BATMAN: GOTHAM KNIGHT

Change is part of comic book characters -- even iconic ones -- as new artists want to put their stamp on the character and new writers demonstrate their creative directions for the character. Batman: Gotham Knight introduces a Japanese feel to Gotham's dark protector, as different anime artists illustrate each of the six interwoven stories here. I wish I could have said the results were better.

Anime has created some wild visuals before, but while their takes on Batman and other Gotham regulars (Commissioner Gordon, Killer Croc, Scarecrow, Deadshot) are different, they're not memorable or particularly inspired. Sure we see Bruce Wayne as a typical cool anime-star teen, or Batman wearing different types of body armor, but it's not wild or original enough to be memorable. The only real fun is in the opening story (a reimagining of a comic book tale) where a bunch of kids share their recollections of meeting Batman, turning him into a smoke-demon, a winged monster, and a robot.

The stories here aren't particularly inspired: Batman fights criminals, experiments with technology, and (in the weakest one) deals with pain while flashbacks show him, well, learning to deal with pain. I'm also surprised that with the Joker featured so prominently in the upcoming movie, the Clown Prince of Crime is absent here. He could have made quite an impression, whether he was like the homicidal mastermind from Naturo or the physics-defying Pierre Le Fou. Instead we have lots of mobsters, a giant reptile, a brief bit with the Scarecrow, and a deadly shooter.

Some of the action here is good, and the voice talent is solid. Overall, though, Batman: Gotham Knight is a letdown. If you're looking for a Batman fix while waiting for the new movie, I recommend the original animated series.

Overall Grade: C

Reviewed by James Lynch

WALL-E

Pixar has made some of the most amazing animated movies in recent years, and they continue their tradition of excellence with WALL-E. This film manages to find humor, romance, and wonder among some of the most depressing ideas of the future ever featured in a children's movie.

Sometime in the future, humanity has covered the Earth in so much waste (much with the Buy n Large company logo) that the planet cannot sustain life. So humanity bailed on the planet, boarding a spaceship and taking off for parts unknown. They did decide to clean up in their absence, leaving behind a Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-Class robot; we know him as WALL-E. This little robot has a torso that crushes garbage into square cubes, clamps at the end of its arms that can lift the cubes, and all-terrain caterpillar treads that let him zip around the ground and he makes piles of crushed garbage.

WALL-E also developed a personality. While going about his job, WALL-E brings a cooler to collect items he finds interesting. WALL-E has a pet cockroach (and not a cute anthromorphic critter, but a realistic-looking bug) that he feeds with a Twinkie. WALL-E gets nervous, shows curiosity, and has a morning routine that's the robotic equivalent of that cup of coffee to wake up. WALL-E is lonely, watching a video of Hello, Dolly and holding his clamps together sadly.

Company arrives when a spaceship lands and leaves -- but not dropping off EVE. This robot can fly, has a laser in her arm (and an itchy trigger finger), and keeps scanning the planet on a secret mission. WALL-E is smitten, even if EVE is a reluctant partner. When EVE goes into a hibernation mode after seeing WALL-E's plant, he takes care of her. And when the spaceship returns and picks up EVE, WALL-E follows.

On the starship Axiom, things are... very regulated. All the people float about on hovering beds, eating and watching video screens constantly -- and so fat that virtually no one even walks. Glowing lines direct the traffic of humans and robots alike, setting pre-ordained paths that all follow without question. The B&L company is omnipresent, from branding to announcements. WALL-E's presence changes things, from the small cleaning bot that's perpetually scrubbing his tracks, to releasing a horde of defective robots, to inspiring the Captain (Jeff Garlin) to do more than the same old routine.

WALL-E works on just about every level possible. The special effects are amazing, creating an Earth where piles of garbage tower over skyscrapers and a futuristic "utopia" that's sterile and regulated. Neither WALL-E nor EVE have human features, but both manage to convey very human feelings through their movements and synthetic voices.

The story is also a cautionary tale, where human consumerism has gone berzerk and the humanity has to be reawakened by a mechanical being. And while the dual disasters of a planet laid to waste and a starship of laziness and gluttony are frightening, there is so much humor here that these potentially overwhelming themes don't come across in an overwhelming fashion. Kids will get a kick out of the chases and silliness (though I don't envy parents having to explain why they can't keep any cockroaches that they find in the house) and grown-ups will enjoy the amazing visuals, fun humor, and deeper story than one usually finds in animated fare. WALL-E is a truly spectacular movie, from its deep themes to hysterical comedy. This is easily one of the best movies of the summer, and WALL-E may be one of the best movies of the year.

Overall grade: A+

Reviewed by James Lynch

Futurama: The Beast With a Billion Backs

The silly sci-fi animated cartoon series Futurama continues its straight-to-DVD march with its latest installment, The Beast with a Billion Backs. The original voice cast is back, the humor is as goofy as ever, and the movie is a bit more fun that the previous release Bender's Big Score.

At the opening of The Beast with a Billion Backs, the rip in the universe still hangs in the sky from the end of the first movie. People are panicking over it, but they're a bit bored of panicking as well. Professor Farnsworth challenges his nemesis, Professor Wormstrom, to explore the tear, using the way all scientific disputes are resolved: Deathball! (I leave it to Scott, our resident scientist, to verify the accuracy of this method.)

Fry, meanwhile, has a new girlfriend Colleen (Brittany Murphy) but isn't thrilled to be living with her and her four other boyfriends. Bender is upset that the universal tear destroys any robots who enter it. Amy finally married Kif (sort of). Oh, and giant purple tentacles are pouring through the rift!

These tentacles belong to Yivo (softly and beautifully voiced by David Cross), a giant planet who is, shall we say, lonely. The tentacles attach themselved to the back of people's necks, making them fall in love with Yivo. Almost all life quickly becomes attached to it, and Leela seems to lead the few survivors. Bender, of course, is even more angry that it's something else that excludes robots.

Futurama: The Beast with a Billion Backs plays like an extended episode of Futurama -- but a good one! There's a lot of fun with the situations, and laughs flow like tentacles through a tear in the universe. (You know, I always wanted to say that.) There are a few extras on the dvd, including audio commentaries, the clips from the Futurama video game (with optional commentary), and a preview of the next movie, Bender's Game. Futurama: The Beast with a Billion Backs is a good movie with plenty of laughs.

Overall Grade: B+

Reviewed by James Lynch

Kung Fu Panda (2008)

You'll believe a panda can practice kung fu! Actually that's one of the easier feats of Kung Fu Panda, the animated kids' martial arts feature from DreamWorks Animation. This feature focuses a bit too much on its two leads, but it proves a funny action movie that shows reverence for more traditional martial arts movies.

In this anthromorphic world of the Valley of Peace (in ancient China, naturally) the panda bear Po (Jack Black) dreams of being a great martial artist with his heroes, the Furious Five. Unfortunately Po is fat, lazy, and apparently destined to be a noodle cook.

When the fearsome snow leopard Tai Lung (Ian McShane) escapes from prison, the turtle master Oogway (Randall Duk Kim) declares that it is time to declare which warrior is the fabled Dragon Warrior. Master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman) assembles his students, the Furious Five: Tigress (Angelina Jolie), Monkey (Jackie Chan), Viper (Lucy Liu), Crane (David Cross), and Mantis (Seth Rogen). A mishap with a chair propelled by fireworks leads to Oogway selecting Po as the Dragon Warrior -- something that sits quite poorly with Shifu and Tigress.

What follows is a blend of the traditional "lovable loser finds his strength" story and some very mixed martial arts. While kids will enjoy the antics of lovable Po (and quite a few fat jokes at his expense), kung fu fans will enjoy everything from what would be wire-fu (if this wasn't animated) to slow motion and extreme speed. There's an exciting sequence of dueling chopsticks, not to mention one of the most amusing training montages you're likely to see this year.

Jack Black and Dustin Hoffman are the perfect voices for their roles in this movie. Black tones down his usual hyper-cool slacker persona to make us root for Po, while Hoffman supplies surprising wit as the frustrated teacher who can't believe his worst student is the one destined to save the day. If I have one complaint, it's that with the massive focus on Po and Shifu the other characters have little to do: The talent voicing the Furious Five is truly impressive, but they have little to do but react to Po -- and the end result is that just about anyone could have done the voice work the actors did.

I had a lot of fun at Kung Fu Panda. There's plenty of humor here, and the action is reminiscent enough of "traditional" kung fu films to provide some nice thrills along the way. So if you're looking for some good laughs and good action, check out the panda with the moves!

Overall Grade: B+

Reviewed by James Lynch

The Incredibles (2004)

Once in a while I like to watch an animated film, so this time around I chose The Incredibles. It's a Pixar computer animated flick about a superhero family. Mr. Incredible is a tongue in cheek kind of Superman (voiced by Craig T. Nelson), who marries Elastigirl (voiced by Holly Hunter). After their marriage they end up in the superhero relocation program and they get settled into new jobs and lives, but are forbidden from using their superpowers. They end up fifteen years later as your almost average suburban family with three kids, and Mr. Incredible works for an insurance company in a distinctly not incredible position. Samuel Jackson as Frozone rounds out the veteran acting talent.

Opportunity knocks one day when Mr. Incredible gets the opportunity to use his super powers in a freelance position. As this film progresses, we realize that he got more than he bargained for, and soon his entire family must get involved to save the day. Meanwhile, Mr. Incredible must also combat the ravages of middle age as he tries to take on the world.

Along the way, The Incredibles is impressively animated. While the bulk of the film is computer rendered, there are a few actual backgrounds sprinkled in that keep the look grounded in reality. Combine that with plenty of smart humor, and one liners, and my attention was held throughout. If you're looking for whole family entertainment, check out The Incredibles. Fans of classic comic books will also enjoy the references to such things as "Why do I have to save the world again?" as the characters muse about the responsibilities of being a superhero.


Overall Grade: B+

Reviewed by Jonas

AQUA TEEN HUNGER FORCE COLON MOVIE FILM FOR THEATERS

The Cartoon Network 'toon Aqua Teen Hunger Force could be described as an inaction show: Most of the 12-minute episodes have the characters standing around talking, making excuses not to follow any developments, and saying weird stuff. Even these brief episodes are hit and miss; the full-length movie Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film For Theaters fails in minutes.

The plot, such as it is, has Master Shake (Dana Snyder), Meatwad (Dave Willis), and Frylock (Carey Means) getting involved with a powerful cosmic piece of exercise equipment called the Insanoflex. Fans of the series will be thrilled to see just about every character from the show here, fron neighbor Carl to the talkative, steam-emitting Cybernetic Ghost, video-game creatures Ignignokt and Err, aliens Oglethorp and Emory, and Dr. Weird and Steve. Space Ghost even makes a cameo!

If seeing all these characters together is all you need from a comedy, you might find a little enjoyment in this movie. Unfortunately, for the rest of us the movie is pretty much pure pointlessness. Except for a wonderful opening scene where the "let's go to the lobby" song gets taken over by speed-metal movie theater foods, there doesn't feel like any attempt at any jokes or humorous situations, just characters saying and doing stupid things.

The poster for Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters was done by Frank Frazetta and is much more sophisticated than the art of the actual movie. Likewise, some of the trailers for this movie were funny, while the actual movie is painful. It was a struggle for me to sit through this. Avoid!

Overall grade: F

Reviewed by James Lynch

Cars (2006)

Cars is a look at a rookie race car struggling on its climb to fame and fortune. It features the voices of Owen Wilson, Paul Newman, and Bonnie Hunt. It features an entire society of automobiles and other vehicles, but no humans.

The plot unfolds as the Piston Cup race ends in a truly photo finish resulting in a three way tie. The winner will be decided in a final race in California. Along the way our rookie racer, Lightning McQueen (voiced by Owen Wilson) falls off the flatbed, ends up in a Route 66 town, and learns a few things about himself, as well as racing. He is guided along the way, kind of like in an early Tom Cruise "formula film" by the old master, Doc Hudson, whose voice is supplied by none other than Paul Newman who is over 80 years old these days. The story mostly takes place in Radiator Springs, a Route 66 Western town that is as fascinating as any of the characters.

The really outstanding aspect of this movie is the computer animated graphics. While the story is a little trite and predictable, the awesome animation is what really held my interest throughout Cars with a level of realism that was never possible with traditional animation. As these race cars speed around the track, it looks quite realistic, and is quite a bit better than what was possible even a few short years ago.

If you want a very visually engaging film with a so-so plot, than Cars is for you, as well as the whole family.

Overall Grade: B

Happy Feet (2006)

While Happy Feet starts off like The March of the Penguins, it goes on to a more global view of the birds that live on the frozen continent. While it uses quite a few stars for the voices, Robin Williams was the only one that stood out.

The plot starts as a young penguin named Mumble can't "find his voice." While his singing is painful, he makes up for it in his dancing (hence the film's title). When he doesn't fit in with his flock, a series of adventures ensue. The rest of the film then revolves around two unrelated themes that I think were competing at times: it's ok to be different, and man destroying the environment. For a not so serious animal musical, one theme would have been plenty.

In Happy Feet, the real star is the computer animation. Traditionally, ice and water have been challenges to animators, with their complicated surfaces and shadows. This film does an excellent job with both. The scene with the killer whales was very realistically done, although it would have too much realism for very small children as the hungry mouths keep snapping at the penguins.

While several of the musical numbers dragged on way longer than needed to advance the plot, I still enjoyed Happy Feet. For those looking to "chill out," it showcases the state of the art in animation.

Overall Grade: B