Batman: Gotham By Gaslight Animated Movie Review

[Deffinition]

did anyone manage to guess the twist?

[bat39]

I just saw this movie and...I actually liked it!

It was a welcome change from the New 52 movies (there have been some decent ones...but they've kinda grown stale for the most part). I haven't read the original graphic novel so 19th century Batman was new to me. I loved the design - I felt the cowl in particular seemed like a darker version of Adam West's cowl. I also liked the depiction of Bruce Wayne and Batman. There wasn't TOO much brooding and angst. Batman wasn't the 'Batgod' but depicted as a fairly ordinary, albeit reasonably well-trained, man. Other than jumping from rooftops, I'd guess that his skillset is more in line with Sherlock Holmes than with most modern interpretations of Batman.

I also liked the relationships and character dynamics. This has got to be one of the best depictions of a Bruce-Selina romance I've seen (and that's saying something). I also liked the story thread with Alfred and the three 'Robins' - it was a neat twist that worked with the setting while paying homage to mainstream canon. Leslie, Hugo Strange, Harvey Dent, even Bullock, all worked pretty well in their Victorian avatars.

Major SPOILERS

Gordon being the Ripper was a fantastic twist. Not because it was totally unpredictable in story terms (there weren't a lot of suspects, and Harvey was an obvious red-herring) but in terms of the larger mythology. You don't expect Commissioner friggin' GORDON to be the bad guy! And a ruthless misogynistic serial killer to boot!

If I have one criticism of the movie, its that the ending was a bit abrupt. It would have been nice to see Bruce clearing his name, and whether or not Gordon would be publicaly exposed as the Ripper. Would we end up with a TDK-like situation where they have to preserve Gordon's memory or Gotham will lose hope? Will the city lose hope if it turns out the Commissioner was a serial killer? That would leave more work for Batman and the developing 'Bat-family' for sure!

I hope they return to this particular continuity for a sequel. I think these versions of Bruce, Selina and the Robins definitely deserve another story.