In Lego DC Batman: Family Matters, Batman has grown tired of balancing the crime-fighting life of Batman with the billionaire business celebrity of Bruce Wayne. On a whim, after being introduced to the Brother Eye AI security system pitched to him in a meeting, Bruce decides to sell his company, allowing it to fall right in the hands of Harvey Dent, who felt scorned by Bruce’s success and careless attitude towards Gotham. He and the Bat-Family, after called together by a mysterious note, must defeat classic villains such as Scarecrow, The Riddler, Penguin, Two-Face, and Red Hood before their city is destroyed.
The characters are mostly endearing caricatures of their personas and have notable chemistry even as animated. Just as in the theatrical releases from the franchise, Batman is lovably airheaded and caring. The action scenes are a nice balance of comedy and entertainment, although the fun physical comedy relating to the snap-on snap-off breakableness of Lego toys never seemed to be properly utilized. I almost never felt bored as the creators definitely knew how not to waste time – every moment mattered and nothing plot-wise felt like it needed to be cut.
Though it’s called Family Matters, the movie is based on the 2010 comic Batman: Under the Hood, which is anything but family-friendly. I thought it was interesting how the writers adapted the originally dark story into a relatively-lighthearted adventure, changing out the more mature themes for silly replacements. I welcomed these, mostly for reasons concerning the young audience, but I was taken aback by the awareness the writers had with the unethicality of Bruce’s status as a billionaire and how his obsession with saving the city was based on his ego and cleaning up his mess rather than enacting change. When Harvey Dent and Red Hood criticize Batman for his carelessness towards the city, they aren’t corrected and are both forgiven for their villainy. I felt that it was although it seemed out-of-place, it was responsible to introduce young viewers to awareness of favorite characters’ flaws and understanding the importance of money going to help those in need.
Most of all, I was really impressed by the voice acting. After a quick search, I wasn’t surprised by its quality. The cast is full of veteran voice actors such as the legendary Tara Strong, Spongebob Squarepants’ Tom Kenny, Kingdom Hearts’ Alyson Stoner, and Troy Baker (The Last of Us, BioShock Infinite, Persona 4) being the voice of Batman. Almost every line was delivered in ways that highlighted the stronger jokes and scenes of deeper emotion.
Stoner makes the most of the little she gets as Batgirl, whose entire plot revolves around being obsessed with the fact that her boyfriend Nightwing hasn’t texted her back, unable to even send an “emoticon”. The only other woman character, Batwoman, isn’t as superficial as Batgirl but is allowed perhaps seconds of speaking and is barely acknowledged by the characters around her. Meanwhile, nearly every male character has their own substantial plot and heartfelt motivations. It seems like the creators depended on the comedy and triviality of the fact that these characters are plastic toys to excuse their objectification but can afford to give the male characters the writing they deserve. There are so many little girls in the world who want a complex and interesting superhero that represents them, whether or not they also want to laugh!
As you can tell, my main issue was that this movie was all over the place. At times, it seemed thrown together and like the writers were unsure of what they wanted to do, for aspects I liked and didn’t. At times, it seemed like they wanted to save young audiences from adult concepts while also exposing them to complex issues. Overall, though, it’s what I expected for a straight-to-video kid’s film.
Animation/Visual:
The Blu-ray transfer looks and sounds good. In terms of the quality of the animation, it’s a charming style that is certainly suitable – not too good – for a straight-to-video release. Of course, it’s hard to compete with the unique and incredibly detailed effects of the franchise’s theatrical releases.
After the credits:
If you’re a fan of the DC Universe, stay tuned – mid-credits, a scene hinting at a Lego DC: Shazam! adaptation is suggested as Billy Batson, who had a few onscreen moments during the movie, boards a mysterious subway train. This is an exciting idea as Shazam! has a goofy and wondrous nature that would fit the world of Lego nicely.
