Exhausted, Brutal, and Utterly Brilliant
IMDb rating: 9/10
I went in expecting another botched DC disaster after those miserable Crisis movies, which nearly killed my faith in DC animation entirely, but this adaptation of the legendary Knightfall comic arc completely shatters expectations and blows the doors off.
Anson Mount nails the vulnerable, bone-weary exhaustion of a Batman running purely on fumes and old age, capturing that exact emotional weight so brilliantly. Facing off against him is Michael Mando’s chillingly complex Bane, who brings a terrifyingly cerebral edge rather than just mindless muscle.
The production is completely elevated by stunning, gorgeous 2D animation and savage, breathless action sequences, particularly during that jaw-dropping, brutal climax.
My only real grievance is the criminal runtime because it simply vanishes way too fast, leaving me starved for more of this chaotic brilliance, desperately wishing they had expanded it into a longer feature.
8.5/10: Part one sets an exceptionally towering bar for the trilogy, and I am already entirely ravenous for parts two and three to arrive.
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