Batman: Gotham By Gaslight (2018)

Batman: Gotham By Gaslight (2018)

C – 78m
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 – Widescreen – Animated
Graphic Novel: Gotham By Gaslight: A Tale Of The Batman by Brian Augustyn, Michael Mignola and P. Craig Russell
Starring: Jennifer Carpenter, Bruce Greenwood, Grey DeLisle, Scott Patterson, John DiMaggio, Anthony Head and Yuri Lowenthal.

In an alternant Victorian Age Gotham, Batman begins his war on crime by investigating the murders done by Jack The Ripper. Strictly routine Jack The Ripper yarn gets a tad of a boost from the presence of the Batman characters. Robin is divided into three orphans, Cat Woman is a musical hall singing prostitute, as was Poison Ivy and Bruce Wayne / Batman plays Sherlock Holmes. Nothing more or less complicated by that. Some suspense is built and there is enough of the formula Ripper story to keep adults entertained. The end result visually however is a kid’s cartoon slapped with an [R] rating just for some violence, never mind the sexuality and language. Tame by most Ripper standards, for those who care.

Trivia: The three orphan boys’ names are: Dickie, Jason and Tim; the same three first names of the incarnations of Robin: Dick Grayson, Jason Todd and Tim Drake.

Rated: [R] – Some Violence
Available on Blu–ray, DVD & Digital Copy

Tolkien Animated (1977 – 1980)

The Hobbit (1977)

C – 90m / 77m
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 – Fullscreen – Animated
Novel By: J.R.R. Tolkien
Pro. – Co – Dir.: Jules Bass
Starring: Orson Bean, Richard Boone, Hans Conried, John Huston, Otto Preminger, Brother Theodore and Paul Frees. 

A hobbit gets talked into taking a journey with dwarfs to recover their treasure from a dragon. Thankless adaption of Tolkien’s classic novel(s) botches the time line a bit. The characters are for the most part goofy looking. Okay for young viewers to get them started on the Tolkien works but very little else to recommend it.

Out Of Print on VHS but Available on Blu–ray, DVD & Digital Copy 

The Lord Of The Rings (1978)

C – 132m
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 – Widescreen – Animated
A.K.A.: J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord Of The Rings
Starring: John Hurt and Simon Chandler.

The Fellowship Of The Ring embarks on their journey to destroy the ring and end the rule of Sauron. A wonderfully animated film suffers greatly from using a heavy portion of The Hobbit and very little of The Fellowship Of The Ring and The Two Towers. The uselessly jumbled timeline of events may annoy purists, such as this reviewer, but the visuals are enough to hold one for the duration of the film.

Two little trivia notes: Tim Burton did his first film work on this film, he was an uncredited “in between” artist. And: Peter Jackson first discovered Tolkien’s works through this film. Some speculate that he had some shots in his versions of the stories that were inspired by this film. 

Rated: [PG]
Out Of Print on VHS but Available on Blu–ray, DVD & Digital Copy 

The Return Of The King (1980)

C – 98m
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 – Fullscreen  - Animated
Novels By: J.R.R. Tolkien
Pro. – Co–Dir.: Jules Bass
Starring: Orson Bean, John Huston, Theodore Bikel, William Conrad, Roddy McDowall, Brother Theodore, Paul Frees and Casey Kasem.

The final push to Mount Doom to destroy the ring and the battle along the way. The masterful drawings of the first two films are toned down to goofy looking characters. The fact that this, like the other animated adaptions, shuffles events in the books for no apparent reason just further frustrates this reviewer. Still if you want to start young kids on the series early, this is the conclusion of the way to do so.

Out Of Print on VHS but Available on DVD & Digital Copy