Movie Review - Batman: Return Of The Caped Crusaders

Batman

Return Of The Caped Crusaders

2016

Warner Bros. Animation / DC Entertainment : Warner Bros. / Warner Home Video

4.5 / 10

I am a big fan of the Batman '66 comic so when I saw this naturally I thought all my birthdays had come at once...  Damn, birthdays have gotten worse!!!

This is nothing but a poor imitation of the '66 series.  Granted the vocal talents of Adam West, Burt Ward, and Julie Newmar was a wise choice though only Ward still had the youthful sound.  I am sorry to say that West and Newmar both sounded as though they were having trouble getting a sentence out while breathing...  Then we get to the vocal talent of the other villains.  Jeff Bergman was responsible for killing the Joker; he tried so hard to carry off Ceasar Romero's voice, though by halfway through his first scene it was evident he didn't have the talent to carry it off.  Both William Salyers as Penguin and Wally Wingert as the Riddler just used their villains most recognisable vocal - so for the Penguin, it was "Wark!  Wark!  WARK!" and for the Ridler, it was his laugh.  One of the better vocals was Lynne Marie Stewart as Aunt Harriet and the worst voice was Thomas Lennon as Cheif O'Hara - If you thought Stafford Repp's "Begorrah" was bad just wait till you hear this one... I nearly hit stop at this point.

Then there was the story, though the plot and premise were solid it was the incidentals which spoilt it.  The constant in-jokes which parodied the original series got a little tiring.  The worse part was that most of the jokes just weren't funny.   Though, I did like the idea of this Batman going Dark Knight, though it could have been done much better.  One of the best parts of the story was when Batman see's three catwomen - Julie Newmar, Lee Merriwether and Eartha Kitt (her voice is spot on).

There are two heinous crimes that the writers and director Rick Morales cannot be forgiven for...

There is no Narrator's voice, "Meanwhile, back at stately Wayne Manor..."  He is there, but in such a limited manner they may as well not have used him at all.

Worse still Robin NEVER say's, "Atomic Batteries To Power; Turbines To Speed!"

On the whole, the animation is okay, though the CGI cars stand out, which isn't a good thing.  This is not one of Morales' best-directed films as the pace is all over the place and gives the movie a rambling and disorganised feeling.

I would stay away from this one if you're a Batman fan, especially of the cheesy '66 series.  Buy the original movie or rewatch the series as both are a hundred times better than this film.