Review of Son of Batman (2014) by Matthew D — 07 Jul 2017

Weaving an entirely new plot around the comic's basic set-up is fair enough; nothing is going to match something written by Grant Morrison and the top of his game and that would be hard to adapt. This tries admirably with what it's got; the new story beats work, the bat-family members have the correct voice (both literally and figuratively) and the dynamics of their interaction is where the film derives most of its entertainment value.

The action is enjoyable, although it's unbelievable even for its type; these are meant to be humans not super-humans after all. This is nit-picking one might think, but after a while I found the tension dissipate from the fighting (of which there is a lot) because the characters seemed so invincible.

The villains don't help in the suspense department either, Deathstroke is just not menacing and Talia is castrated, forced into the role of loving mother and motivation for the male characters, she loses the ruthlessness that defines her.