I've explained my absenteeism to Nathan.
He's hosting this festering thing I call a website for free, he disserves that much. Later
on, I'll write something else for you guys, because you actually read this festering thing
I call a website. You disserve no less.
And Batman disserves no less than my full critical attention. So I'm going to do what (apparently) every good writer does in times of misery and bury myself in The Work.
Mask of the Phantasm has the honor of being the first super-sized Batman cartoon to do something right by the character. Most consider it the ultimate Batman theater experience, because those lucky bastards actually had money in their pockets when the movie hit theaters. Still, Phantasm is still quite the home video experience and, since I'm feeling lucky tonight, I'll go so far as to award it the title of Best Batman Movie Ever. And I'll tell you why, too...
A much more traditional Batman story than Return of the Joker, Phantasm begins with good ol' Bruce Wayne under the cowl and in the prime of his abilities. As we open, Batman (Kevin Conroy) bursts into a room full of mobsters to dispense some two-fisted justice. The head of the gang, one Chucky Saul (Dick Miller), makes a run for it...only to be murdered by a cloaked figure that appears out of thin air and claims to be the Angel of Death.
Batman arrives to late to save the mobster's life, but not to late to be spotted by the most annoying of all creatures: eyewitnesses. Batman becomes the number one suspect in the killing, and all those that follow. Seems this Phantasm (no one ever uses that name in the movie, but it's as good as any) is picking off a gang of old mob partners one by one. Why?
Well, if I told you that it would spoil the fun, wouldn't it?
But the real heart of this flick, the gooey chocolate center, if you will, concerns Bruce Wayne. Not Batman, Bruce Wayne. Because all of this, the murders, the Phantasm, even the hot young city councilman who wants to put Batman's head on a pike...all of this is connected to a girl from Bruce's past. The first and last great love of his life.
In flashbacks, we see a vision of Bruce as a college student. The Boy Billionaire who's just beginning to keep the vow he made to his long dead parents. So its only fitting that he meets Andrea Beaumont (Dana Delany) in a graveyard as she's talking to her dead mother. Andrea's brightness clashes with Bruce at first, but the two quickly grow close...so close in fact, that Bruce ends up questioning his vow, his quest, his whole reason for being. We see a moment when Bruce Wayne stood at a crossroads. And, for a moment, even I caught myself rooting for love to conquer all and for Bruce to choose the light.
Of course, it's not meant to be. No man can escape his fate, and Bruce's was decided the night his parents died. It's almost Greek when you think about it. Hell, it is Greek. All we need is a visit from Clotho to wrap things up in a nice little bow. This is not a happy story, because Batman is not a dance-and-sing kind of guy. In Batman's world, bright, happy futures die sudden, horrible deaths and are left out in the rain to rust until they crumble away.
I mean, what the hell else is the decayed Gotham World's Fair amusement park suppose to represent?
You'll see what I mean.
Some would call the movie's over-all message depressing, but I say "nay" to that, damned spot. Sure, Batman is, once again denied a bright and happy future, but that's not what Batman is about. Batman is about one man making a stand against all the dark things in society. Fighting, night after night, in a war that even he admits is hopeless. This is a movie about surviving the death of your dreams. About putting one foot in front of the other even if you have to walk alone.
And if you who think I'm reading too much into a cartoon, well, you can go copulate with yourself.
But enough of that "theme and symbolism" crap. What about the goddamn movie, right? Right. So, okay. I've just spent nine paragraphs gushing over the plot, so you know my feelings there. The stand out feature here is, once again, the excellent WB animation. It's not Return of the Joker material, but c'mon, it's 1993 here, people, and the animation never lets you down.
For you action buffs, there's the fabulous Batman vs. the GCPD chase scene to make you
drool. And for us smarmy literary types, there's a scene where young Bruce kneels before
his parent's grave, pleading with them to release him from his vow. Its a dark and
atmospheric slice of movie that goes deeper into Bruce's character than any movie, before
or sense. All of it beautifully rendered.
But I'm starting to gush so lets wrap things up. Kevin Conroy is the best Batman ever. Dana Delaney does a perfect Andrea. (She nails the verbal sparing between Andrea and Bruce perfectly). Best Supporting Actor goes to Efrem Zimbalist Jr., who lends his voice to Alfred, giving the gentlemen's gentleman the perfect sound. Stacy Keach's Phantasm-voice is appropriately spooky. And there's always Mark Hamill, playing the roll we so love him in.
On the production end, directors Eric Radomski and Bruce Timm keep the action moving right along while giving more than enough time for that character development mumbo-jumbo I seem to like so much. And though there are four writers behind this flick (Alan Burnett, Martin Pasko, Michael Reaves, and Bat-guru Paul Dini) two of them are (or were, as the case may be) series regulars and the other two know their stuff. Everyone understands the equation: great writing equal great movie. It's a simple formula. I guess Akiva Goldsman just trips over those two-syllable words.
If you love Batman, buy this movie. If you hate Batman, put down the Schumacher, step away, and go buy this movie. If you don't really give a crap about Batman you are obligated to buy this movie. Once you do, you'll see one of the most complex and fascinating characters of pop culture at his best.
Ever.
