MovieChat Forums > Batman: The Long Halloween (2021) Discussion > Very, very good

Very, very good

posted 2 years ago by DoctorThirteen (13936)
6 replies | jump to latest

Originally released over two parts, this animated adaptation of Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale's acclaimed series comprises the third and fourth entries in the new 'Tomorrowverse' continuity. Over the course of 12 months Batman attempts to identify and apprehend a serial killer known only as 'Holiday', who's targeting mob figures. At the same time the police and the D.A.'s office are working to bring down Carmine Falcone, head of Gotham's largest crime family. In an effort to achieve both, Batman forms an alliance with Capt Jim Gordon of the GCPD and crusading district attorney Harvey Dent. But as the investigations progress side-by-side, events take their toll on the three men - and lead to a fall from grace greater than any could have imagined.

The voice cast led by Jensen Ackles as Batman are excellent, with Josh Duhamel as Harvey Dent, Billy Burke as Jim Gordon, the late Naya Rivera as Catwoman (the movie is dedicated to her) - plus the return of Alastair Duncan as Alfred. Ackles is a revelation. I like him but I never expected him to be so good as Batman; he absolutely nails it and I'm glad he's in for the long haul. The fight scenes are well choreographed (something DC animation excel in), the character designs are solid (no, they're not a direct copy of Tim Sale's - they were never going to be), and the whole thing feels very cinematic. I had a real strong feeling of deja vu watching this. Gotham City looks ripped straight from BTAS, and (especially in the scenes where it snows) the Burton films, with that mixture of 1940s-looking automobiles and modern tech; there's a strong Mask of the Phantasm vibe (mysterious figure bumping off hoods early in Batman's career), and of course there's a very strong reminder of The Dark Knight (hardly surprising, given TLH was one of Nolan's big inspirations).

There are a couple of things that raised an eyebrow,

Gordon giving Dent his own service issue pistol for protection; right, that was never gonna bite him...
and the fake-out regarding Holiday, where it's clearly a man throughout the movie - and then we get the revelation that in this version it was a woman all along

but they don't stop this from being good - to the point where I prefer it to the original. This could actually be this generation's Mask of the Phantasm. 8/10

[–] liscarkat (18373) 2 years ago

I've pretty much hated all Batman stuff after Adam West, but you've almost talked me into watching this.

[–] DoctorThirteen (13936) 2 years ago

If you do catch it I hope it doesn't disappoint!

[–] Reaperscout (605) 2 years ago

Wow. I kind of rank the Adam West Batman last since it's just a parody of Batman and everyone that worked on the show even clarified that it was pretty much just a parody. Everything after that (except for maybe Batman Forever and Batman & Robin) is "true" Batman. Sounds like you don't like the darker stuff and want more of the parody. The Adam West Batman is fun though, but I wouldn't say it's my favorite take on Batman. I'm more about Keaton, Bale, Affleck, and Pattinson. Plus some animated stuff like the 90's show and a few movies. I definitely liked The Long Halloween movie when it comes to animated movies.

[–] Reaperscout (605) 2 years ago

Well, the movie kept who the Holiday killer was in the comic, which I'm glad they did. I know they changed the identity of Hush in the Batman: Hush movie, and I was iffy on that. But I'm glad they didn't change who Holiday was in The Long Halloween movie. The only thing the movie really changed about the ending was that in the comic, it appears Batman never really figures out who Holiday was or it's left ambiguous, but in the movie, Batman managed to figure it out and knew for awhile, but just wanted to make sure he was correct by slowly eliminating other suspects.

Also, I they changed Catwoman/Selina in the movie. In the movie, she was more of an ally and went on to live with Bruce and Alfred, but in the comic she was still more of a villain/bad guy character or something in between (I'm not using a certain word since I don't like using it). I think they are trying to make Catwoman more of a good character/ally nowadays instead of bouncing between a good guy/ally and villain likes she's known to do for many, many years/decades.

But I had already familiarized myself with The Long Halloween storyline before watching the movie, so I knew who the killer was, or should've been. Plus I finally read the comic during that month wait in between the releases dates for Part 1 and 2. There was still the possibility of them changing the identity of Holiday, but every time I saw Holiday onscreen, I was just like: "Yeah, nice try on getting me to believe that's a man. It's really a woman. You can't fool me."

Oh, and the movie did remove/skip a holiday. Can't remember which one. Either St. Patrick's Day or April Fools' Day. It's whatever one involves The Riddler. Forgot the reason they skipped it/explanation they gave.

[–] DoctorThirteen (13936) 2 years ago

Well, the movie kept who the Holiday killer was in the comic, which I'm glad they did.

They did as far as she was concerned, although in the original there was at least one other (male) taking turns as Holiday. Here it seems it was just her.

Yes, Riddler was targeted on April Fool's Day.

[–] Reaperscout (605) 2 years ago

That's right. Falcone's son fakes his death and is a second Holiday killer in the comic. Harvey Dent's wife though was the original/primary one, but Alberto Falcone confesses to the killings and Dent's wife uses him as a scapegoat.

I compared both endings. They changed Dent's wife's motives. In the comic, her motive was to make Dent's work easier so that he could be home more often than at work since she felt he was working too much. In the movie, she was out for revenge. Also, Dent confesses to the murders/killing in both movie and comic, although I don't remember if he realizes he is covering for his wife. Alberto Falcone remains dead in the movie, so the movie has only one killer, while the comic sort of has two.

Oh, and if I remember correctly, the movie doesn't skip a holiday. They just altered the one The Riddler is a part of for the movie and do something different from the comic. But I can't remember the explanation for why they altered stuff and omitted Riddler.

But yeah. Alberto Falcone was some kind of second killer in the comic (can't believe I forgot that), but they removed that for the movie and altered stuff, including Dent's wife's motive for becoming Holiday. But at least they kept her being the primary Holiday killer.