Listen to this post:
|
Like most teens that grew up in the 90s, I was a huge fan of Batman: The Animated Series as we couldn’t believe that such a big budget, high quality Batman series was coming on during TV’s prime time hours and wasn’t mainly made for kids (of course they could watch it but wouldn’t really understand it). It was the closest thing the US had to having an anime series and we loved it.
So naturally a feature film would have to come of it, and after Warner Brothers decided from making it a made-for-TV movie to a theatrical one in 1993, we got Batman: Mask of the Phantasm, which took everything fans loved from the series and made not only one of the best Batman tales ever, but one of the best films ever made, animated or otherwise.
When I think about it, the story seems to be very loosely based on Batman: Years One and Two, and starts off with a spooky vigilante called the Phantasm taking out some of Gotham City’s greatest and oldest gangsters, as well as anyone associated with them. Of course it’s up to Bruce Wayne/Batman (the late and forever great Kevin Conroy) to figure out who the Phantasm is and what they’re after.
In the middle of all of this, an old flame of Bruce’s named Andrea Beaumont (Dana Delany) comes to town which begins to flood Bruce’s mind with flashbacks of the past when he first met her and eventually fell in love, all while he was working to someday become Batman, and the two of look to rekindle that relationship in the present.
Naturally this causes problems as now Bruce is torn between finding the Phantasm before they hunt down one of the last people on their list, The Joker (a perfectly cast Mark Hamill), or settling down with Andrea and giving up being the dark knight forever.
I was so glad to receive this on 4K Blu-ray as this is one of my all-time favorite films as well as a beloved Batman story. It’s never looked or sounded better than it does here as you can tell Warner Brothers took their time remastering it as it looks cleaned up without being too clean, and the HDR now makes the colors and lighting pop in all the right ways. Of course the audio has been revamped to include 5.1 Dolby HD to ring in the late (and always great) Shirley Walker’s incredible music score, the well written and acted dialogue, and sound effects nicely.
Sadly there’s only one special feature, but it’s one everyone will love called “Kevin Conroy: I Am The Knight” that’s a beautiful 30 minute or so tribute to the late voice actor that not only became the definitive voice of the caped crusader now, then and forever, but also changed the world with his kindness and presence in and out of the voice recording booth. From giving smiles and hope to people hurt in the 9/11 attacks while volunteering in a soup kitchen, to being a joy to know and work with, he is truly a star that will be forever missed.
It would’ve been really nice had they featured HBO’s”Behind the Mask – The Making of Batman: Mask of the Phantasm” from 1993 when the film was released. I remember recording it on my VCR when it premiered as I was super hyped about the movie and couldn’t wait to see it, and it would’ve been awesome to see it again on here.
That aside, this 4K release of Batman: Mask of the Phantasm is the best way to own and watch this amazing animated classic. It’s a practically perfect film from start to finish with an awesome all-star cast that play off each other well. Couple in a haunting and beautiful score from Shirley Walker, and a touching tribute to Kevin Conroy, and you’ll want to hop in your batmobile and race to pick this one up.