For the last couple of years, Warner Premiere,has been releasing direct to video animated features of DC Comics superheroes. Some of these are great (the superb DC: The New Frontier) and the not-so-good (Superman: Doomsday). The most recent release, Superman/Batman: Public Enemies, is right behind The New Frontier in successfully bringing comic book thrills to home video. On a high definition screen, the Blu-Ray version is incredible.
But without a great story, the pretty colors wouldn’t mean as much. Based on an story from Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuiness’run on the Superman/Batman comics title, it asks you to accept that, in a time a great national crisis, the American electorate chooses as president, Lex Luthor. Okay, yeah, that’s really impossible to swallow, even by comic books standards, but if you can just go with it, it sets up the title characters as the only DC heroes standing against Luthor’s schemes in the White House. Once I forced myself past that, the story took off. We see DC’s top characters in fine form as they are forced to fight other superheroes, deputized to enforce the president’s “policy” against “vigilantes” as well as supervillains aiming to collect the billion dollar reward offered for the capture of the Man of Steel. This makes for a series of the most well-executed battles I’ve seen in an animated feature of this kind. I was actually cheering at one point as Supes shows just how much of a threat he is to those seeking to keep him from pursuing truth, justice and the American way.
And the actually more popular Batman is on an equal footing in the heroics department–never has animation managed to show just how cool the Dark Knight is, and best of all, both roles are voiced by the actors who are most closely associated with the animated heroes, Kevin Conroy and Tim Daley reprise their roles as Batman and Superman that they created on their respective animated series produced by Bruce Timm. The writing is sharp and it’s a pleasant surprise to have the characters actually trading quips in ways true to their personalities. This is a great reminder of why these superguys are the world’s finest.
I’ll have to look this one up. If it has any of the wit and creative story telling of “World’s Finest” I’ll definitely enjoy.
You going to see Zemeckis’s take on Dickens?
Comment by Ashley — November 6, 2009 @ 2:25 am |
I shudder at the thought of a motion capture Jim Carrey animated avatar doing the Scrooge thing. Zemeckis’fascination with 3-D continues but spectacle is the only attraction this might hold for me and that’s not enough right now.
Comment by Alex — November 6, 2009 @ 2:29 am |
It kinda freaks me out that a screwball like Carrey was asked to play such a dour and proper character. I’m afraid he may ham it up too much. But I’ll probably go see it anyway, for 3 reasons:
1. Keith’s never been to an IMAX film, and he says he wants to see this one. (I was holding on to my IMAX money for the re-release of Beauty and the Beast myself. But whatever.)
2. Sheer curiosity.
3. I love this story. I read it every year. I’ll watch just about any version of it.
Though, to be brutally honest, if I wind up not liking it, I still have my favorite versions to fall back on. The one starring Patrick Stewart is, to me, closest to the book.
And for light-hearted fun, you can’t beat Michael Caine as the old skinflint himself in the Muppet version of the story.
But, who knows? Carrey may hang up his goofball hat for a while and surprise us all.
Comment by Ashley — November 6, 2009 @ 2:17 pm |