PopHorror Let's Get Scared
I have always been a Batman fan and have enjoyed most of the animated films based on several different comic book story arcs that have been released recently. I always dug the Knightfall storyline from the 90s and have hoped for years that it would be adapted into an animated feature, so I was super excited when I heard that DC was finally doing a film based on the arc.
I watched Batman: Knightfall Part 1: Knightfall the other night and went into it hoping for the best. It’s a huge story arc that went on for years in the comic book, so I was curious as to how the folks behind the movie were going to adapt it since there was so much to cover.
So, did I end up digging it as much as I hoped I would, or in the end did I feel like Bruce Wayne did after his brutal beating at the hands of Bane once the end credits started to roll?
Keep reading to find out…
Synopsis
After years of planning, Bane frees all the inmates of Arkham Asylum and Batman-who isn’t in the greatest mental or physical shape at the moment-runs himself ragged trying to recapture them, making himself easy prey for Bane, who promises to break him and take over Gotham City.
I dug this movie a lot and it was just as good as I hoped it would be. It stays close to the source material for the most part, and I thought that it was just a fun movie that had a lot going for it in general. The premise works, and even though the people behind it changed a few things from the comic book version they weren’t big enough to alter the overall story (and in fact simplified a few things). If you aren’t familiar with the story all you need to know is that Batman is not in the greatest of health and Bane-who is obsessed with him-plans on taking advantage of the situation and taking Bats out of the game and taking over the entire city. It’s a great story arc and one of my favorites from the 90’s comic books, and the filmmakers do a fantastic job of bringing the story to the screen.
One of the things I really liked is that the movie does Bane justice and he is done the way he is supposed to be done. He’s highly intelligent, tough as nails, and is an extremely scary and brutal person. Michael Mando (Spider-Man: Brand New Day, King Ivory) does an amazing job voicing the character and brings the character to life perfectly. Bane is a monster of a man who enjoys brutally killing anyone in his way and is a perfect foil to Batman. He’s one terrifying guy that you wouldn’t want to meet one night in a dark alley, and Mando really outdoes himself playing the part because from this point on I will always hear the voice that he uses here when reading Bane’s dialogue in the comic book in my head because that is how fabulous he is in the role.
I also dug the fact that the movie is brutal as Hell. It’s not for kids as it tackles a lot of adult subject matter and trust me when I say that there are a lot of violent deaths in the movie. The opening scene has Jean Paul Valley aka Azrael violently slaughtering some criminals in a variety of bloody and gruesome ways, and I loved every second of it. We also have Bane tearing people apart (literally) several times, and these scenes are loaded with blood and are extremely gruesome. Bane doesn’t play around when it comes to taking out his victims, and I had a blast watching him go to work.
If you enjoy movies that feature heads being crushed and spines being torn from bodies, then you have come to the right place. This isn’t your old school Adam West-styled Batman movie as the tone is as dark and bleak as they come and the film ends on a total downer that may upset some viewers that aren’t familiar with what happened in the original comic story arc.
The big fight between Bane and Bats is also awesome. It is extremely brutal and goes on for a while. It’s one-sided as Bane basically beats the mortal crap out of Batman for most of the fight, but it is a lot of fun and stays close to what happens in the comic book. You can’t help but feel sorry for Batman as he is utterly beaten to a pulp here and even though he tries to fight back he is just no match for Bane this time around no matter what he does. I remember a lot of readers being furious about him getting as beat down as much as he does here back in the day when the comic was released, and I have a feeling that a lot of viewers that aren’t familiar with the story are going to feel the same way. I can’t blame them though as it is tough watching your hero get the stuffing kicked out of him and then left on the ground in a bloody and broken heap.
As you can tell, I really dug this movie and wasn’t let down by it whatsoever. I think that they made the right changes that needed to be made from the source material and my only complaint is that Bane’s three main henchmen didn’t make an appearance in the film. I’m looking forward to seeing the next two installments and hope they are as good as this one was. Check it out if you are a fan of Batman-especially this story arc-as you won’t be disappointed.
