Today it is my privilege to review the first (and so far only) animated superhero film to have a theatric release. Batman: Mask of the Phantasm was directed by Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski and stars Kevin Conroy as Batman, Dana Delany as Andrea and Mark Hamill as the Joker. The film was originally intended to be direct-to-video, but it was bumped up to be shown in theaters at the last second. Ultimately, the creators only had eight months to work on the movie, but they did have a budget of $6 million. It was released to a limited amount of theaters on Dec. 25, 1993, and only earned $5.6 million in the box office. This is partly because Warner Bros. didn't spend any money advertising it. But although it was a box office bomb, it did well in video sales and has since become something of a cult classic — especially after the beautiful Justice League Unlimited episode, "Epilogue."
As a kid, I didn't like this movie very much, and that was mostly because of Andrea. I just didn't like the idea of Batman ever having a girlfriend. But as I've grown older, I've come to accept and even appreciate Andrea. I did have to do a double take, though, because I forgot she was voiced by Dana Delany, who later voiced Lois Lane in Superman: The Animated Series.
The movie opens a bit on the slow side, but it never falls into the "bad" category. It mostly feels like a dressed up episode of the regular series. Until the flashbacks begin. Then everything becomes amazing. I loved seeing the younger versions of all the characters from Bruce to Alfred to even a slightly slimmer Harvey Bullock still in a blue police uniform. And most importantly, I loved how reminiscent this whole movie felt to Batman Year One. This was 20 years before a direct adaptation of that comic would be made, and until then, this was as close as it got. And even today, I the idea of a pre-Batman Bruce still holds up very well. It was great watching him struggle to intimidate the crooks on his first outing, and get into an intense police chase later on. That book set the standard for all Batman stories up through Christopher Nolan's trilogy.
I'll raise the score to a 7 for the haunting and tragic scene of Bruce pleading with his dead parents at their grave. They never asked him to be a vigilante, but he made a vow shortly after they died and he has dedicated his life to that vow. But now he's fallen in love and realizes he can't have both. It's tragic to watch this almost delusional man beg his parents forgiveness for not avenging their deaths. He cries, "I didn't count on being happy!" So sad. I would like to one day see a Batman story where he's able to have a loving family and still fight crime, but most people would probably think that's boring because Batman would lose his "edge."
As sad as that scene was, it only makes this next scene more powerful. After Andrea leaves him, Bruce becomes the Batman. It's beautifully shot in a dark bat cave, and after Alfred hands him his mask, he utters a rare "My God!" and it's completely justified in this moment. Bruce didn't just put on a scary costume — he became Batman. I get chills every time.
In the past 20 years, I've been able to get over my Batman-can't-have-a-girlfriend rule. But one thing about this movie still bugs me to this day, and that is the inclusion of a pre-Joker mobster. The Joker requires — demands — an absence of an origin story. I don't want to know a single thing about him before he became the Clown Prince of Crime. It's just not as fun that way. Now, I was very happy that he was involved in this movie — it would have been rather dull without him — but I wish they didn't have to show him before he got his skin bleached. I have to take off a point for this.
Coincidentally, it is the Joker who brings the score back to an 8. We see two versions of his laughing gas, and both are incredibly creepy. The first is on an old man that simply kills him with a grotesque grin on his face. The reveal was great and the image was haunting. The second victim was a younger man, who could not stop laughing uncontrollably — even after doctors gave him a sedative. This version of the Joker toxin tortuously kept him alive long enough for Batman to get some information from him, but it really seems like he died shortly after. This was a PG movie, so they had to keep all deaths as ambiguous as possible, but I like to think this guy died, too.
And as fate would have it, the Joker provides the final point for his final laugh in the movie. The theme park is exploding, the Phantasm is holding the Joker, and he knows he's going to die. Instead of panicking and trying to escape, he begins laughing maniacally like this is exactly what he wanted all along. Considering the situation and including the amazing music provided by a choir, I say this is the best Joker laugh of all time. This was Mark Hamill in his prime, and he knocked it out of the park.
So yeah, that was Batman: Mask of the Phantasm. I really didn't have that much to say about it, but that's because everything was so good. The slow parts were pretty much an above average episode of the TV show, and the great parts were really great. The movie is not perfect by any means, though, which I think can be entirely blamed by the unusually short schedule they had to make it. This tight deadline required two different directors and four different writers, ultimately making the movie not quite as tight as it could have been. But on the whole, it is a great movie and a must-see for every Batman fan. It's also an essential viewing for fans of Batman: The Animated Series, as it gets closer to Batman's origin than any other episode. And even though Warner Bros. completely messed up the whole theatrical-release thing, this movie did provide the template for many successful direct-to-video movies for both DC and Marvel. I'd like to one day review all of them. Let's see how long it takes me.
Final score: 9
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