Alan Burnett Movies

The creators of Superman: Doomsday, Batman: Gotham Knight, and Wonder Woman re-team to tell the origins of the Green Lantern in this animated DC Comics feature. When Hal Jordan (voice of Christopher Meloni) is recruited to join the Green Lantern corps, he is placed under the direct supervision of senior Lantern Sinestro. But the Green Lantern corps has come under attack by a powerful foe. When Hal discovers that Sinestro is actually part of a vast conspiracy that aims to dismantle the entire organization, he must use his newfound powers to restore order and combat the treason that threatens to tarnish the Green Lantern legacy. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

The producers of Batman Begins and The Dark Knight team with some of the most respected anime artists in Japan to explore Bruce Wayne's transition from tormented crime fighter to heroic icon of a crumbling metropolis. Separated into six distinct chapters but intended to be viewed as a whole, this stylized look at immortal DC Comics superhero is the result of a collaboration between Shojiro Nishimi (Tekkonkinkreet), Yasuhiro Aoki (Steamboy), Futoshi Higashide (Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack), Toshiyuki Kubooka (The Secret of Blue Water), and Hiroshi Morioka (Chronicle of the Wings). ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Another of the many cartoon permutations of the Batman franchise, the half-hour The Batman more or less returned to the basics of the Bob Kane original by depicting its title character as a wet-behind-the-ears rookie in the crimefighting business. Thus, millionaire Bruce Wayne was herein only in his early 20s, and had only recently adopted the cape and cowl of "The Batman" to do battle against the various villains infesting Gotham City. Acting as mentor, trainer and father confessor to the orphaned Bruce was faithful family butler Alfred Pennyworth, while The Batman's ever-growing array of weaponry and state-of-art paraphernalia was activated by Bruce's "Bat-Wave" remote control. Debuting September 1, 2004 on the WB network, The Batman spent its first season having Bruce Wayne/Batman confront several of his traditional antagonists--The Joker, The Penguin, The Riddler, Catwoman et. al.--for the very time. During season two, our hero underwent his first awkward meetings with his female opposite number Batgirl, aka Barbara Gordon. The series marked the first time since 1992 that someone other than Kevin Conroy supplied the voice of Batman; conversely, the show featured Adam West,who of course had played Batman in the 1966 live-action series of the same name, as the voice of Gotham City's mayor! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Such formidable villains as Shriek, Inque, the Jokerz and the Royal Flush gang continue to make like difficult for the "new" Batman, aka Terry McGinniss, as he tries to purge crime from the Gotham City of 2021 AD in Season Three of the animated Batman Beyond. Adding to Terry's burden this season is an old friend who has switched over to the dark side and reemerged as criminal genius "Big Time" Bigelow; and then there's that "invulnerable" supervillain whom even Batman cannot defeat despite a veritable arsenal of high-tech crimebusting hardware. As for "original" Batman Bruce Wayne, he is not as embittered and isolated as in seasons past, though he still yearns for the days of his idealistic youth, so much so that he agrees to undergo an experiment that will shave several years off his age--an experiment which, unfortunately, carries a heavy price tag. Episode highlights during the third season include the two-part "The Call", a crossover with the like-vintage superhero cartoon series Justice League of America, with guest appearances by Superman, Aquagirl, the Green Lantern and Warhawk--one of whom will, to universal horror, emerge as the villain of the piece. And in another two-parter, Terry/Batman goes "mano y mano" with a particularly vicious ninja gang known as Kobra. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Teenager Terry McGinniss continues following in the footsteps of his aged mentor Bruce Wayne as the "new" Batman of the 21st century in Season Two of the animated Batman Beyond. In addition to such traditional nemeses as Shriek, Inque, the Spellbinder, the Jokerz and the Royal Flush Gang, Terry-Batman has his gloved hands full dealing with several new threats to the wellbeing of Gotham City, among them Earthmover, who has a talent for creating humanoids out of dirt; Sneak Peek, a unscrupulous--and invisible--TV newscasters; Bombshell, a dangerous telepath; and crazed big-game hunter Stalker. One of the newly minted antagonists, the rogue holographic assassin Zeta, will appear in only a handful of episodes before being spun off into his own series, The Zeta Project. Although Batman Beyond is set in the future, several of issues addressed in the Season Two episodes are sure to strike a chord with contemporary audiences. The late-20th-century tendency by disenfranchised youngsters to experiment with deadly drug combinations is dramatized in an episode wherein Batman confronts the new teen craze of "splicing", or mixing one's genes with animal DNA. In other episodes, one of Terry's lady friends is harassed by a stalker; a "tough love" boot camp for troubled teens turns out to have a deadly hidden agenda; and at least one otherwise scrupulous scientist turns to a life of crime after "downsized" during an economic recession. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

If given the chance, would Batman have the hots for Lois Lane? Would Lex Luthor get along well with The Joker? And what, if anything, would be left for Robin to do? All these questions and more are answered in this conflation of two of the most venerable comic book legends, The Batman Superman Movie. Up to his old tricks, The Joker has stolen a priceless statue from the Gotham City museum. When Batman learns that the green figurine is made of Kryptonite, however, he knows this isn't your ordinary evil caper. The Caped Crusader sets off for Metropolis to tell the Man of Steel the news, and along the way, he falls for the beguiling beauty of Lois Lane. ~ Michael Hastings, All Movie Guide

This stylish animated adventure is based on the '90s animated television series, which in turn is based on the original comics and Tim Burton's live action "Batman" films. Unlike the campy 1960s version of Batman, this version is half-mad from the superhero's obsession with justice. It is only his unusual sense of ethics that keeps him from becoming a full-blown psychotic. The story describes the origins of Batman as it follows the Dark Knight's attempts to capture the elusive, deadly Phantasm who kills a crime lord and makes it look as if Batman did it, causing a media smear campaign against the Caped Crusader. At the same time, millionaire Bruce Wayne holds a party at his mansion. There he meets Councilman Arthur Reeves, the man behind the accusations. Reeves derides playboy Wayne for allowing his college sweetheart Andrea Beaumont to leave him. Suddenly Wayne flashes back to his pre-Batman days. He remembers how he met her while visiting his parents' graves to renew his vow that he would spend his life fighting crime to avenge their wrongful deaths. He has already devised an early version of his alter-ego Batman, but that is nearly forgotten when he falls in love with Andrea. The story then jumps from past to present and back as the mysterious Phantasm strikes again. Batman continues his investigation and discovers a disturbing link between Andrea, who suddenly shows up after many years absence, and the villain. Meanwhile, the Phantasm, feeling that Batman is too close to learning his/her identity hires the Joker to kill him. But the Joker has his own agenda and much action ensues before the mystery of the Phantasm identity is solved, Batman clears his name, and justice is served. This film was originally made to go straight to video, Warner's studio liked it enough to release it theatrically. Some of the violence may be inappropriate for very young children. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

After single-handedly capturing Superman's perennial nemesis Lex Luthor, the bionic Cyborg is invited to join the Super Powers Team--but surprisingly turns down the offer. Anxious to have someone his own age as a fellow Team member, the nuclear-powered Firestorm seeks out Cyborg to learn the reason for his reticence. But it will take the intervention of Darkseid and his Parademons, to say nothing of some horrific-looking sea pods, to make Cyborg change his mind. "The Seeds of Doom" was originally telecast as the first episode of DC's Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The evil Darkseid's latest project involves the capture and takeover of Space City, a gigantic orbiting earth colony. To this end, he replaces the satellite's kidnapped inventor Mr. Moko with a robot lookalike that even fools Moko's daughter. Meanwhile, Batman, Firestorm and Samurai must steer clear of Darkseid's minions Kalibak and DeSaad and their robot army, long enough to allow Superman, Wonder Woman and Aquaman to seek out and destroy the control equipment hidden in Darkseid's headquarters! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide