[singlepic=1001] Batman: Mask of the Phantasm Release Date: December 25, 1994 Directors: Eric Radomski, Bruce W. Timm, Kevin Altieri (sequence director), Boyd Kirkland (sequence director), Frank Paur (sequence director), Dan Riba (sequence director) Writers: Alan Burnett (screenplay/story) and Paul Dini, Martin Pasko and Michael Reaves (screenplay); Bob Kane (comic book & characters), Jerry Robinson (character: The Joker) Stars: Kevin Conroy, Dana Delany and Hart Bochner MPAA Rating: PG HoboTrashcan’s Rating:

The two things superhero movies often struggle with are retelling the title character’s origin story and finding an interesting way to insert a love story into an action-packed blockbuster. Writers often fail to find a way to put a fresh spin on these heroes well-worn origin stories. And the romantic plots often seem superfluous, like they were reluctantly added to the mix in order to appease focus groups and studio executives. What’s surprising about Mask of the Phantasm – the theatrical film spin-off of the much-loved Batman: The Animated Series – is how well it handles both of these facets of its story.

The film is set in a time when Batman (Kevin Conroy) is already a well-established entity, but it flashes back to his origin story. However, instead of retelling the part we already know – that his parents were gunned down outside of a theater when he was a child and he devoted his life from then on to fighting crime – it adds a new twist to the story. The flashbacks focus on a time when a college-aged Bruce Wayne was just starting out his life of crime fighting, before he had created the Batman persona. But right at that pivotal time, he accidentally meets a girl, Andrea Beaumont (Dana Delany).

As he falls more in love with Andrea, he begins to doubt the path of vengeance he’s set out on. Bruce knows he can’t fight crime and have a stable relationship with the girl he loves because the risk is just to great. So he must choose one life of the other. This struggle is really a gripping one and it’s something rarely seen in a Batman story. His vow to avenge his parent’s death is a self-imposed one, but it’s one he feels he can’t break. Seeking his own happiness and putting the pain of his parents’ death behind him feels selfish and wrong to him. This conflict is far more entertaining and original than any love story I’ve seen in any other Batman film. It also helps that Andrea Beaumont feels like an important part of the story instead of just an ancillary character. Dana Delany injects a lot of personality into her voice role and the character is written well enough that you want to see more of her on-screen.