Son of Batman

Son of Batman (2014) starring the voice talents of Jason O’Mara,  Stuart Allan,  Thomas Gibson,Morena Baccarin,  Giancarlo Esposito,  Sean Maher

 Sadly, this is less of a review, and more of a warning, about  Son of Batman. While watching  Son of Batman, my children and I laughed out loud multiple times — but not during the comedy moments. In short, it’s a bad movie, which is too bad, since the source material is quite good, and the various actors and actresses have proven themselves to be better than this in other performances.

Synopsis of  Son of Batman

Unknown to Batman (Jason O’Mara), he has had a child with Talia (Morena Baccarin), the daughter of his arch-enemy Ra’s al Ghul (Giancarlo Esposito) — the head of the League of Assassins. Deathstroke (Thomas Gibson) murders Ra’s. He wants to take over the League and rule the world with an army of mutant ninja man-bats! But Ra’s al Ghul’s grandson (Stuart Allan) is determined to stop him, at all costs. And doesn’t care about who gets hurt along the way. Batman (and Nightwing, the former Robin) try to turn his quest for vengeance to something more productive and help mentor him to become a better person in the process.

Review of  Son of Batman

So, what’s so wrong with  Son of Batman? Several things:

The sheer ludicrousness of several things.

For example, early in the film, Damien Wayne (Batman’s illegitimate son) is fighting with Ubu, Ra’s al Ghul’s personal bodyguard (who betrayed Ra’s, but that’s another story), and pushed Ubu backwards several feet. Ubu is a hulking giant, who likely weighs over three hundred pounds.  And a twelve-year-old pushes him backwards, in a contest of physical strength.

In the climactic fight between Damien/Robin and Deathstroke, Robin has both of his arms pinned against the wall by daggers.  And to free himself, Damien pulls his arms forward, pulling the hilt of the daggers through his arms.  And continues to fight without the slightest handicap, as though there’s no injury at all.

Talia conceived Damien by drugging Batman and having sexual intercourse with him. Clearly not a children’s film.

Damien, the protagonist, is absolutely unlikable. Obnoxious, arrogant, vicious, and a know-it-all — who clearly feels that  Nightwing/Dick Grayson is a rival for his father’s affection.

Army of ninja man-bats. Seriously.

Deathstroke

Deathstroke, unlike his portrayal in the comics, the Teen Titans cartoon series, and every other appearance — is a whiny loser. A twelve-year-old boy defeats him — repeatedly. He even has his eye put out by Damien’s sword, shortly after murdering Ra’s al Ghul. Why would the other members of the League of Assassins side with him over Ra’s Al Ghul is a total mystery. A great hero needs a great villain — and this version of Deathstroke simply isn’t.

Characterization

The movie treats Talia poorly. She’s a sex object, with her cleavage showing at every opportunity. She exists in this movie as a slave to her father’s desire. She’s a helpless captive, and someone who needs rescuing.  So that Batman is gone during the climactic final fight between Deathstroke and Damien.

The original comic book story arc, is much better, in pretty much any way. The movie seriously suffers by comparison.

I rate  Son of Batman as 1 star out of 5.  The art work is fine, the voice actors do the best they can. But the story is poorly executed. A poor movie, that’s frankly not worth watching, sad as that is to say.