# Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero (1998) (V)

### reviewed by
Doug Skiles

    BATMAN & MR. FREEZE: SUBZERO (1998)

Starring the voices of: Kevin Conroy (Bruce Wayne/Batman), Michael Ansara (Mr. Freeze), Loren Lester (Dick Grayson/Robin), Mary Kay Bergman [well, I'm... fairly sure it was her] (Barbara Gordon/Batgirl), George Dzunda (Dr. Robert Belson), Efrem Zimbalist Jr. (Alfred Pennyworth), Bob Hastings (Commissioner Gordon)

Not Rated (but it's probably a PG, just like the last animated Batman film was)

    Reviewed by Doug Skiles

    Yes, it's animated.

That having been said, let it be known that possibly the greatest interpretation of Batman to hit tv or movie screens IS the animated Bat that first appeared in the fall of 1992 on Fox. It quickly became a prime time series before hitting the big time - an animated theatrical release film. That was BATMAN: MASK OF THE PHANTASM (1993). Clearly, it was and still is the best Batman film to yet hit theaters. The plot was intelligent, the action loud and exciting, the voice-acting perfect, and the score beautiful.

As of this year, on TV, Batman has moved his animated adventures to the WB network. Characters have grown, and, most noticably, design styles for many of the characters have changed - mostly for the worse. As a result, for both those who watch the series, and those casual Bat-fans who have only seen the first animated film, this second animated feature (which has gone straight to video), BATMAN & MR. FREEZE: SUBZERO, is like reuniting with an old friend. The film tells a story that takes place before the current season of the show and after the final season on Fox, so the character designs the like are all in line with those of the earlier part of the series. Only better animated than usually seen on the show. This is a level of animation slightly under that seen in BATMAN: MASK OF THE PHANTASM but still slightly higher than that seen on the tv series. One thing this movie does have other MASK OF THE PHANTASM is more use of computer animation. There's a CG submarine, Batwing, and highway scene for your viewing pleasure, and all of them look very nice.

Of course, animation comes secondary to plot. Plot, action, dialogue, and of course, acting are what drive a film. Well, on the old Batman scale, SUBZERO is not quite as good as PHANTASM was, and maybe not even as good as the first two Tim Burton live-action films, though that could be debated. It's certainly much better than the last two Joel Schumacher films - and it's truer to the characters than any of the live action films to date. The plot goes that Mr. Freeze's wife, Nora Fries, still in cryo-sleep, has her stasis tube broken open in an accident. Now Freeze knows that the only thing that can save her is an organ transplant. He enlists the help of Dr. Belson, and, when no deceased donors of Nora's rare blood type are found, Freeze decides that he will use a live donor - which of course, will kill said donor. There's 18 live donors of Nora's blood type in Gotham. And one of them is Barbara Gordon.

Luckily, Barbara only appears in Batgirl garb for about one minute near the beginning of the movie, and stays out of costume for the rest while Batman and Robin try to save her - and she tries to save herself. The whole thing is better animated than most of the non-Disney stuff you see (Well, those big-time other-studio releases like ANASTASIA [1997] not withstanding, I guess) and has that same simple-yet-beautiful character design of the Max Fleischer Superman cartoons from the days of yore. All the characters are well-done. Of course Batman is cool, but wow, so are Robin and Barbara. Now THAT'S a feat. Belson is interesting, and Mr. Freeze is cold and emotionless, as he should be, thanks to Ansara (I promise he's not at all jokey, like Schwarzenegger), and overall, I assure you, this is a much better experience than that Schumacher piece of crap BATMAN & ROBIN (1997) that had many of the same characters.

In all, though it runs a too-short 67 minutes, and yes, it has appearances by Batgirl and Robin (come on, you *know* that Robin isn't always a bad character), this is still definitely worth a rent... and if you're a big Batfan... it's worth a purchase. Watch it, then rewind, and enjoy it again.

Hey WB... you want a good Batman film to add to your live-action franchise? WHY NOT PUT PAUL DINI AND BRUCE TIMM IN CHARGE?!

    Rating: ***

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