Batman vs. Robin
DVD cover
Directed byJay Oliva
Screenplay byJ. M. DeMatteis
Based on"Batman: The Court of Owls"
by Scott Snyder
Greg Capullo
Jonathan Glapion
Produced byJames Tucker
Starring
Edited byAl Bretienbach
Music byFrederik Wiedmann
Production
companies
Warner Bros. Animation
DC Entertainment
The Answer Studio (animation services)
Distributed byWarner Home Video
Release dates
  • April 7, 2015 (2015-04-07) (digital)
  • April 14, 2015 (2015-04-14) (physical)
Running time
80 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Batman vs. Robin is a 2015 American animated superhero film which is the 23rd film of the DC Universe Animated Original Movies and the fifth film in the DC Animated Movie Universe. The film is partially based on the "Batman: The Court of Owls" saga written by Scott Snyder and illustrated by Greg Capullo and Jonathan Glapion, combined with aspects of Batman & Robin: Born to Kill by Peter Tomasi and Patrick Gleason and Detective Comics: Faces of Death arcs by Tony S. Daniel, and serves as a sequel to 2014's Son of Batman. The film was shown during WonderCon on April 3, 2015, and was released on Blu-ray and DVD formats on April 14.[2]

Jason O'Mara, Stuart Allan, David McCallum, and Sean Maher reprise their respective roles from Son of Batman. It was McCallum’s last film role before his death in 2023. He would be replaced by James Garrett in future DCAMU films.[3][4]

Plot

In the past, a young Bruce Wayne learns of a secret, shadowy organization called the Court of Owls from his father Thomas. After witnessing the death of his parents, Bruce suspects that the Court was behind the murder but finds no evidence, which leads him to believe the Court was in fact just a story. In the present day, Bruce’s son Damian[N 1] goes out as Robin to rescue a group of missing children abducted by Anton Schott AKA Dollmaker, who has been turning them into dolls. Afterward, a mysterious figure in an owl costume suddenly appears and kills Anton, leaving a feather behind. However, due to his past violent actions and the fact that the mysterious figure was only seen by him, Bruce thinks Damian killed Dollmaker, prompting him to place security measures around Wayne Manor to prevent Damian from going out as Robin.

The following night, Bruce goes out as Batman to track down the feather, leading him to a museum where he is confronted by a group of owl costumed assassins. They eventually capture him and take him to their headquarters, where he meets their leader the "Grandmaster". The Grandmaster offers Bruce the chance to join them, but he kindly declines, with the Court returning him home safely. Meanwhile, Damian escapes Wayne Manor, and while out he meets the same assassin who killed Anton, introducing himself as Talon. Talon takes Damian under his wing, training him to become a Court assassin.

Bruce infiltrates a Court headquarters and is taken out by hallucination gas, but is rescued by Nightwing and Alfred Pennyworth. When Damian is revealed to be Bruce's son, the Grandmaster rejects him under the decision to emotionally cripple Bruce with Damian's death, prompting Talon to attack the Court killing several members in the process before killing the Grandmaster, who is revealed to be socialite Samantha Vanaver, Bruce’s girlfriend, while also insisting that she would have done the same to him. Now having control of the Court, Talon leads an attack on Wayne Manor, but Batman, Nightwing and Alfred fend them off.

Damian escapes the Court headquarters and defeats Talon, telling him he can never be a better father than Bruce. In his defeat, Talon takes his own life by forcing Damian to stab him through the neck with his own sai. This greatly traumatizes Damian, who rejects Bruce’s offer to return home on the grounds that he doesn’t know who he is. Ultimately, Damian decides to leave Bruce, who suggests he should go to a monastery in the Himalayas to find himself.[N 2]

Cast

Reception

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (August 2015)

The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 100%, with an average score of 8.4/10, based on 5 reviews.[7] IGN rated it 6.7/10[8] and Screen Rant 2.5/5.[9] The film earned $4,275,434 from domestic home video sales.[10]

Sequels

A sequel titled Batman: Bad Blood was released in 2016 which was followed by Batman: Hush in 2019.

Notes

  1. ^ Introduced in the 2014 film Son of Batman.
  2. ^ Damian returns in the 2016 film Batman: Bad Blood.

References

  1. ^ "Batman vs Robin". YouTube.
  2. ^ "Batman vs Robin Release Dates". The World's Finest. Retrieved December 17, 2015.
  3. ^ "David McCallum, star of hit TV series 'The Man From U.N.C.L.E.' and 'NCIS,' dies at 90". Yahoo. September 25, 2023. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
  4. ^ "David McCallum, Heartthrob Spy of 'The Man From U.N.C.L.E.,' Dies at 90". New York Times.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Jason O'Mara, Jeremy Sisto and even "Weird Al" Yankovic are among those lending their pipes to the 'Son of Batman' sequel". The Hollywood Reporter. January 14, 2015. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
  6. ^ a b c d "Batman vs Robin: Backstage - Cast and Crew". The World's Finest. Retrieved April 9, 2015.
  7. ^ "Batman vs. Robin". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved October 10, 2021.
  8. ^ Batman vs. Robin Review - IGN, April 14, 2015, retrieved December 23, 2020
  9. ^ "'Batman vs. Robin' Review". ScreenRant. April 13, 2015. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
  10. ^ "Batman vs. Robin (2014) The Numbers listing". The Numbers. Accessed October 4, 2019.