Batman: Year One - A Magnificent Adaptation
This film is as great is it's poster.
Yes. I'm on a DC Animation marathon, and no one can stop me. I absolutely love this movie. After 64 minutes, this instantly became one of my favourites of the DC animated films. Yes, this film is just about an hour long, and still manages to tell it's story without feeling crammed.
We have seen the dark knight use his professional skills to scare people and fight injustice. But it's a nice change of pace to see a more amateur Batman who's still figuring out how to do this. In the beginning, he returns to Gotham from his 12 year long trip after getting trained from the League of Shadows.
Now one thing I love about this movie is that the protagonist isn't Batman. It's actually Jim Gordon. Now, he isn't completely the protagonist because the film doesn't show everything from his perspective. Because there are scenes in this film where Bruce contemplates his choice to become Batman, and Gordon doesn't know Batman's real identity.
Gordon narrates the story a bit, but it doesn't distract too much because his voiceover compliments the visuals accompanying it. But his character and thought process reminded me very much of Detective Sommerset from David Fincher's masterpiece "Se7en."
Gotham and the unnamed city in Se7en are very similar. They're dirty, grungy and ridden with crime. And Sommerset and Gordon are very similar. They both think about bringing a child into this apathetic world, and how they regret it in some way. It's a way to make the city feel actually dangerous.
Gordon has a pregnant wife, a corrupt boss, and his job to focus on. He gets beaten by thugs, and they warn him that his family is in danger. We feel for him instantly. Gordon is just a cop trying to do the right thing, and he didn't ask for any of the shit he's going through. The amount of crime taking place in Gotham leads Gordon to question his choice of even being a cop. That's how bad it is.
But the arrival of Batman is a relief for Gordon. There's a great scene ripped right out of the comics where Bruce gets the inspiration for the "bat" part of "Batman." And even Batman isn't perfect. The first night he goes out crime fighting, he sort of succeeds, but also fails. It goes awry.
In another great action set piece, Batman seems like he's succeeding. But then he gets surrounded by cops and has to hide behind a pillar that is getting shot at repeatedly. And he has to find creative ways to get out of such situations. But we also see how intelligent he is, and how he's improving at this gig.
Even Gotham feels like a character. There are dark alleys, empty streets at midnights, neon signs and underage illegal businesses. The film doesn't overly explore these, because that's not the main story, but the world building is really well executed, and it feels like a real city that has no chance of hope.
Now I didn't particularly understand the inclusion of Catwoman in this story. She doesn't know Bruce, and she barely knows Batman. Her character adds nothing to the story or the characters. Her design looked pretty nice, but she had no purpose.
As for the ending, I really enjoyed it. I've been exhausted by seeing super people flying around and beating big monsters with no emotional weight. But here, we don't have that. Characters fight using hand-to-hand combat, and every punch and kick and gunshot feel painful.
The final scene ends with some sort of hope. Gordon feels more hopeful that this city is now in better hands, and calls Batman his friend, without even saying his name. It's emotionally powerful.
Batman: Year One explores an amateur Batman getting used to this new lifestyle, and Gordon's perspective on his city and his internal struggles which is something unique to the Batman mythology.
Thank Your for Reading
I hope you liked this blog review, please make sure to comment about your thoughts on the film, or on how I could possibly improve. Also follow my YouTube Channel "Detox with P-Talks Official" where I analyse movies and do other movie related content along with short films, etc.
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