Son of Batman is quite good. Being a big fan of Grant Morrison's run on the Batman comics, I thought I knew what to expect but avoided officially released clips all the same in order to prevent any surprises from being spoiled. Well, let me tell you right now that this is not a particularly faithful adaptation of Morrison's "Batman and Son," the original story arc from which the titular character of this animated feature was created.
The basic gist of the plot is there: a lover from Bruce Wayne's past, Talia Al Ghul, emerges from the shadows with a startling revelation: Batman has a 10 year-old son he never knew about. What follows that premise is an origin story for the latest Robin which is drastically different from the one from the comic, yet just as good - if not better.
I was wary at first, as the movie opens with an assault on the primary League Of Assassins' (or League of Shadows for you Nolanites out there) compound, leading to a brutal, action-packed sequence which, in my opinion, was a little over the top. I felt as though they were trying too hard to make Ra's Al Ghul look "cool" by exaggerating his ability to deflect bullets with a sword, but the ending of this sequence eventually won me over - as did the rest of the movie which followed.
This is a bloody cartoon, for anyone not aware. People are slashed by swords, blown away at extremely close range by shotguns, stabbed and just generally beat all to hell throughout. It never reaches the level of animated gore as seen in The Flashpoint Paradox, but it's not very far below it either.
Don't be surprised to see a 10 year-old boy wielding a sword and brandishing a handgun, either, because it happens often - and Damian uses these weapons to full effect. Additionally, the level of brutality this character endures is also quite shocking, so depending on your feelings about violence this movie may not be for younger viewers.
For the rest of us, however, this is a solid experience with only a couple of missteps. The vocal cast is generally pretty good, with Morena Baccarin (Talia), Thomas Gibson (Slade Wilson/Deathstroke), and Sean Maher (Dick Grayson/Nightwing) being the standouts. And while I have disliked Jason O'Mara's Batman voice in past features, he finally seems to be settling into the role quite nicely.
I suspect the voice of Damian Wayne himself will be divisive amongst fans of the comic book character. This Robin, more so than any other, is a complex character who can either be a sniveling little snot in one moment, or a noble warrior in the next moment. Being such a fan of the character, I was initially thrown off by Stuart Allen's voice performance, as this Robin has a particularly proper manner of speaking and, in my mind, I always read his voice on the page as more mature with a slight English accent to it. However, I am happy to say that Allen's performance completely won me over by the end of the movie, and he consistently hits all the right marks while portraying the character's youthful energy and extreme inner rage.
As for the visuals, the animation is fluid and oftentimes beautiful during the action scenes. The heavily stylized (and anime-influenced) character designs can sometimes look odd during the more still scenes, but I'd say that this movie fares a little better than Justice League: War in that regard.
All in all, this is a pretty adult tale presented in animated form for fans of the Batman mythos. There are a few instances where the content is unsuitable for younger viewers (for example: it's implied that Talia drugged Batman and had her way with him, which resulted in Damian's birth) so I would keep that in mind. The story is coherent and is a great take on Robin's origin, and anyone who recently became a fan of Deathstroke (Slade) through the Arrow tv show will also probably find a lot to like here.
em all anyways.
