WARNING!!!! SPOILERS!I had the privilege of seeing this late last year. And I instantly fell madly in love with it. I'd of course heard of the graphic novel/comic by Frank Miller, but, having never been that big of a comic book reader, I'd never read it. But randomly a friend showed both parts of this excellent adaptation and it just blew me away. The action, the music, just everything about it. I not only bought the deluxe edition DVD but also got the comic itself and its sequel,
The Dark Knight Strikes Again. So far, I've enjoyed them immensely, too.
As with
The Phantom, I'll just list the cool stuff I liked about it. Spoilers ahoy!
-The fact that elderly Bruce is now a thrill-chaser essentially trying to get himself killed, and is a race car driver.
-The retro "futuristic 80's" styles seen on some characters, especially the Mutants.
-Bruce's encounter in Crime Alley with the two Mutants and how he basically doesn't do anything but
still makes them back down!
-The fact Alfred is still around somehow. Jesus, how old is that guy...?
-Batman's comeback. Montage of asskicking, away! I especially liked the scene with the pimp in the cab. It was obviously a reference to a similar scene in
Magnum Force, but comes to a different conclusion thanks to Batman interfering.
-The Mutants. They're hilarious and terrifying at the same time. Especially their slang.
-The Mutant leader. Just everything about him. For starters, for a huge musclehead he's surprisingly articulate and intelligent, and I rather liked his repeated references to wanting to eat Batman and Gordon. Truly a scary villain.
-The fight scenes. Batman vs. the Mutant leader (both times), Batman vs. the SWAT team, Batman vs. the Joker and Batman vs. Superman.
-When the Joker wakes up. "Batman... darling!"
-Superman being Reagan's yes-man, but still managing to retain some of the qualities that make him Superman.
-The fact the story sticks it to both liberals and conservatives and takes a sort of middle ground politically. You've got bleeding heart idiots like Wolper, but then you also have the rather unflattering depiction of Reagan as a hypocrite, with a warmonger hiding behind his good ol' boy persona, although it's very subtle.
-The new Robin. I wasn't sure I'd like her at first, but she grew on me.
-The Joker killing Dr. Wolper with the broken coffee mug. The Joker's evil and all, but I hated Wolper.
-The fact Bruce and Selina still apparently love each other, even in their old age.
-The fact Batman still visibly has to struggle against his younger opponents; I was concerned that they'd pay only lip service to his age, but, surprisingly, they actually used it as a hindrance for him in almost all of his fights, except for the one with Superman (where he wore a suit of power armor). It was very refreshing and realistic.
-Rob and Don. Whether they're Mutants or Neo-Nazis, they're hilarious.
-Batman's rescue of the Ridley boy and his high-altitude interrogation of the surviving Mutant from the scene. Classic Batman.
-The Joker's restrained, dry humor. It's interesting seeing him almost bored in his old age - that is, until the amusement park, where he finally gets to confront Batsy again, and goes completely bonkers.
-Batman finally losing his patience with the Joker and killing him. "All the people I've murdered by letting you live!" It's about dang time! Yeah, I know, Batman isn't supposed to kill, blah, blah, blah, but c'mon, he has a point... and it couldn't have happened to a better guy!
-And lastly, call me touchy-feely, but the bit near the end where Batman and Gordon manage to get the Gothamites (even the surviving Mutants!) to stop fighting and cooperate to save their city. It showed how there can be hope even in the darkest of hours.