Batman: The Killing Joke

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 The first real reviews I got of this movie were that it was a bit of a mixed bag and that it was a great movie. So, I went into this movie a little cautious, more-so than I usually do with a movie in the DC Animated Universe. Overall, I actually did like the movie. It’s not perfect by any means. First off, let’s start with negatives. The two halves are very disjointed, and feel like two separate movies. Neither half is necessarily bad, but I do believe that the second half is superior. The first half of the movie does some things with Batgirl as a character that just didn’t work, which I can’t really go into without giving spoilers. I do respect them trying to flesh her out a little more because The Killing Joke movie doesn’t have benefit of years of comic backstory that the graphic novel did. I am aware the original story gave the Joker an origin through flashbacks. Honestly, I prefer the Joker with a bit more mystery. It just makes him more terrifying. There’s also a bizarre musical number near the end of the movie involving the Joker. The reason I don’t hate this is because it absolutely fits in with the Joker’s character. Alright, let’s move on to the positives. The animation is up to the usual quality of the DC Animated Universe movies. The voice cast led by Kevin Conroy, Tara Strong, and Mark Hamill are all excellent with their performances. The returns of both Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill as Batman and the Joker respectively was one of the first things that honestly got me excited. Then, they gave the movie its anticipated R rating. In the end, while a good movie, The Killing Joke just couldn’t live up to the hype. My final recommendation would be to watch it at least once, but with a little caution. 

7 / 10