Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (PG, 2008)

Though released to theaters, BATMAN: MASK OF THE PHANTASM was produced as a feature-length pilot to Batman: The Animated Series on TV. It fills out some Bat-lore about the character's early career. As college-age orphan millionaire Bruce Wayne starts out uncertainly in his personal crime-fighting crusade, initially dressed in sort of a ninja suit. When he falls in love with a smart co-ed named Andrea (who can do martial arts just as well as he), Bruce considers giving up the superhero thing altogether for marriage and a normal life. We see this in flashback; in the present, Bruce has become the legendary Batman, and he learns the long-lost Andrea is revisiting Gotham City. At the same time, another black-caped, costumed avenger is killing local mobsters, and Batman is getting unfairly blamed by both police and the homicidal Joker.

It's easy to deduce the identity of the mysterious "Phantasm"; Batman doesn't earn points here as the world's greatest detective. Real surprise is how the characters draw you into this so-so storyline. Watching Bruce Wayne brooding over thwarted romance and the choices he made is genuinely moving. This is definitely economy-style animation, but it's rendered with a nicely nostalgic Art Deco look. It works well in the exciting showdown in the Joker's lair at the dystopian ruins of the Gotham City World's Fair. And, while overshadowed by a flock of spectacular, live-action Batman movies, Mask of the Phantasm possesses an emotional nuance missing from the megabudget Bat-epics. Yes, that's Lucasfilm hero Mark Hamill, reportedly an actor who takes comics with great seriousness, relishing his unrecognizable voiceover as the Joker.