batman: mask of the phantasm - en

dear dc, bob kane and warner bros; you must have written and filmed hundreds of brilliant pieces of art through years but batman: mask of the phantasm may be the most underrated product of yours.

from the jokes of joker to the wisdom of alfred, with this movie i realized i have missed the batman: the animated series which has a huge impact in my childhood cartoon-watching era. it’s not so uncommon to see batman’s love life in comics or in movies yet i think andrea beaumont character is the deepest bruce wayne lover we have ever seen.

from intriguing and confusing beginning to the sad, heartbreaking and goosebumps-giving end; movie was able to give what batman truly is to us, to the audience. i also believe that the usual plot twists that are easily foreseeable from the beginning in these type of animated movies didn’t take place here. yes, there is a plot twist but it is a real one, a touching one and a clever one.

i just loved how the director and writers have fit the depressing atmosphere of gotham, batman’s understanding of vengeance, his never-ending relationship with joker and batman’s will to not kill him. bruce’s inner world, his broken soul, the way he sees his parents and somehow have a relationship with them, and lastly and maybe the most importantly the most realistic and romantic portrayal of batman / bruce wayne, yet they somehow did all of these in 75 minutes only. saucing it up with a dense and strong soundtrack, a brief but gentle window to batman’s origin as a fear factor and his identity’s birth were just some other crucial aspects of the movie.

in short; batman: mask of the phantasm is what i call an wonderful animated movie for sure.t every batman enjoyer should see it.