Batman: Mask of the Phantasm

Review by Jason Gaston

 

Hot on the heels of the phenomenal success of the Batman movies, FOX launched an animated series based on the adventures of the Caped Crusader but, instead of being a dumbed down kid-friendly fare for four-year-olds, Batman: The Animated Series quickly carved out an adult niche for itself on the struggling fourth network becoming the classiest show in its line-up even enjoying a brief stint in prime-time.

So, it was decided to give the cartoon version of Batman a shot at the big screen with the movie, Batman: Mask of the Phantasm. In it, Batman faces a war on two fronts. First, he must stop the new villain, Phantasm, from killing Gotham City's criminal kingpins.... a crime that Batman himself is being accused of by a young and ambitious politician. Secondly, he confronts personal feelings of his own as an old flame of Bruce Wayne's returns to town... someone he loved so much, he almost gave up being Batman for her.

Mask of the Phantasm kept the spirit of the Tim Burton Batman movies while infusing it with the depth of the animated series. With Bruce Timm in charge, the movie was dark and moody and offered up a healthy dose of action, drama, and tragedy as we got a look at the days before Bruce Wayne became Batman for the first time.

Also, Mask of the Phantasm heralded the surprise return of the Joker to the big screen not as an enemy, but as a potential victim of the murderous Phantasm.

How ironic is it that a nearly dismissed "kid's cartoon" managed to nail Batman better than a hundred million dollar blockbuster did? From its film noir look to its brilliantly cast character voices to its rich story, Mask of the Phantasm is a movie that relies heavily on plot and not a lot on silly action.

In the years since, the animated incarnations of Batman again and again ran circles around the increasingly bungled live action movies.   For at last getting under the Batman's skin, it could be argued that Mask of the Phantasm is the best Batman movie ever.