (he sounds slightly slurry to me at times) but still gives a great interview and clearly still has time for the book that put him in Bat history - alongside Year One of course. My only issue was that the US vendor I used provided minimal packaging which meant that the card sleeve was travel damaged upon arrival which sat very badly for this collector after paying nearly triple what I normally would for a UK bluray. A few pence worth of bubblewrap wouldn't have broken the bank in my opinion. Anyway nevermind the material itself more than makes up for it!

Perfect!! Now I need the part 2!!!