Batman: The Killing Joke

photo courtesy of collider.com

     Batman: The Killing Joke is DC Animation’s latest feature film and the long-awaited adaptation of Alan Moore and Brian Bolland’s momentous graphic novel of the same name. Directed by Sam Liu and featuring fan-favorite animated Batman veterans Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill, The Killing Joke is a mixed bag combining a compelling and faithful reproduction of the source material with an asymmetrical, apocryphal first act. Nevertheless, it’s a must-see for Batman and comic fans alike.

SPOILER-FREE REVIEW

photo courtesy of cheatsheet.com

     The movie follows Batman and Batgirl/Barbara Gordon as they navigate the tricky waters of being crime-fighting partners. As their relationship threatens to unravel from internal and external pressures, the Joker steps in with a timely dose of chaos. In a bid for Commissioner Gordon’s soul and sanity, he does the unthinkable. Batman and Commissioner Gordon must step in to defeat him not only physically, but ideologically...before the Joker’s fatal, never-ending game ends in death.

     A couple things you should know up-front. 1) This movie is not for kids. No. Nuh uh. No way. Don’t be deceived by the fact that it’s an animated feature; TKJ is DC Animation’s first R-rated movie, and it earns that rating with violence, sex, and a multitude of adult themes. It’s not utterly repugnant, but it is serious—so leave the kids at home. 2) It’s also quite short, in keeping with expectations for an animated film.

photo courtesy of cosmicbooknew.com

     The movie is, in many ways, one of Warner Brothers’ best offerings in the animated DC lineup. It includes the unbeatable stand-out voice cast of Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill as the Batman dream-team from Batman: The Animated Series and the Arkham Asylum games, as well as accomplished voice actress Tara Strong as Batgirl/Barbara Gordon and Ray Wise as Commissioner Gordon.

     Also on par with previous DC films is the stellar quality of animation. It has a distinctive style from their usual stuff, having been modeled after Bolland’s original artwork. It may not quite measure up to his lofty bar, but it manages to be exceptionally enticing, chilling, and frequently haunting in its own right.

photo courtesy of theverge.com

     While we could discuss whether or not it does justice to the original comic in its particulars (and we will), in general the film seems to take nothing for granted; it’s reverent and intentional—though it does make bold choices here and there. Such reverence, in any case, is due, because Moore’s comic is one of the most well-regarded graphic novels in comic history. It has served as the basis for many a Batman adaptation (traces of it are all over The Dark Knight, for instance), so it only seems appropriate that it finally receive a fair shake at a direct adaptation.

     The source material relates one of the most famous confrontations between Batman and his arch nemesis, and also shows the Joker at his most ruthless. Moreover, it offers an origin story for the Joker (one of several options), and is often seen as the definitive Joker story. Strangely, the origin story portion of the film, while borrowing from the graphic novel, is generally inferior in quality to the rest of the film. The writing goes from mature and sophisticated in the “present” to clunky and exposition-filled in the “past.” But such is life when you have to communicate a lot of information in a short span of screen time.

Joker before all the madness and killing and stuff. photo courtesy of moviepilot.com

     Unlike some of your favorite Batman escapades, this movie has (mostly) no flash and no bang—just a moral and ideological battle. It deals with a truly, truly horrendous subject matter and deals with themes that are both ponderous and profound. The true gravity of the Joker’s actions is seen and felt, and the consequences are allowed play out before our eyes. The Killing Joke plays like a horror production, comparable to American Horror Story or Criminal Minds for its circus vibe and its insight into the Joker’s fractured psyche (respectively).

     But while TKJ honors its comic roots by exploring that grim territory in its latter half, the first half brings something else to the table—a prologue centering on Batgirl. This is mainly to fill space, because the source comic apparently doesn’t fill a feature film length—and it’s still short! The creative choices made in the first half are bold and respectable, and do make an effort to bring a new level of meaning to the rest of the film. Ultimately, however, the filmmakers fail to capitalize on the opportunity; they set it up, but they don’t bring it home in the second half. The result is a movie that feels more like two, separate character studies than one, cohesive work of art. The first half comes very close to being meaningful, and is not entirely tonally inappropriate, but it doesn’t end up working.

     FINAL VERDICT: TKJ is a comic adaptation that deals in the great depth and moral profundity of its source material… buuut also indulges in an interesting but tangential side story. So is it worth your time and money? A casual viewer will perhaps be shocked by the movie’s brutal subject, but should enjoy it well enough if properly warned. For a Batman enthusiast, it’s required viewing on principle alone.

photo courtesy of denofgeek.us

SPOILERY DELICIOUSNESS

     Spoilers allow us to be a bit more specific about the disconnect between the two halves. I’m not one of those who’s utterly offended by the fact that Batman has sex with Batgirl; it’s an audacious, deliberate choice with obvious and scandalous moral implications. I think that’s what it was intended to do. It might have, if fleshed out, proved to complicate and further deepen the tragedy that Barbara Gordon undergoes—from Batman’s perspective. But for that to work (as in, for that to serve as an appropriate first chapter for the film as a whole) it needs to have some kind of payoff toward the end of the film.

     We get something close to that when Batgirl rescues Batman from new crime boss Paris Franz, and again when Batman visits her in the hospital post-tragedy. And while that last scene should inform Batman’s subsequent quest for justice, it just doesn’t seem that by the end of the film, Batman’s quest is really about their romantic involvement—it’s about his destructive relationship with the Joker, and his desire to see it stop before someone (else) gets hurt. The other stuff, fascinating though it may be, feels tacked on by the time the movie runs its course.

photo courtesy of screenrant.com

     Consequently, the movie seems arbitrarily split into two: the first half being a new and different Batgirl movie, the second being Batman: The Killing Joke. If I had to hazard a guess, I’d say that the reason there’s no connection to the romantic subplot in the second half is because the writers didn’t want to interrupt the flow of the source material once it had begun. In other words, it doesn’t fit (which is a bit ironic considering having extra room is the reason the subplot is included in the first place).

     Importantly, the movie does capture that fascinating and foreboding relationship between Batman and the Joker. Batman, who earnestly tries to reach out to the Joker, even after everything that has happened, hoping to avoid their mutual destruction. The Joker, who seems to sober up and truly consider the offer, though he turns it down in the end. Such is the stuff of comic greatness. 

photo courtesy of screenrant.com

     And in the particulars, the movie does some justice by the graphic novel. It often reproduces specific panels with painstaking accuracy, albeit with a slightly nuanced visual style. It’s also careful to include much of the original dialogue, especially the fan-favorite lines about “one bad day” and the past being “multiple choice.” Joker’s song, interestingly enough, is one area where the leap from page to screen actually removes something from the equation; the Broadway-esque performance feels more laughable and oddball than terrifying and unhinged.

     But with such a beloved graphic novel, what can you do? Any attempt at adaptation will meet controversy and challenge, but we applaud their efforts nonetheless. If nothing else, Batman: The Killing Joke is a flattering extension of source material’s legacy.

photo courtesy of superherohype.com