Batman - Mask of the Phantasm: The Animated
Movie Original Release Date - December 25th, 1993 - Theatrical Release
When Gotham City's most-feared gangsters are systematically eliminated,
the worst is feared: that Batman is to blame. But prowling the Gotham
night is a shadowy new villain, the Phantasm, a sinister figure with a
troublesome link to Batman's past.
Media by Bird Boy
Reviews (1999) by Emmanuel Papillon, Jim Harvey
Click here to view the movie poster!
Credits
Story by Alan Burnett
Screenplay by Alan Burnett, Paul Dini, Martin Pasko, Michael
Reaves
Edited by Al Breitenbach
Produced by Benjamin Melniker, Michael Uslan
Co-Producers Alan Burnett, Eric Radomski, Bruce W. Timm
Executive Producer Tom Ruegger
Directed by Eric Radomski and Bruce W. Timm
Music by Shirley Walker
Animation by Dong Yang Animation, Inc., Spectrum Animation
Studio
Voices
Kevin Conroy as Bruce Wayne / Batman
Dana Delany as Andrea Beaumont
Hart Bochner as Arthur Reeves
Stacy Keach, Jr. as Phantasm and Carl Beaumont
Abe Vigoda as Salvatore Valestra
Dick Miller as Chuckie Sol
John P. Ryana s Buzz Bronski
Efrem Zimbalist Jr. as Alfred
Bob Hastings as Commissioner Gordon
Robert Costanzo as Detective Bullock
Mark Hamill as The Joker
Arleen Sorkin as Bambi (Uncredited)
Jane Downs as Additional Voice
Pat Musick as Additional Voice
Vernee Watson-Johnson as Additional Voice
Ed Gilbert as Additional Voice
Peter Renaday as Additional Voice
Jeff Bennett as Additional Voice
Charles Howarton as Additional Voice
Thom Pinto as Additional Voice
Marilu Henner as Additional Voice
Neil Ross as Additional Voice
Video Clip
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In Memory of Kevin Conroy The HBO Max streaming service added a special title card to the beginning of
"Batman: Mask of the Phantasm" following Kevin Conroy's passing in November 2022. Click for a closer look.
Quotes
REEVES (on TV): What kind of city are we running when we depend on the
support of a potential MADMAN ?
ALFRED STOPS THE TV
ALFRED: Such rot, sir. Why, you're the very model of sanity. Oh, by the
way, I pressed your tights and put away your exploding gas balls.
BRUCE: Thank you, Alfred.
--
ANDREA (from visiting her mother's grave): So tell me, with all that
money and power, why do you always look like you want to jump off a
cliff ?
BRUCE: Why should you care ?
ANDREA: I don't. Mother was asking.
--
BRUCE (as vigilante): On your stomachs, arms spread !
THIEF: Who's this clown ?
--
ANDREA: Nice footwork. Can you dance too ?
--
GOTHAM'S FAIR, TEN YEARS BEFORE
HIGHSPEAKER VOICE: Welcome to the Gotham's world fair, a dream of the
future. A bright tomorrow filled with hope and promise for all mankind.
This is a vision of the shimmering utopia where we shall all spend the
rest of our lives.
--
ANDREA (calling her father): You're sure about this ?
BRUCE: Sure, I'm sure. (In Alfred's ear) What am I doing, Alfred ? This
isn't part of the plan ! I must be going nuts !
ALFRED: If I may make so bold, Master Bruce, I'd say quite the reverse.
--
BRUCE (to his parents' grave): It doesn't mean I don't care anymore. I
don't want to let you down, honest, but... but it just doesn't hurt so
bad anymore. You can understand that, can't you ? Look, I can give money
to the city to hire more cops. Let's someone else take the risk, it's
different now !
A LIGHTNING LIGHTS THE GRAVE
BRUCE: Please. I need it to be different now. I know I made a promise,
but I didn't see this coming. I didn't count on being happy.
--
REEVES: I suppose you could demand Police protection.
VALESTRA: What are you, a comedian ? This is the Batman we're talking
about. A freak job !
--
BATMAN: Sal's having company tonight. Don't wait up.
ALFRED: Meaning, I trust that once you're done with him, you'll be
seeing her ?
BATMAN: You think you know everything about me, don't you ?
ALFRED: I diapered your bottom, I bloody well ought to. . . SIR !
--
GOTHAM'S FAIR, IN THE PRESENT, EMPTY AND DIRTY - SAL VALESTRA CAREFULY
WALKS IN AND GASPS WHEN THE RUSTY FAIR ROBOTS START SINGING - SUDDENLY,
AN UNSEEN MACHINE GUN TEARS THE ROBOTS' HEADS OFF
JOKER: I hate that song.
--
JOKER: You know, I've been reading lately how old guano-man is wound
tight enough to snap. Wouldn't it be great if I'd finally driven him off
the deep end ? HAHAHAHA !!!
VALESTRA: This isn't a joke ! Batman's knocking us off, and you're the
only one who take him down ! Look, five millions up front, with whatever
you want to finish him off !
JOKER: YAAAAWWN. What do I look like, pest control ?
--
BATMAN: You still follow your dad's orders ?
ANDREA: The way I see it, the only one in this room controlled by his
parents is you.
BATMAN LEAVES - ANDREA WALKS TO HER BED AND BURSTS IN TEARS
--
REEVES (speaking on phone): You're telling me there were four precincts
on Batman's heels and he still got away ?
REEVES HANGS UP THE PHONE
REEVES: Unbelievable !
JOKER (at the door): Tsk, tsk. And to think our tax money goes to pay
those jerks.
--
JOKER: I'm impressed, lady. You're harder to kill than a cockroach on
steroids.
--
JOKER: You're crazy ! I'm your only chance to get out of here ! Let me
go or we both die !
BATMAN: Whatever it takes !
--
ALFRED: Vengeance blackens the soul, Bruce. I always feared you would
become that which you fought against. You walked the edge of that abyss
every night, but you haven't fallen in and I thank Heaven for that. But
Andrea fell into that pit years ago, and no one, not even you, could
have pulled her back.
Review (by Emmanuel Papillon, written in 2001): Now, this is what Batman is
all about ! The BTAS team obviously wanted to make a classic with
that movie, and they succeeded. Every important Batman theme is
there : the 1940 mood, the gangster atmosphere, the gigantic town,
the corruption, and vengeance as a main subject. A lot of theme
found in such great stories as The Dark Knight Returns, such as the
"anti-bat" campaign, or the cops trying to get the Batman at any
cost, were also there, in a perfect consistency all along the movie.
It's dark, it's strong, it's what BTAS have accustomed us to.
The scenes taking place in the past were very cleverly written.
Bruce's first night as a vigilante was fun and interesting to watch,
because we clearly see he's not Batman yet, he's not yet as dark and
bitter as he'll be later. In fact, the whole movie is about the loss
of hope and the darkening of the future, and in that sense it
reminds the best Franck Miller scripts. Watching Bruce and Andrea at
the end arguing in the ruins of their past happiness is very moving.
Andrea Beaumont's character happens to be one of the most moving and
well-written characters of BTAS. Her expressions, dialogue and the
fact that she was probably Bruce's best chance of leading a happy
life conveys a lot of feelings for her. Her story with Bruce sounds
indeed very serious and realistic - unlike his romance stories with
Kyle or Talia which were more physical than long-lasting.
Bruce's obsession and hesitations between Batman and Andrea also fit
perfectly with his character. In fact, Mask of the Phantasm
describes what really made the Batman of BTAS what he is. There was
the death of his parents, of course, but he didn't really give up
happiness and Bruce Wayne to become Batman until Andrea left him.
The Joker is also well written, and appears like he really is, that
is more like a sadistic killer having his fun than a psychotic
clown. He's really scary, too, especially during his scene with
Reeves, he's menacing and not funny at all. There's even a short
scene with Velestra where we wonder if all that Joker thing with all
its theatrical effects isn't an act to escape justice by pleading
insanity.
Alas, the animation wasn't always on the same level than the story.
It was very uneven, some scenes and effects were very nice, like the
smoke surrounding the Phantasm or most of the flashback scenes, and
the end was also impressive, but some ordinary scenes were just
horrible. The Joker was always changing shape during his first
appearance with Valestra, the background characters always seemed a
bit stiff, and there were some big continuity design problems - like
Valestra's smile with pink gum on one shot and no gum on the next
one. All in all, between its bright and poor moments, it deserves
four stars, though... and the whole movie well deserves its five
stars!
Review (by Jim Harvey, written in 2001): Fans of "Batman: The Animated Series", or just of the character in general, should love "Batman: Mask of the Phantasm." It's that simple. Unlike director Tim
Burton's live-action "Batman" films, this animated feature actually
puts the emphasis on the Dark Knight rather than his still-colorful
villains. It's kind of a kitchen-sink "Batman" tale - his past,
present and future are all mixed into a brew full of angst, drama and
action. And, thankfully, this movie delivers in nearly every conceivable way. We got action, new villains, shocking revelations and surprises, heart-breaking drama and incredible performances - and that's barely scratching the surface.
"Batman: Mask of the Phantasm" features the look of the current
animated Batman television series - an alluring "Dark Deco" - and was
produced and animated by the same team. The animation fits justas well
on the big screen as it does on the small TV screen. There's just something
about the story and about the animation that makes it seem bigger
than life.
To break it down in the simplest way, this "Batman"tale is basically a doomed love story wrapped up in a murder mystery. Billionaire
Bruce Wayne (voice of Kevin Conroy) - who fights crime disguised as
the Batman, as we all know - finds himself on the trail of a killer, one who happens to be bumping off high-level underworld figures. However, witnesses describe the killer as a hooded, caped figure, inadvertently implicating Batman in the murders. Intent on clearing his alter ego's name, Batman begins his desperate search to uncover the identity of this mysterious
Phantasm.
Meanwhile, the beleaguered Dark Knight is thrown into further turmoil when his
long-lost love, Andrea Beaumont (Dana Delany), suddenly returns to his life. Bruce hasn't seen Andrea since she broke their engagement a
decade ago and, as we delve into his past and their history together, you can just
feel his pain in some these flashbacks. There's definitely a lot more to the very early days of Batman's career than we could've expected, including how close Bruce came to changing his "plan" to be Gotham's protector (this all comes to head in an incredible graveside scene which, easily, features some of Conroy's best work ever).
On top of being packed with surprises, Batman: Mask of the Phantasm is remarkably
efficiently plotted. Every minute counts and the pace keeps things movings without a missed beat. At 70-odd minutes, it doesn't feel much longer
than a two-part episode, but it accomplishes a lot with its brisk feature length.
This movie is able to provide the viewer with a lot of information
in a short time, but doesn't make the movie feel congested and too
quick. The strong script, especially with it's fractured, time-jumping narrative, just pulls you in and, before you know it, Batman is having his final showdown with the masked killer, The Phantasm.
This movie has it
all: an intriguing plot, interesting dialogue, rapid-fire action and
good characterization. It also shows you can have two costumed
villains in the movie and still have the whole story center around
BATMAN (take note, future directors: it all goes back to a GOOD
STORY that doesn't assume the audience has the intelligence and
attention span of a six-year-old hopped up on sugar and caffeine.) I
know I've said it already and will likely repeat it ad nausuem, but
the voice actors here are incredible. You can't ask for a better collection of talent.
Undeniably, this movie is Conroy's show. He just brings that perfect weight and gravitas to the role, and he just has that perfect
voice. And that fantastic chemistry between Conroy's
Bruce and Delany's Andrea? So dang good. Conroy and Delany just absolutely deliver, through and through, as does the rest of the film's exceptional cast. And that's really just a small bit of what this fantastic movie has to offer. This film is just so rich, and one that deserves to be experienced as fresh as possible! If you're a Batman fan, this movie is a required viewing becuase, honestly, this is pretty much the best Batman movie ever made (sorry, Burton)!
