Son of Batman is an animated DC superhero film which holds the spot as the 20th film of the DC Universe Animated Original Movies (a series of direct-to-video films) and the third film in the DC Animated Movie Universe (a separate set of DC superhero movies focused on two story arcs, the first, untitled, from 2013 – 2020, and the second, the Tomorrowverse, from 2020 – 2024). Son of Batman was directed by Ethan Spaulding, is an adaptation of Grant Morrison’s 2006 storyline, “Batman and Son,” with a teleplay written by prolific genre novelist Joe R. Lansdale.
Buy Son of Batman Blu-rayIn the opening of Son of Batman, Ra’s (pronounced Raysh) al Ghul’s base, where he houses and trains the League of Assassins, is decimated by Deathstroke (Thomas Gibson). This might be because Ra’s (Giancarlo Esposito) brought bows and arrows to a gun and deathcopter fight. Even when his daughter, Talia (Morena Baccarin), finally makes her way to a Gatling gun, it isn’t what you think: you crank it up and it shoots…more arrows.
Fighting right alongside, and fighting extremely well, is Damian (Stuart Allen), Talia’s young son. Ra’s has been preparing Damian to be next in the order of succession. This has infuriated Deathstroke who believes he is the only worthy successor. Ra’s dies before he is able to submerge himself in one of his Lazarus Pits – a life-giving pool that has kept him alive for thousands of years. Talia believes that now it is finally time for her son to meet and learn from his father, Batman (Jason O’Mara).
Damian is petulant and brooding and probably should be. His treatment from his parents and his grandfather has been less than par. All of them seem to have a definite plan for how his life should go. He is young, though, but certainly isn’t treated that way by anybody who could give his life some structure. Damian takes after his grandfather in that he is too violent and too ready to kill, but he also appears to have some of his father’s detective skills.
All this leads to Damian nearly killing one of Deathstroke’s minions in order to find out where his mother is being held captive. Nightwing shows up in time to stop the carnage, and Batman becomes convinced Damian will learn true discipline if he dons the Robin costume. Damian believes the Robin outfit is too effeminate, but once he takes the leap, the new suit is an excellent amalgamation of the Robin suit and those worn by the League of Assassins.
The fight scenes are well paced, visually interesting, and smartly directed. The best part of the story is that there really are no heroes and villains. Instead, it is individual desires that keep the plot going. The artistic design has good darkness, movement, and depth, adding to the obvious tensions found in the plot. The father-son aspect of the story is actually quite charming, filled with humor, and with the amount of “love” one would expect from people like Bruce and Damian. All of this is just to say that a great script goes a long way. Watch the end credits for a fun glimpse into Damian and Nightwing’s fight.
