Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman

MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

Batwoman makes her grand entrance in the feature-length animated adventure Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman. While Batman tries to figure out the new crime fighter's secret identity, Batwoman exposes an arms smuggling operation conducted by the Penguin. Soon Batwoman is captured by Bane and Batman has to choose whether or not he can trust his new mysterious ally. Featuring the voices of Kelly Ripa, Kyra Sedgwick, and Hector Elizondo. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

DVD FEATURES:

• Region: 1
• Number of Discs: 1
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 (Pre-1954 Standard)
• Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1
• Screen: Color
• Subtitle: English, French, Spanish
• Features:
  • cc
  • "Chase Me," an all-new Batman short exclusive to this DVD
  • Go "Behind the Mystery" of this fantastic adventure
  • Batman P.O.V.: the creators share their favorite characters and scenes
  • Character bios
  • Gadget gallery
  • Explore "The Making of a Scene"
  • Enhanced content featuring Toxic Chill game for your DVD-ROM PC

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Director:

  Curt Geda

• Producer:

  Curt Geda, Margaret M. Dean

• Screen Story:

  Alan Burnett

• Screenwriter:

  Michael Reaves

• Composer (Music Score):

  Lolita Ritmanis

• Supervising Producer:

  Alan Burnett

• Associate Producer:

  Kathryn Page

• Executive Producer:

  Michael E. Uslan, Benjamin Melniker, Sander Schwartz

• Casting:

  Andrea Romano

• Voice Director:

  Andrea Romano

• Sequence Director:

  Tim Maltby, Jennifer Graves

REVIEW:

• Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman is a solid straight-to-video effort from Warner Bros. that forgoes the more extreme dark material that's shaped their previous feature efforts (see the exceptional Batman Beyond: Return of Joker for more) and embraces the superhero's core detective skills through an involving web of intrigue and adventure. While there are still copious amounts of action, the focus here mostly lies in the wonderfully rich characters and their connections with each other throughout the mazelike story line. The caped crusader's rogue gallery is opened once again, with the rotund Penguin making a comeback, along with the intimidating hulk Bane, who's always good for a slam-bam fistfight with the masked hero. You get a little more Bruce Wayne in this yarn, which is always a welcome change. This time, he has his hands full with not one, but three lovely ladies -- making room for the more charming and comical aspects of the millionaire playboy to show through. The artwork is a slight step down from the hero's usual animated outings, though the style and pizzazz are still present. With the help of high-class voice talent, and top-form writing for an animated feature (never mind a non-theatrical one), Mystery of the Batwoman is yet another thrilling installment in the Batman animated franchise. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, Rovi