TheRetroCritic

Review available on the new website .

The Bat, The Cat, The Penguin.

A while back, I reviewed the Justice League movie and I wasn't too kind to it. In fact, I was the opposite of kind to it: I was unkind in a big way. After giving the film a couple of re-watchings, I now realize I was wrong and I feel like I understand the movie a lot better now. There were countless things I missed, misunderstood or flat-out lied about so consider this list a re-review and please ignore my initial take on Justice League as it was unfair, silly and wrong. I finally learned to fully appreciate the film's qualities and rethink a lot of the problems I had with the film because they weren't real problems at all. I firmly believe that Justice League is the best comic-book movie ever made and here's why: 30 SOCRATES Famous philosopher Socrates once said: " There is only one good, knowledge, and one evil, ignorance.".   I have never seen a reviewer make this connection but this quote is at the very core of the Justice League mov

I talk a bit about Season 3 of Gotham .

Released in 2016, Justice League vs. Teen Titans was an animated feature attempting to give a bit more of a grown-up edge to the Teen Titans by making them useful to the Justice League as they deal with a new significant enemy. The film opens with the Justice League in the middle of a battle against the likes of Lex Luthor, Toymaster, Cheetah and Solomon Grundy. After Damian Wayne/Robin (voiced by Stuart Allan) disobeys Batman's orders by ending the fight all by himself, he is sent for training with the Teen Titans so he can learn teamwork. Unsurprisingly, he initially clashes with the other members of the team but grows to work with them instead of against them when demon Trigon (Jon Bernthal) starts posing a threat to the entire world. Damian Wayne is just as much of a moody brat as he was in the Son Of Batman trilogy, if not more so, and he's pretty dislikable throughout. He quickly becomes friends with Raven (Taissa Farmiga), who is somehow even more emo than he is,

Based on the 2004 The Batman  series, this feature-length animated movie sees the Dark Knight come face to face with Dracula himself in a potentially really fun, if probably quite silly, crossover. When The Penguin and The Joker get a tip from a fellow patient in Arkham Asylum that there is a hidden treasure beneath a specific grave in the cemetery, they both escape and compete to recover it. Batman soon shows up to fight The Joker and the latter, surprisingly, falls to his death as he electrocutes himself with his own weapon. The death of The Joker could have been its own film, to be honest, as Bruce Wayne's reaction to this event clearly affects him but this is only used to set the darker tone and give us a vampire Joker later on in the film. Meanwhile, The Penguin accidentally revives Dracula who promptly starts to feast on random people in order to regain his strength. Batman is not very smart in this as he struggles to guess that creepy-looking Dr Alucard is in fact Dracu

I talk briefly about The Batman ... the animated series from 2004.

Gothamized  is a completely unofficial guide to new series  Gotham  and a debate arena for all things Batman.   DOWNLOAD THE EPISODE HERE In this 32nd episode, I discuss episodes 1 and 2 of  Gotham  Season 3 plus I talk about the new Justice League trailer and review  Batman Forever . (for my written review of the Gotham Pilot,  click here! ) Hope you enjoy it! You can also find us on podcast  The Big Rewind  (available on  Soundcloud , iTunes, Stitcher and Player FM) and send us emails with your Bat-questions, Six Degrees challenges and riddles here:  gothamized@gmail.com (for the pilot episode  CLICK HERE )

In this first episode of Trailerwatch, I check out the Spider-Man: Homecoming trailer. Also: Baywatch and Justice League .

The first proper Justice League trailer finally exists! What do you guys think?

As DC prepares his new live-action blockbusters, Batman returned in The LEGO Batman Movie , a spin-off from The LEGO Movie in which the Dark Knight (voiced by Will Arnett) takes centre stage in his very own adventure. Very much in the spirit of the first LEGO Movie, this spin-off is a fast-paced, tongue-in-cheek romp packed with silly jokes, familiar characters and colourful LEGO action. The genuinely cool, relentless opening sequence sees The Joker (voiced by Zach Galifianakis) join forces with other Batman villains, even the wacky ones, to execute his latest evil plan. Batman, of course, shows up to save the day and we get a more honest look at what happens with Bruce Wayne after a wild night taking care of the bad guys. Lonely, bored, microwaving lobster thermidors, watching Jerry Maguire on his own: it turns out that working solo has its disadvantages. The film captures the strengths and weaknesses of the Batman character brilliantly and although it's technically a spoof,

I compile 20 of the worst lines from Shaq's infamous superhero outing Steel . It's on now!

I look back on The LEGO Movie and talk about The LEGO Batman Movie . LIVE!

Gothamized  is a completely unofficial guide to new series  Gotham  and a debate arena for all things Batman.   DOWNLOAD THE EPISODE HERE In this 29th episode, I discuss episodes 14, 15 and 16 of  Gotham  Season 2 and review Tim Burton's  Batman (1989) . (for my written review of the Gotham Pilot,  click here! ) Hope you enjoy it! You can also find us on podcast  The Big Rewind  (available on Soundcloud, iTunes, Stitcher and Player FM) and send us emails with your Bat-questions, Six Degrees challenges and riddles here:  gothamized@gmail.com (for the pilot episode  CLICK HERE )

I finally count down my Top 10 Best Films Of 2016 . Sorry Sausage Party ...

Time once more to look back at another year and figure out what our favourite movies were!  2016 may have been the most disappointing cinematic year in a while but let's be positive... for now. Here are my Top 25 Best Films Of 2016 . Feel free to share your favourites in the comments! 25 THE HUNTSMAN: WINTER'S WAR While an inferior, extremely derivative sequel in which Snow White is mysteriously absent, The Huntsman: Winter's War was a fun blockbuster with lots of creative visual effects and a likeable cast. Completely unnecessary, somewhat messy yet enjoyable. 24 THE MONKEY KING 2 This sequel may not have starred Donnie Yen but fans of the timeless Journey To The West story should have had fun with The Monkey King 2 regardless. A refreshing alternative to Hollywood blockbusters, this one starred Gong Li as an evil witch and it was very entertaining. 23 DEADPOOL Certainly one of the most overrated films of 2016, Deadpoo

This animated DC feature from 2009 teamed-up iconic heroes Superman and Batman with Tim Daly and Kevin Conroy returning to voice their respective roles. The film sees Lex Luthor become President of the United States and a Kryptonite meteor head for Earth. Lex Luthor's rise to power is one that should have prompted some pretty exciting physical and psychological clashes between Superman and his arch-enemy and, to a certain extent, we get that with most superheroes and villains working for Luthor being sent out to stop both Superman and Batman, who obviously refuse to believe this new public persona of his. This makes for some entertaining fight scenes packed with familiar faces from Captain Marvel to Hawkman, Katana and many others. In the end, we of course get a Superman vs Luthor one-on-one. This is very much a brawl with a lot of punch-outs so if it's non-stop action you're looking for then you won't be disappointed with this one. Superman/Batman: Public Enemies

Review available on the new website .

Gothamized  is a completely unofficial guide to new series  Gotham  and a debate arena for all things Batman. DOWNLOAD THE EPISODE HERE In this 24th episode, I discuss the first 3 episodes of  Gotham  Season 2 and we review Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice . (for my written review of the Gotham Pilot,  click here! ) Hope you enjoy it! You can also find us on podcast  The Big Rewind  (available on Soundcloud, iTunes, Stitcher and Player FM) and send us emails with your Bat-questions, Six Degrees challenges and riddles here:  gothamized@gmail.com (for the pilot episode  CLICK HERE )

I finally talk about DC's latest Suicide Squad . I'm known to be quite vexing, I'm just forewarning you.