TAS Reviews: Justice League Dark

TAS Reviews: Justice League Dark (spoiler free)

So, I just saw the latest DCAU and it was good. This is a movie I had no idea existed until I saw some the clips that came out and decided to check it out for myself. Although it was more pretty, than good, I still had a fair amount of fun watching Justice League: Dark. Admittedly, I made the mistake of trying to watch this movie half asleep, and was surprised to see that when I came back to re watch it the first day later within the timespan of less than a day, I wasn't bored. This is a pretty fun movie, even if it's more pretty than fun.

The most surprising aspect for me was the music. Your average DCAU movie couldn't give a rat's ass about the music, but the score here was pretty great for an animated superhero film and was used to set, a dark brooding tone which complemented the equally well done, dark and brooding animation. There's a lot of beautiful animation to be found and a lot of vivid colours, especially in a sequence where they literally enter someone's mind. A good way to recover from the bland animation of The Killing Jone. The fight scenes were pretty good, no complaints there whatsoever.

I had the benefit of going into this movie with no knowledge of who was going to other than Batman. So every shot revealing a new character surprised me. My favourite character was surprisingly Constantine. I'm a fan of Matt Ryan's work as Edward Kenway in Black Flag, & he knocked it out of the performance with his performance here, once again. He had a lot of good material to work with, as did the rest of the characters. The dialogue was well written and the humour aimed for quality over quantity, a balance I hope more live action superheroes strive for.

Every character in the movie was utilised well for the most part.

To quote, or paraphrase, the person who convinced me to make time for this movie, "it's a DC movie on the supernatural end of the spectrum, what could go wrong?" Regardless of any flaws, it's still a DCAU movie which tonally lives up to it's title, and offers you a journey through the mystical spectrum of the universe from monsters, to something as simple as a dagger which emits blasts of ice, to visually psychedelic sequence. I'm glad Batman didn't steal focus from the movie and that we got a DCAU movie focused on smaller properties. Even the cameos from more well known DC characters were short, yet sweet.

This is a far from perfect movie which I think could've been a lot better. A lot of people are calling this the best DCAU installment in a longtime, and I can see why, but the stop-start structure of the movie reminded me of Kubo and the Two Strings, another which suffered from this video game-like structure. I wish the story progressed at a constant pace instead of stopping every 10 minutes explaining to us the NEXT mystical artefact or plot device, to no avail. As much as I love a work of fiction, I've found it hard to focus on finer plot details of the simplest story for as long as I could remember, so this movie was an assault on the senses for a guy like me. The story was pretty weak, giving me little reason to care whenever they delivered exposition. I wish this movie lived through a stronger story.

The other technical flaw in the movie was the lip syncing, which was more often off than on, breaking the immersion whenever it became noticeable. It could be because Kevin Conroy has done such a fantastic job as The Caped Crusader, but surprisingly Jason O'Mara as Batman was the weak link a sea of otherwise good performances.

Rating: 6/10. Entertaining, good dialogue and fun characters. Do yourself a favour and watch this movie if you're a DCAU fan, you'll probably love it more than I did!

Cheers for reading, guys.

Man I can't wait to see Deadman again. He's a personal favorite char.

You haven't seen the movie yet? What are you waiting for?!

Yes....well I just realized this movie existed. I'm going to watch it. :D

Okay. Have fun!

Do the characters stay on model in this one? Last animated film from DC I watched was Flashpoint and all the characters had these terribly warped proportions and most animations looked like they were missing a few frames; that's kind of acceptable for an animated series, but not for a movie.

I don't think you'll have a problem with this one. Proportions are fine.

Thanks fam, torrent's alredy cooking.

Enjoy. Lemme know what you think.

the Justice League films in this series have been kinda 'meh' so far (which is a helluva lot more than i can say for the Batman ones)

Great review; definitely think its one of the better DCAU movies in a while. I've always loved Vertigo and classic DC horror titles so when this was announced I was all over this. My biggest criticism was that choppy first act, it felt like that had no idea how they wanted to start the story or how they wanted to introduce these characters. It was all just kind of at random. But once that stopped and they started focusing on the story I was locked in for the rest of the movie. Seeing Batman so much was a bit annoying - I wished he had gone away after the first act and given us more Swamp Thing instead.

Side note: Matt Ryan embodies Constantine every bit as someone like RDJ as Iron Man or Jackman as Wolverine. CW or another station had better pick up the show for another season.

I also enjoyed this one. Batman really didn't serve a purpose aside from being Batman, but he wasn't a show stealer either and allowed the focus to remain on Constantine, Zatanna, and Deadman.

I could have done with more Etrigan and Swamp Thing myself. Especially Swamp Thing.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts, mate. Glad you enjoyed the movie and the review. I agree the beginning of the movie was scattershot, but at least it did an effective job of setting up the movie tonally.

I regret not watching the Constantine TV show when it was on air. I want to watch it now, but at the same time I'm scared to because I know I'm gonna fall in love with the show and be depressed that it got discontinued :'(

Ooc, do you have a Top 5 DCAU movies of all time?

Constantine was finally released on blu-ray in October. Its running for $30 on Amazon right now which is a lot, especially for only 13 episodes, so its hard to recommend to anyone that's not already a fan of the show.

Top 5 DCAU films is tough. From '07-2012 there were too many great ones to choose from so my list changes up pretty often

5.) The Dark Knight Returns (ironic since its streamlined from a comic I'm not overly fond of)

4.) Green Lantern

3.) Justice League Crisis on Infinite Earths

2.) Batman Year One

1.) Batman Under the Red Hood

Wow, that is pretty expensive.

Good choice. Under The Red Hood is also my number one (assuming your order is least to best).

great review , I might want to also add that this version of John Constantine used more magic then we're used to , he's always depicted as a power magic user who RARELY uses magic but I like that we get to see what he can do , also Zatanna? yea we finally get to see a version of her that's insanely powerful

According to the internet the Constantine TV show is being renewed for a second season by CW. It will just be one of their online animated shows like Vixen, with Matt Ryan reprising his role like he did in this movie. So if you want to watch the live action series I'd suggest you do it, it was really good.

I'm disappointed in the lack of Madame Xanadu in this movie, the one who formed the team in the first place...

That aside, looking forward to this one for a while now since it was supposed to be released months ago, I'm not sure why it needed to be R, the comics didn't need to be.

I really hope this is a success which allows for a Batman-free sequel (like Teen Titans is getting) as it represents my best chance of seeing an I, Vampire adaptation. I'd also like to see some Xanadu, Shade, Frankenstein, Dr. Mist and Black Orchid in that one.

I thought the R rating worked. It enhanced the tone without being gratuitous.

I wonder how much money these animated superhero movies make.

Thanks, dude. This was my first exposure to John Constantine and I loved him, you know him more than I do so I'll take your word for it =)

Zatanna was cool. I only realised she was voiced by Lara Croft after the movie was over.

I'm not sure but evidence suggests the ones with Batman in them make considerably more than the others... >_>

When Warner Premier shut down I remember WB assuring us the DC animated films would definitely continue (I don't recall any mention of the whatever else Warner Premier was involved with) so I'm guessing they make a reliable profit. Wonder Woman bombed on release but I've read that it's one of their biggest sellers by now so they appear to have a pretty long shelf life.

It was quite good, I liked JL vs TT too.

@theamazingspidey: couldn't agree more Jason omara gives Batman a wooden tone and that really sucks. Kevin Conroy is the best but Bruce greenwood comes in a distant second. I'm looking forward to the live action JL Dark movie.

Another favourite of mine is Roger Craig Smith, who voiced Batman in Arkham Origins. He's the closest we've gotten to Conroy, except Craig infuses the character with more emotion and youth. Conroy is still the definitive voice, though.

I liked War for what it was and is a solid popcorn flick, TOA on the other hand was a mess. I'm eh on TTvJL. Hope to enjoy this one as much as War

Well, what're you waiting for? Go watch it!

This.

I'm gonna have to disagree with the consensus here, and say that the movie was actually pretty mediocre.

MAJOR SPOILERS ALERT.

...

...

...

READY? OK.

Batman wasn't really a character, but a plot device, which I kind of expected, but he was so insignificant to the proceedings most of the time that I occasionally even forgot he was there. Deadman was kind of similar in a way. Swamp Thing was butchered badly, appearing for all of five minutes before being killed off. Jason Blood's death was similarly kind of weird, as he seems fine for most of the fight against Dr. Destiny until they win, at which point suddenly BOOM! and he drops dead. Why didn't he start dying immediately after being separated from Etrigan? It felt tacked on, as if they just forgot about it during the fight then suddenly remembered that Jason is supposed to be a corpse, not to mention it continues the nu-DCAU animated movies' annoying streak of killing off characters for shock value.

John Constantine felt off. Matt Ryan is great in the role, no doubt, but the writing felt like it made Constantine just a bit too sappy towards Zatanna and a bit less of the charming, amoral bastard he was supposed to be. He also used way more magic than I remember, which felt weird because Constantine isn't supposed to be one of the great magical users of the DC Universe, he's more of the guy who knows some useful spells and it's his in-depth knowledge of all things magic that let him survive and thrive in that world. Zatanna herself got a cool scene kicking the crap out of Felix Faust, which immediately went into WTF territory when she tries to kill him. It's hand-waved with "she lost control" but why? What the hell did Faust do that was so traumatic to her? Yeah, losing her voice sucks, but it's no different to taking away Batman's utility belt. It's supposed to tie-in to her earlier conversation with Constantine about darkness and whatnot, but that was in reference to seriously horrible stuff like abuse and rape.

Batman himself being in denial about magic at the start and then suddenly being all fine with it just felt jarring. What was the point of that scene? How did it tie into the rest of the movie? How did it advance the plot or result in character development? Aside from making Batman look like a stubborn tool, it did zero. Also, it felt weird how Batman barely shows any concern for Zatanna getting injured twice in front of him or never even shows the slightest hint of jealousy towards her and Constantine despite it being heavily implied that their Pre-Flashpoint childhood friendship history is still intact.

Dr. Destiny himself felt like a weird choice for the main villain, he's usually a mid-tier threat, but here he's suddenly super-deadly. They also didn't explain how he was causing everyone to have horror visions while trapped inside that jewel thing or whatever, if I recall correctly. It's just sort of brushed off.

So yeah, 3/10 for me, and only because the animation was nice and Matt Ryan still managed to mostly nail it as John Constantine despite being given mediocre material.

@theamazingspidey:

Another favourite of mine is Roger Craig Smith, who voiced Batman in Arkham Origins. He's the closest we've gotten to Conroy, except Craig infuses the character with more emotion and youth. Conroy is still the definitive voice, though.

Roger Craig Smith is basically Conroy's Batman voice done right. He manages to make Batman sound enraged, amused, sarcastic, intimidating, terrified, saddened and serious all whilst maintaining the same deep timbre all throughout. Conroy by comparison can't provide range to the character to save his life, it's all monotone dialogue, was so even in his B:TAS days. I wish that Smith was the one doing Batman's voice for the animated movies, no offense to Jason O'Mara who has gotten much better since he started, but, well...

@orangebat:

Roger Craig Smith is basically Conroy's Batman voice done right. He manages to make Batman sound enraged, amused, sarcastic, intimidating, terrified, saddened and serious all whilst maintaining the same deep timbre all throughout. Conroy by comparison can't provide range to the character to save his life, it's all monotone dialogue, was so even in his B:TAS days. I wish that Smith was the one doing Batman's voice for the animated movies, no offense to Jason O'Mara who has gotten much better since he started, but, well...

I'm surprised someone agrees with me. That's what I'm trying to get across. Kevin Conroy gets universal praise for his portrayal and it's deserved as he's the iconic voice of Batman, but technically, Roger Craig Smith is so much better. It's a shame he doesn't get credit for his performance just for not being Conroy.

Hopefully in a few years time, once Conroy can no longer play the character, Craig will set up to take the mantle.

If it ain't perfect it's trash

@orangebat: wow, thanks for the detailed response. Love these.

Can't disagree against any of your issues. I think it's an imperfect movie, but given the DCAU's input since New 52 has been mostly trash (Justice League: War as a snooze and The Killing Joke should've been so, so much better), people's standards are lowered and they're grateful to get a decent DCAU movie. It's an entertaining installment in the franchise and it's on the supernatural end of the spectrum. People love that shit.

So yeah, 3/10 for me, and only because the animation was nice and Matt Ryan still managed to mostly nail it as John Constantine despite being given mediocre material.

the movie was actually pretty mediocre.

3/10 is low for a mediocre movie. Either way, good review xP

@theamazingspidey said:

True. I think I might have somehow managed to dislike this movie more as I was writing the review, LOL.

Ncaw, you paraphrased me. I'm totes famous now. I'd give the film a 7/10. If it were maybe 10 minutes longer to allow for a more tightly written script and featured Batman even less, then this film would've been the best.

I love throwing some my friend's way. Your inbox is now going to R.I.P with all the followers you're gonna get. Don't be surprised if you get a few suitors.

@theamazingspidey: What did you think of Camilla Luddington's (Tomb Raider, Grey's Anatomy) Zatanna compared to Lacey Chabert's (Mean Girls, Party Of Five) Zatanna? Personally I think Lacey is the go to actress for Zatanna considering the fact that she's voice acted as her in Infinite Crisis, Young Justice, Injustice: GAU and Justice League: Action. Maybe she was too busy voice acting for Injustice 2 as Zatanna in secret. We can only hope right?

Can't say, sorry. I haven't watched any of the movies you listed.

So, I'm just gonna say Camilla Luddington, 'cause Lara Croft xD

@theamazingspidey: Wait, you've never watched Young Justice (only one of the best DC Animated shows ever, it's making a comeback this year with season 3) or played Injustice: Gods Among Us (the video game)?! Sacrilege!

Yes, yes I have played Injustice >_> Calm down! Awesome game.

Haven't seen YJ yet, though. But since they're doing another season, i'm interested in watching it. Hope I'll be able to find time in this... busy year ^_^

yea she was voiced by Camilla Ludington from grey's anatomy lol

yea, John Constantine is usually using necromancy (demon magic) just like live-action version but this version pulled a small sample of spells majority of people have seen

ok I'm gonna explain your whole review and try to justify ok? :)

Batman was the one assembled the JLD , I feel the whole movie was to prove that magic is real to bruce b/c to this day , he thinks magic is all science

Jason Blood's death seemed justified , he was hit with magic that rivaled Merlin while in Demon form , separating them seemed like the only justifiable way on how Etrigan tanked , by pushing his human form bound to him , out of his body

John Constantine was the sarcastic a-hole he is depicted be most of the movie except his vulnerable moments with Zatanna , who we know is a former lover and one of the few people who survived the Newcastle , one of the most horrific magical events in all of Dc comics , looking at someone who reminds of you a horrific events YOU caused kinda makes you sappy lol

and Zatanna used full power b/c Felix Faust did one thing , take her voice abilities and she saw how bad he was stomping EVERYBODY , remember she quit being a hero years prior so we can rightfully assume this has happened a lot before since John knew quickly what to do , I think zatanna taking her voice unlocks her true power

@theamazingspidey: true that. Fell asleep during justice League dark. Gotta finish. You were right about the music

I really enjoyed this. I was skeptical after the last few DC animated movies. I also thought they would let Batman lead despite not belonging. However I see now it was just done to get people to watch. The movie was really fun to watch,I enjoyed all of the characters. Swamp thing was epic. I was even caught off guard by the plot twist. The only thing I disliked was the dubstep that played during one scene...that sh*t was awful. I give it a 7.5/10