Batman: Under the Red Hood

Batman: Under the Red Hood, the dark and disturbing new animated feature from Warner Bros. Pictures, brings the Caped Crusader face to face with his greatest failure: the death of Jason Todd a.k.a. the second Robin. This story arc, Death in the Family, serves as the foundation for Under the Red Hood and the mysterious identity of this new criminal stalking Gotham’s underworld.

Even if you’re not familiar with the comics Under the Red Hood gets you up to speed. Providing enough background information through tastefully done flashback scenes the film will keep most Bat-fans up on the plot. Although this is a PG-13 “cartoon” I would recommend NOT showing this to young children since the dark subject matter and brutality throughout this feature goes far beyond your normal Saturday morning fare.

The animation and sound are superb; fluid battle scenes and a great soundtrack are overall highlights of the film. The action is intense and violent, an endless waltz of fists and gadgets fill the screen as Batman clashes with his foes. These high production values make me wish that Under the Red Hood had come to theaters before being released to DVD/BR first.

The voice acting initially shocked me since neither Kevin Conroy nor Mark Hamil of the original animated series voice Batman and the Joker. It took me about ten minutes to adjust to the new voices. Regardless, the new Joker (John DiMaggio) was a pleasant surprise. Downplaying the villain’s insanity didn’t take much from a pretty dark and heavy tale. Fanboys will likely enjoy the inclusions of Ra’s al Ghul, the Black Mask and an all-around menagerie of Gotham foes. Those without the caped love affair will keep watching anyways. The pace doesn’t let up.

If you are a Batman fan Batman: Under the Red Hood belongs in your DVD/BR collection without question. Fans familiar with just the movies or with passing interest in the comics would be better off making this a rental.