(POSTER PROVIDED VIA GOOGLE)
RELEASE DATE: January 23, 2018
RUNNING TIME: 1 Hour 18 Minutes
RATED: R
DIRECTOR: Sam Liu
WRITER: James Krieg (Screenplay), Brian Augustyn (Graphic Novel: Gotham by Gaslight)
STARRING:
Bruce Greenwood as Batman/Bruce Wayne
Jennifer Carpenter as Selina Kyle
Scott Patterson as James Gordan
Kari Wuhrer as Barbara Gordan & Pamela Isley (Ivy)
(TRAILER PROVIDED VIA YOUTUBE)
Set in a Victorian Era Gotham City, Batman: Gotham by Gaslight follows the story of Bruce Wayne as protector of the streets of Gotham. In this adaptation of the one-shot graphic novel of the same name and the DC Elseworld event, we see this alternative version of the Batman character take on the mysterious and infamous Jack the Ripper. This version of Jack the Ripper has the same motivation and targets women just like his real life counterpart and it is Batman's duty to see that Jack in off the streets and locked away in Blackgate Prison.
We first meet Jack the Ripper as a young stage performer at a shady gentleman's club, Ivy, leave a through the back alley to head home for the night. She is all by herself as she begins her journey away from the club when a shadowy man walks behind her. We never see his face. Always the working girl, Ivy looks to see if the mysterious man wants some companionship for the evening. His silence quickly turns into an attack and the chase is on.
Meanwhile, a few blocks away a man is being robbed by three boys. Dickie, Jason and Timmy are orphaned boys following the orders of their abusive handler Big Bill Dust. Batman quickly makes the save and makes it so that Big Bill will never bother the boys again (no, he did not kill him). Batman sends the boys to seek out Sister Leslie who had helped Bruce as a boy after his parents were killed. She runs an orphanage. Just after, Batman hears the screams of Ivy. Batman races off to save her but is too late as she is found dead by the time he arrives to the scene and there is no sign of The Ripper. This begins Batman's quest to find and stop the Jack the Ripper.
Batman has a few encounters with Jack, but each time he is either outwitted or beaten in a fight. This villian seems too much for the Dark Knight as Batman can not seem to figure out Jack's true identity or find any bit of information that will give Batman the edge that he desperately needs. It is not until Batman finally does begin to put the pieces together, that he also begins to get any power in the situation.
I am not going to spoil the end if this film. I want you all to watch it and enjoy it. It is a good movie. The adaptation of the comic was well done. The story was well written. The voice acting was great as well as the animation. DC Animation has a much better grasp of the material than the DCEU does. I would go on to recommend that WB put the Animation people in charge of the DCEU to make it all work. I feel it would benefit everyone. I give Batman: Gotham by Gaslight 4.5 out of 5 stars. That's a high rating and I fully stand by it. You may call me biased because I am a huge Batman fan, but I don't care. It's a good film. Please watch it if you have not. Enjoy.
