 | | ▪ | RELEASED BY: | | WARNER HOME VIDEO | | | ▪ | ASPECT RATIO: | | 1.78.1 ANAMORPHIC WIDESCREEN | | | ▪ | AUDIO: | | ENGLISH AND JAPANESE DD 5.1 | | | ▪ | RUNNING TIME: | | 75 MIN | | | ▪ | RATING: | | 15 | | | ▪ | RELEASE DATE: | | 07/14/2008 | | | ▪ | REVIEW DATE: | | 07/08/2008 | | | ▪ | REVIEWED BY: | | SANDRA SCHOLES |
"It was just like that night in the alley Alfred, the closeness of the walls the gunfire. It seems I've been trying to stop those two bullets all my life." Introducing six short animations by some of the best animation studios around, all inter connecting to make a much larger more rounded story.
They show the Batman genre's success further by their resemblance to The Animatrix, and they will do to introduce The Dark Knight gaining the same burst of interest. Also this series of stand alone stories has the most recognised names in movie acting such as David McCallum of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. fame, Kevin Conroy who did the voice of Batman/Bruce Wayne, and Gary Dourdan of TV's CSI to name a few. Each story's animation style and feel will reach the viewer on a very personal level depending on their own taste. The first, Have I Got A Story For You by screenwriter Josh Olson who wrote A History of Violence gives the viewer a different kind of outlook on the Batman legend by having four skateboarding youngsters meet up and share their experiences of seeing Batman in Gotham City, each instance a story leaving the viewer to wonder whether they are elaborating them too much or actually telling the truth. The simplified characters belay the unsurpassable detail of the backgrounds, and the work that has gone into it. Batman's look is unique, his wings huge, ears Anubis like. The story is one of unforgettable proportions.
In Crossfire Greg Rucka tells of how the Gotham City police having trouble adjusting to Batman's presence in the city. One cop in particular, Chris is totally distrustful, calling him a vigilante, while his partner Anna sees him in a completely different light. This story is darker than the first, pushing the two characters into a demilitarized zone in the dead of night, having to cope with them being in the wrong place at the wrong time. This animation is raw, displaying great techniques of action and explosions that will catch the viewers’ attention.
Field Test has writer Jordan Goldberry show more of Batman's high-tech weapons that are not often extensively talked about in the series, but brought wonderfully to life here. This animation will be what fans of anime will be used to seeing, with an all-new look for Batman, his mask, eyes and cape giving him that air of deep mystery. Here a young Bruce Wayne meets Ronald Marshall, on the golf course he had built near a homeless shelter, despite a lady activist who tried to get the building stopped, and was killed in the process. Bruce is given a more boyish look showing a false impression of just being an ordinary guy when his true power within comes out at night in the face of his foes.
The action, intense drama and stark lighting add to the animation's charisma. The use of fluorescent colours gives it a futuristic look as it would in most anime Mangas, this wonderful short being no different.
In Darkness Dwells takes the viewer to the noir of Gotham's sewers to find the Killer Croc, a monstrous humanoid, who becomes more so after the other villain the Scarecrow uses the fear toxin on him to produce something more dangerous for the inhabitants of the city. The abstract, woodcut style of animation using sepia colours of ochre and viridian to convey the dark oppression of Gotham in this story is as shocking as it is great to witness as a viewer. The welcome addition of the Scarecrow, AKA Jonathan Crane is in an interesting minimalist tale of Batman's courage in darker times. Co-screenwriter of Batman Begins David S.Goyer does the character justice with his original story.
Working Through Pain, by award winning comics writer Brian Azzarello with Bruce Wayne in a more early episode of his time as the Batman who goes to see a woman named Cassandra who can help him to deal with his pain. This has flashbacks of him plunged into the depths of despair, his mind damaged, reason impaired and body wracked with pain.
The level of detail in the buildings is breathtaking, as is the entire animation.
In Dead Shot Emmy Award-winning writer Alan Burnett continues the chapters of Gotham Knight in this last story with villain Dead Shot who seeks out and kills his enemies at point blank range, leaving a single cartridge behind bearing the initials of his name.
Finding the Dead Shot could be tricky for Bruce, but as his trustee Butler and ally Alfred is on hand to aid him, it will not be too hard to track him down and bring him to justice.
Alfred's dry humour is brought to the fore perfectly by David McCallum's voice acting talent, taking on a more comical role to Bruce's brooding one, as the lone crusader for justice still has trouble getting over his parents being gunned down by a thug in an alleyway one night.
The last one ties in all the five previous to it, the CGI of all of the studios producing the very best work to date as far as the viewer will tell. It is amazing how each story has kept the comic book look so often seen in DC comics, and has been so popular to date. It will remind them of the quality of the graphic novels as well as introduce those into the cool world of Anime who might not be fully aware of it.
Executive Producer Bruce Timm has got the right people together for this animation, and this will be one that will stand the test of time with the viewers.
EXTRAS:
Audio Commentary for the movie.
IN SUMMARY:
Gotham Knight is a stunning collection of stories that bridge the gap between comic and movie – An epic movie for Batman appreciators.
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