Studio: DC/WB Animation
Director: Chris Palmer
Writer: Tim Sheridan
Producer: Jim Krieg, Kimberly S. Moreau
Stars: Jensen Ackles, Josh Duhamel, Naya Rivera, Troy Baker, Billy Burke, David Dastmalchian, Julie Nathanson, Jim Pirri, Jack Quaid, Fred Tatasciore, Titus Welliver
Review Score:
Summary:
Batman puzzles over a holiday-themed murder mystery with D.A. Harvey Dent and mob boss Carmine Falcone at the center.
Review:
The good thing about having read writer Jeph Loeb and artist Tim Sale’s seminal maxi-series ‘Batman: The Long Halloween’ back when it was released in the late ‘90s is that it was so long ago, I forgot who the mysterious ‘Holiday’ killer turns out to be. The bad thing about reviewing the first part of the animated adaptation over 20 years later is that I’m not sure which criticisms might stem from the source and which might be pinned purely on the movie. I suppose it doesn’t really matter if we simply accept “Batman: The Long Halloween – Part One” as its own entity regardless of what material it was working with. I just don’t want anyone counter-arguing with, “Well, that’s how it was in the comic book…” so consider this a mild disclaimer.
Although there are a couple of quick cameos, and I’m talking scant seconds while Batman walks down an Arkham Asylum hallway, “The Long Halloween – Part One” is not your usual rogues gallery romp thrusting Bats into a colorful adventure packed with signature villains. It’s a mobster murder mystery where Batman becomes a background player who isn’t even featured for much of the movie, which unsurprisingly turns into a very noticeable problem.
Someone in Gotham City is killing cronies connected to Carmine Falcone’s crime family. It starts on Halloween with Carmine’s nephew Johnny Viti, who not so coincidentally was about to turn state’s evidence against his uncle. The murders continue on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Eve, with events like the bombing of district attorney Harvey Dent’s house taking place in between. Harvey, Batman, and police captain Jim Gordon already had a secret alliance dedicated to taking down Falcone. Now they might have to become Falcone’s guardians until they can figure out who is behind the holiday executions and why these victims were targeted.
“Batman: The Long Halloween” takes place early in Batman’s career, but it’s not as early as the movie needs it to be to explain why the Caped Crusader seems like such an uncharacteristically inexperienced mistake-maker. In addition to having preexisting working relationships with Harvey and Gordon, several scenes confirm Batman has also previously tangled with Solomon Grundy, Calendar Man, Joker, and more. Relatively new to crime-fighting or not, this is still a Batman who has been around Crime Alley’s block.
Which is why it’s puzzling that we end up watching a confounded Batman following bad leads based on sketchy evidence and making false accusations based on poor deductions. Even if he hasn’t earned his ‘World’s Greatest Detective’ title yet, it sounds off to the ears to hear Batman say, “I was wrong,” which he does after hitting yet another dead end in his investigation. Compared to other characters, Batman doesn’t appear all that frequently to begin with, so it’s additionally strange for him to mostly melt into a bystander rather than being a consistently proactive presence in a movie with his name in the title.
Instead of giving Batman more meaningful minutes, “The Long Halloween – Part One” dedicates itself to a mafia motif that paints on plenty of “The Godfather” references. Suited men of a certain ethnicity hold “business” meetings in rooms shadowed by slatted blinds. Burly bodyguards throw rat-faced loudmouths down stairwells for disrespecting ‘The Boss.’ Someone even mentions “sleeping with the fishes.” It’s all about as subtle as the foreshadowing for Two-Face’s obviously upcoming origin, what with Batman proposing coin flips and Harvey Dent saying, “I’m of two minds here.”
Action consists almost exclusively of chases and shakedowns. Batman chases Catwoman. Batman chases a bombing suspect. One of Falcone’s men chases Joker. Batman chases Holiday. When a script plots out action beats and the only things changing from scene to scene are the names on either side of the word “pursues,” it’s time to think of some other form of excitement to slip into the story.
On the technical end of things, I wouldn’t say “The Long Halloween – Part One” looks quite like Tim Sale’s art style come to life, which might disappoint his fans. Sale’s designs mix with a bit of the “Batman: The Animated Series” look for a blend of animation that hints at street-level realism without sacrificing its cartoon origins. Jensen Ackles takes some getting used to as Bruce Wayne’s voice, though even after you acclimate, there’s still a burden on your ears to hear Batman and not “Jensen Ackles imitating Batman.”
As the first film in a two-part project, “Batman: The Long Halloween – Part One” doesn’t leave me on the edge of my seat for the follow-up. A mob-focused mystery spotlighting less popular people doesn’t hold a whole lot of intrigue considering Batman exists in a wide world of wilder possibilities. Apathy also doesn’t see any relief from things like a strange side story about Jim Gordon ignoring his kids, which I’d consider to be a waste of time if the film didn’t have an underlying theme about family. Speaking of ifs as well as apathy, if I forget to watch “Batman: The Long Halloween – Part Two,” I probably wouldn’t realize it until I stumbled across the sequel on Amazon or at Comic-Con somewhere down the line and remembered, “Oh yeah, I never did bother to find out how the whole thing concludes.”
Review Score: 55
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