THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS OF THE DISCUSSED FILM. READERS DISCRETION IS ADVISED.
Many fans would consider 2008’s The Dark Knight as the best movie about Batman but before that, Mask of the Phantasm was a superior choice as it lived up to its hype in 1993.
PLOT
The animated film opens with a mysterious figure that is murdering mobsters, and Batman is blamed in the progress. The iconic vigilante is marked by the media as a menace and everyone except police commissioner James Gordon (Bob Hastings) believes this. Disguised as his vigilant alter ego, Bruce Wayne visits the grave of his parents but notices his ex girlfriend Andrea Beaumont visiting her mother's grave. The two met ten years prior, and they were very close. It had ended between them when she had left Gotham because her father had embezzled from the mob, putting both of them in danger. This broke Wayne's heart due to the fact that he had proposed to her. Rather than increasing the fund for the GCPD, this led to him moving forward with becoming the caped crusader. When she notices him at the cemetery, she deduces who he is. When they get to have a reunion, she claims that her father is killing the mobsters that threatened his life, along with hers. When city official Arthur Reeves (Hart Bochner) is poisoned by the Joker with a toxin that makes him uncontrollably laughing, he gets a visit from the Bat. He reveals to him that he told the mob the location of Andrea's father, only because he wasn't being funded for his first elective campaign. When planning to resume his relationship with Andrea, he looks at the picture at the mobsters who have been assassinated and discovers that one other person is the Joker. It is then revealed that before becoming the clown prince of crime, Joker was a chauffeur for the mob, and he killed Andrea's father. Andrea is then revealed to be the one killing everyone involved with her father's past, which is what Bruce and Joker both discover separately. Bruce finds his lover and his foe at an abandoned theme park and intervenes with the conflict. He does fight Joker when Andi temporarily disappears. But when Joker explodes the park, she returns only to seize him and disappear again, telling Bruce goodbye. When returning home, mourning to the fact that she has left him again, Bruce discovers that she left behind a locket with a picture of them together. It ends with Andrea being spotted at an ocean liner, while Bruce continues with his war on crime as the dark knight detective.
THOUGHTS
When first seeing this film as a kid and comparing it to seeing it as an adult, I can't help but think that this is the most personal film for the iconic superhero. While Joker had a strong connection to Batman in the 1989 film, I find it more impressive how Andrea/The Phantasm is so deeply tied to the origin of Bruce Wayne and his journey to become the hero Gotham deserves. What truly makes this film stand out so much from other films about the iconic superhero is mainly because this is the most vulnerable moment the character has ever been through. It surprisingly can make one question the situation if you can ever be happy or if you can break your own promises to be happy. It feels timeless because of it being the most complex interpretation. I also thought it was a clever twist that Andrea was the Phantasm because it truly feels unexpected for a love interest to be the main villain. She has grown to be so iconic, that she would eventually appear in various comic books published by DC Comics. I think the reason she deserves it would be because from the voice alone, actress Dana Delany depicts her as one who does desire to be happy, but knows she won't get to no matter how hard she works for it. Even though she knows her acts of vengeance won't bring back her dad, she can't live with herself not doing anything about it. It can be easy to pick on animation movies for various reasons but even though I love this movie, I gotta admit it has some flaws. First off, how the hell did Bruce forget graveyard etiquette? Sure asking someone who you’re talking kickstarts a conversation, but he could’ve come up something else than that question. I did say it was a great twist that Andrea is the Phantasm, but she shouldn’t be visiting her mother’s grave which is an active crime scene after she killed Mr. Bronski. It is pretty intense when Batman is chased by GCPD and I can complain how Andrea figured out where to find him, but how did the Bat have enough time to tie his cape to a wooden barrier, to his grappling hook to distract the helicopter that’s chasing him? As a kid, I would say because he’s Batman but I honestly am confused as an adult. She could’ve blown her in one way or another. Lastly, how does Andrea’s skin not get damaged when removing her claw after getting exposed to Joker’s corrosive material? It would’ve been more intense if she got injured from that. The second you ignore all of these flaws, you’ll still be loving this movie afterwards. The score by Shirley Walker is able to make this animated film just as epic as other live action films of the world's greatest detective. Also, the theme song, 'I Never Even Told You' by Tia Carrere, perfectly reflects the relationship of Bruce and Andrea. While the song can also be depicted as a tearjerker, I also see it as a slow dance due to expressing the compassion of true love within. Despite the fact that Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill return to play the iconic hero/villain duo of Batman and Joker, this is clearly not connected to the 90s animated series because if Joker is killed by Andrea, then he would've not continued to appear in the said series. And although both actors easily hold up with their iconic voice roles, Stacy Keach also impressed me a lot as he is able to make the voice of the Phantasm mysteriously intimidating. With that voice, no one would have guessed who was donning the persona, making the casting perfect. While seeing Batman and Joker fight in this movie looked like something from The Killing Joke comic, and later animated film, the scene in which Joker has his last laugh before Andrea takes him away is a great shot. It's incredible to witness because it reflects how Joker does not care what happens to him and with the fire in the surrounded area, that was caused by him, it shows that he succeeds in watching the world burn. To wrap up, the directing duo of Bruce Tim and Eric Radomski succeed in making Batman: Mask of the Phantasm as one of the best movies of the iconic superhero for being so grounded like the live action films. If you grew up watching Batman: TheAnimated Series and somehow this movie slipped under your radar, see this one now.
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