The Batman Superman Movie
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Warner Home Video / 1997 / 61 Minutes / Not Rated
Street Date: April 23, 2002 
I've never found myself to be much of a television watcher, at least for any great deal of time. Sure, I watched Saturday morning cartoons until an age I'm embarrassed to admit, and who didn't watch such seminal series as Cheers or Family Ties in their day? But for the last ten years or so I just don't sit down much in front of the boob tube other than to watch a good movie. So, needless to say I never caught any of fabulous Warner Batman and Superman animated series which have given both franchises a new lease on life. My first introduction only came after flipping the channels one night a few years back and happening across The Batman Superman Movie halfway through. I was immediately enthralled. (Little did I know I missed the best parts in the first half.) The story itself is almost unimportant. That Batman and Superman fight their archenemies side by side is all you need to know, and such a team-up is a momentous occasion sure to thrill the most diehard of fans. But what a cast of voice talent! Clancy Brown as Lex Luthor? Mark Hamill doing his best work as the Joker? And a slew of others who fit the characters to a tee? I soon became an addict of the daytime series, and after it left the WB I even gave Batman Beyond a whirl. You pretty much can't go wrong with the teaming of Paul Dini and Bruce Timm as these two fellows give superhero fans a fresh look at characters long since in need of a rejuvenation. I am certainly excited about the prospect of a new live action Superman movie or maybe even another Batman, but in the meanwhile I'll keep these animated series spinning in my player. The Batman Superman Movie is a one-of-a-kind, joyful experience. Video: How Does The Disc Look? Presented in its original 1.33:1 broadcast ratio, this is a most commendable transfer. Colors are fantastic and beautifully rendered, from the most brilliant greens to the darkest blues. Blacks are very deep and solid with consistently even and stable contrast. The finely-drawn animation is nice and sharp without any noticeable haloing. My only complaint might be a tad bit of graininess or grit, but that would be nitpicking. Overall this is an excellent transfer. Audio: How Does The Disc Sound? The art of producing soundtracks for television seems to have progressed nicely in the past several years, and this "mere" animated movie sounds much better than many films from the 70's and 80's. While limited to a Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo mix, this is a fine recording with well-defined and expansive dynamic range. There are a few left to right pans but overall separation is confined to the score. Dialogue is nicely recorded and reproduced, and balanced well with the music and all the biffs, bams and booms. There isn't much in the low end, but it still suits the material just fine. There are a couple of other stereo dubs included in French and Spanish, although while the case notes that there should be a Portuguese dub as well, it isn't here. Also provided are English Closed Captions and English, French and Spanish subtitles. Supplements: What Goodies Are There? With its short 61-minute runtime, I would have liked a bit more in the extras department. However, a couple of these are worthwhile, so I'll let it slide. The highlight is certainly A Conversation with Producer Bruce Timm. Mr. Timm is very well spoken and has some very interesting things to share, speaking on his influences and how much fun he's had putting this series together. Also included is The Art of Batman, a 3-minute series of storyboards, sketches and scenes from the film that is self-running. More fun can be had with Get the Picture: Batman and Get the Picture: Superman. Each feature is one to two minutes long and gives you a little vignette of someone's hand sketching out Batman or Superman. Rounding out the extras are the usual promotional items, including an extensive trailer gallery featuring Batman & Mr. Freeze: Subzero, The Batman Superman Movie, a couple of Scooby-Doo DVDs, and even a non-anamorphic 2.0 trailer for that stupid live-action Scooby-Doo movie. Hit the the Cast & Crew selection and all you'll find is a listing of the cast and crew but no bios or filmographies. DVD-ROM Exclusives: What do you get when you pop the disc in your PC? No ROM extras have been included. Parting Thoughts If you dig Batman or Superman and for some reason haven't seen this one, this should be your next purchase. Don't expect miracles, but it's the best darn thing television has seen in the way of animated comic book adventure. Easily recommendable at a nice price of $19.95. |
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