Synopsis: Batman (Jason O’Mara) is no stranger to villains acting crazy, but when they all start to act out of character, Batman must unravel the mystery of a new villain named Hush who is pulling the strings and causing mayhem throughout Gotham City. As things start to heat up between Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle (Jennifer Morrison), Batman has to decide what is more important: his happiness or his moral code?
Breakdown: Though DC has had a difficult time bringing its properties to the big screen in a way that resonates with audiences and critics over the past few years, their efforts on the streaming market have been a lot more successful. Specifically their adaptations of classic Batman comic storylines. Batman: Hush is one such adaptation, taking the popular comic book event of the same name and condensing it down into a 90-minute animated film.
There is a lot of controversy surrounding this particular adaptation, specifically in how it deviates quite drastically from how the storyline ends in the comics. However, I never read the source material and am unfamiliar with the major story beats, so I came into this movie unencumbered by expectations and ready to appreciate it for what it was: an enjoyable and unpredictable diversion with one of my all-time favorite superheroes.
My favorite Batman stories are the ones who break down who he is as a man, and really try to explore what makes Bruce Wayne tick. Batman: Hush does a great job of doing that by providing him a bit of normalcy in the form of a relationship with Selina Kyle as Bruce and Catwoman as Batman. You can see Batman struggle with sticking to his moral code and the promise he made to his parents or following his heart and imagining a future where he didn’t have to dress up like a bat each night. While other movies (looking at you, Mask of the Phantasm) tackle this issue exponentially better than this one does, Batman: Hush does a commendable job of exploring the pull and tug between superhero and man that lies at the core of Bruce Wayne.
I loved the parts of the movie where he was working with Catwoman as a partner– they reminded me of the brief scene in The Dark Knight Rises where Batman and Catwoman fight off Bane’s thugs on the rooftop. And I also enjoyed how earnestly they played the relationship between the two, who are more alike and more equal than either care to admit. At least until they aren’t.
The animation was fine–nothing really to gush about but nothing that was too terrible. Some of the character designs were just poor imitations of the great work done on Batman: The Animated Series, but nowhere near the heights the work on that show was able to reach.
In terms of voice acting, again, nothing to gush about but nothing too terrible, with the exception of Jason Spisak as the Joker. What a terrible, phoned-in performance of one of the most iconic characters of all time.
Final Score: 3/5
While this movie isn’t a must see and doesn’t really do much to alter the character of the Dark Knight, it was an enjoyable 90 minutes. It probably wouldn’t even crack my top ten Batman films, but it is exactly what I think it set out to be: a perfectly acceptable Batman movie to watch on a Saturday afternoon when you have nothing else to do.
Mark Pereira is a senior writer for Boss Rush Network. He loves all video games, but his top three favorites are Skyward Sword, Super Mario 3D World and Batman: Arkham Asylum. You can find him on Twitter where he’s usually talking about Nintendo, video games, movies, and TV shows.
Featured Image Source: The Movie Database
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