Legends of the Dark Knight: The History of Batman (2005)
A brief history of the DC Comics character Batman, created by Bob Kane in 1939.
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This is a tender, generous movie that likes its characters and presents them as real people, full of flaws and strengths.
It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.
This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.
It is encouraging that the film ends so strongly.Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a particularly memorable film
If you are at all interested in Batman, or maybe even comics in general, this is definitely worth your attention. Narrated by Mark Hamill, who does a bang-up job, this goes all the way back to the beginning of Batman, and takes you through to present time, being quite thorough but never boring. It comes in at 41 minutes, and it is expertly paced. The interviewees are interesting to listen to, and the whole thing is edited well. Harlan Ellison manages to *not* complain about how his original work was changed for the Star Trek: The Original Series episode The City on the Edge of Forever. Brian Bolland appears, talking about his work on The Killing Joke, my personal favorite Batman story(though I haven't read Year One or The Dark Knight Returns), as written by Alan Moore, and they do talk some about it, too. Frank Miller gets a fair amount of time, and talks about the characters being larger than life. Several esteemed artists who have worked on the characters over the years are interviewed, and the story told is one that spans over decades, and goes back to the very birth of comic books. They talk about the various mediums they appeared in, and Bob Kane's inspirations when he first created the character. I recommend this to any fan of comics, the characters, and the movies. 8/10