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Inspired by the iconic mid-1990s DC story from Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale, Batman:
The Long Halloween, Part Two continues as the Holiday Killer is still at large
and, with Bruce Wayne under the spell of the venomous Poison Ivy, Batman is
nowhere to be found. Liberated by an unlikely ally, Bruce quickly uncovers the
real culprit: Poison Ivy’s employer Carmine Falcone. The Roman, his ranks
decimated by Holiday and his business spinning out of control, has been forced
to bring on less desirable partners – Gotham City’s rogues’ gallery. In the
meantime, Harvey Dent is confronting battles on two fronts: attempting to end
the mob war while also dealing with a strained marriage. And, after an attack
that leaves Harvey hideously disfigured, the District Attorney unleashes the
duality of his psyche that he’s strived his entire life to suppress. Now, as
Two-Face, Dent decides to take the law into his own hands and deliver judgment
to those who’ve wronged him, his family and all of Gotham. Ultimately, the Dark
Knight must put together the tragic pieces that converged to create Two-Face,
the Holiday Killer, Batman and Gotham City itself.
Batman’s biggest mystery comes to a grand conclusion with Batman: The Long
Halloween, Part Two, the second half of the highly anticipated adaptation of one
of the most groundbreaking graphic novels ever made. After
Part One
impressed a great degree with its release a few weeks ago, director Chris
Palmer, writer Tim Sheridan and the animation team stick the landing as Part Two
continues the dark tale with plenty of intrigue, character introspection and
stellar animation as the case of the Holiday Killer unravels.
Whereas Part One dealt largely with Batman, Jim Gordon and Harvey Dent trying to
solve Holiday’s identity and take down mob boss Carmine ‘The Roman’ Falcone,
Batman: The Long Halloween, Part Two continues that same story, but throws in
the added wrinkle for Batman as more of Gotham City’s villains come into play as
control of the city slowly slips from the mob into the hands of the rogues
gallery. All the while Harvey is dealing with personal crises, both within his
marriage and his mind, as his tragic destiny takes further shape.
Batman: The Long Halloween is first and foremost a detective story. While the
addition of many of Batman’s enemies may take a little away from the mystery, it
still remains solely focused on Holiday and how their presence affects everyone
in Gotham. Holiday’s murderous streak forces Carmine to make alliances he
wouldn’t normally make and the personal toll it takes on Batman and Harvey in
particular has a profound affect on their lives. Batman is still struggling to
become a better detective worthy of Gotham City and Harvey’s drive to bring down
the Falcone crime empire takes him to some desperate lengths. It all ties
together very well as the mystery escalates and fundamentally changes Gotham
City forever upon its conclusion.
The character development on display makes the story even stronger as it is
given arguably more emphasis than the central mystery. As mentioned, Batman is
working on his deductive skills as he’s learned the hard way not all cases can
be solved with brute force and stringing criminals up for the police, but his
life as Bruce Wayne also has its share of problems thanks to Poison Ivy as well
as other personal issues. Part of Bruce/Batman’s arc in the film deals with the
legacy left behind by his parents and upholding their vision for Gotham. In
fact, legacy is a fairly significant theme in Part Two as Batman not only works
to keep the Wayne legacy intact in some way, but to also wipe away the Falcone
legacy while Carmine seeks to strengthen it and Harvey wrestles with demons from
his past. Jensen Ackles conveys the weight of Bruce’s mission quite well and
shows a more human side to Batman as he deals with these struggles while still
appearing determined and intimidating as the Dark Knight.
Catwoman also has personal stakes in the story’s outcome as she gets much more
involved in this half than the first. There is a legacy she is also concerned
with and she displays an emotional and vulnerable side that was only teased
previously. Her relationship with Batman is very much in keeping with the comics
and Naya Rivera does a tremendous job as Catwomam. She captures Catwoman’s
spirit and femme fatale qualities very well, leaving you unsure what her
motivations are or what she’ll do next. The moments when Catwoman drops her
guard are some of Rivera’s best in both films, serving as a bittersweet reminder
of how great a Catwoman/Selina Kyle she is and that we’ll never hear another
performance with her in the role due to her tragic passing.
Billy Burke once again shines as Gordon, balancing the gruff detective act with
the personable friend, ally and family man together in one. Josh Duhamel gets to
delve deeper into Harvey as he plays less of the lawful straightman and more of
the troubled, vengeful soon-to-be criminal, especially after a certain accident
befalls him. Given that these two films built up to that event, Duhamel’s
performance does not disappoint. Titus Welliver shows off even more of Carmine’s
villainy as he relishes the power he holds over Gotham and Julie Nathanson taps
more into the tragedy of Gilda Dent as she increasingly becomes second in
Harvey’s life. Newcomers to Part Two include Katee Sackhoff as Poison Ivy, Robin
Atkins Downes as Scarecrow, John DiMaggio as Mad Hatter and Laila Berzins as
Sofia Falcone. Each one of them does well with their parts, particularly Downes
as he provides a very creepy and sinister personality to Scarecrow.
The animation is smooth and slick with a lot of detail in the movements during
the fight sequences. The characters are energetic and the choreography can be
fairly complex during certain sequences, such as when Catwoman dodges Poison
Ivy’s vine attacks or the climax which acts as a free for all between much of
the cast. One particular sequence is striking for its nightmarish color as
Scarecrow’s hallucinogenic gas is given some of the best animated treatment its
ever received. When it comes to the emotional moments, though, the film really
nails it as the characters expressions are detailed and emotive, perfectly
matching the vocal performances of the cast. With the designs, color and focus
on the characters, it is definitely one of the best looking DC animated films.
Batman: The Long Halloween, Part Two serves as a great continuation and
conclusion to this adaptation. The film doesn’t shy away from the complexity of
the story as it focuses on the central mystery and the development of its
characters. The cast led by Ackles, Rivera and Duhamel are all great with their
performances and the examination of how these characters are defined both by
Gotham City and the Falcone crime family provides interesting context to who
they are and will become. The rich visuals make it very entertaining to watch
and even with some changes to the story, most Batman fans will be happy with how
well the film adapts Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale’s book. Batman: The Long Halloween,
Part Two is a great Batman experience and combined with Part One makes it one of
the best Batman films made, live-action films included.
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