Merry Little Batman Review: Jingle Bells...Batman Smells.....
It’s getting so close to Christmas. It’s that phase when people stop focusing on those work emails and look forward to celebrating the holidays. Pretty much every streaming service will feature loads of holiday themed entertainment. Instead of another movie of ailing Christmas tree farms and city girls with lonely hearts, let’s just enjoy some Batman. A Merry Little Batman that is.
Official Synopsis:
“This Christmas, Damian Wayne wants to be a superhero like his dad—the one and only Batman. When Damian is left home alone while Batman takes on Gotham's worst supervillains on Christmas Eve, he stumbles upon a villainous plot to steal Christmas and leaps at the chance to save the day.”
Streaming now on Prime Video, enjoy a sort of stand-alone future universe of Batman. In this world, Batman went a bit extra on his crime-fighting spree and completely annihilated crime entirely. As in, there is zero crime in the city. Gotham citizens can shop in peace while Batman (spoiler alert, it’s Bruce Wayne) gets to focus on raising his son, Damien (voiced by Yonas Kibreab). With the trusty help of Alfred the Butler (voiced by James Cromwell) of course.
Viewers do not need to know anything about the deep background of Batman to enjoy and understand this movie. The family unit is explained when Bruce Wayne mentions Damien’s mother, Talia Al Ghul, briefly. He doesn’t offer an in-depth explanation of why she is not there to help raise their son. but her absence is not hamper in fostering a happy home life for Damien. The focus of the animated movie is completely between the bond of father and son, so any questions about Talia will just go completely unanswered.
The movie is directed by Mike Roth, known for his work with Regular Show: The Movie and Camp Lazlo!, so this is definitely not a serious animated movie. It has heart but it’s definitely not a soul searching kind of story. There will be no tears shed from sadness, only from keeping back the snorts and giggles. To solidify how very not serious Merry Little Batman is, Bruce Wayne is voiced by Luke Wilson.
Of all the places in the DC universe, Gotham would not seem the likely candidate for a heartwarming Christmas story. Christmas at Gotham seems to be usually plagued by explosions set by mad villains. In this universe, there are no villains. So Gotham is just a safe, happy little city to host a Christmas movie that centers around the wishes of a child. Damien wants to be just like his dad. He wants to use martial arts to deliver kicks to knock the bad guys and use all of the cool gadgets.
Honestly, Damien’s not alone in that wish. Every single one of us would love to have that sweet utility belt. Personally, I would never stop throwing that bat-a-rang.
Except, there is no crime, so what’s the use of learning those skills or obtaining such cool stuff. Batman was so good, that there is no reason for designing high tech gadgets or venturing down into the bat cave. It’s all just covered in cobwebs and memories.
Bruce Wayne tries to do his best to entertain Damien but both father and son butt heads. Bruce’s wish to protect Damien and Damien’s wish to fight drives a wedge between father and son. During their fight is interrupted by the sound that hasn’t been heard of in years: the bat phone! Crime has made a comeback.
The movie is all levels of cute. On one level, it’s a story of a son who wants to follow in the footsteps of his father. On a wacky level, this is a story of how much crazy damage one kid can do to a city. On a too deep level of analysis, it’s a story that nothing can stay peaceful for long. And on a surprise sentimental level, even villains have deep emotions. For such a goofy and eccentric animated movie, it surprisingly delivers a pleasant multi-faceted story that can be enjoyed from any perspective. It will be really hard to suppress that sign of joy once the credit rolls.
Merry Little Batman is one of the movies that will cater to almost everyone. The silly antics and jokes (prepare for butt jokes) will entertain the children while the references and easter eggs will entertain devoted Batman fans. It is a genuinely pleasant holiday movie off the beaten path. It even ends with a sweet moment of singing the happy little jingle that we all love.
Before you watch the movie, highly recommend enjoy it with a cup of cocoa. You’ll see why while watching the movie
