DVD : Justice League - The New Frontier (Two-Disc Special Edition)

In association with Amazon.com

Rating:

- Absolute Trash
This movie was a huge disppointment especially being produced after the well-made Justice League and Justice League Unlimited Animated Series. I must admit that I have not read the Darwyn Cooke series upon which this movie is based, and I am judging this movie solely on its merits (or lack thereof). One thing that I am learning about Warner Brothers is that the freedom of being able to release animated movies straight to DVD is an invitation to show gratuitous violence and bloodshed (especially the bloodshed). A warning to parents: the opening scene of this film shows a man blowing his head off. The movie goes quickly downhill from there. Now I am not against stories containing action and suspense. But what differentiates DVD movies like this one and Superman:Doomsday from previous animated material is that the storytelling was much better and stylish in the previous material. Sophisticated viewers do not need bloodshed and death shown frame to frame to understand the plot. Such disregard for style and plot is an insult to viewers and comic book fans alike, and it often appears as if the bloodshed is a substitute for plot and character development. Speaking of character development, the so-called heroes in this film are portrayed (with the exception of Superman and the Flash) as egotistic, whiny and self-centered. The most disturbing and disgraceful portrayal is that of Wonder Woman. Instead of the strong, graceful and majestic character that she has been in the comics for years, she is portrayed as a bullying, angry and atypically violent jerk. In one scene, she condones the killing of a group of soldiers (that were rendered unarmed) by a group of villagers that were previously tortured by the soldiers. The very idea that the Wonder Woman created many years ago by William Moulton Marston to fight war and aggression would be twisted into a brute that is no different than the men she was appointed to bring peace to is an affront and an insult to the character. The whole movie appears to be a launching point for a potential Green Lantern series. However, his appearance is so late in the picture that viewers will lose interest in the film before it happens. The villain is just some nameless alien blob that gets into the minds of weak people and makes them do bad things. (Maybe it got into the minds of the writers of this film). We never know where it comes from or why it does what it does. It just does its thing (and predictably renders every other hero useless) long enough for Green Lantern to make his appearance. Let's hope that the upcoming Wonder Woman DVD (in 2009) is much better and more respectful of its source material than this piece of trash. If DC wanted to do a Green Lantern story, his history and origin is rich enough to warrant his own film. I really wish that DC Comics animation would just make good and well-written adaptations of the individual heroes (such as Shazam, Aquaman and Green Lantern) than subjecting us to this bloodthirsty garbage.

Rating:

- Nice To See Some Of The Early Characters Of The DC Universe But The Movie Was Not Worth It
If you remember the DC universe of the late 70's and the 80's you will like how they brought some of the earlier characters back for this movie but for the rest it just didn't seem worth it. Yes you get to see Superman,Batman,Wonder Woman,Green Lantern,and the Martian Manhunter to name a few. The story of the movie seems to mostly be about the fear and paranoia the normal populace have to the more powerful and mysterious hero's especially since they are not really needed it seems to the people since most of the major wars are over and how the justice league now must try to show the people to have tolerance and trust in them even though they might be different then the majority of the public. As I watched this I just couldn't care what was happening really which is sad since I used to be a big fan of these characters before the comic companies and the movie producers changed them beyond recognition from what they were in the early years.
So I say to the fans if you became one from the year 2000- than you would most likely enjoy this dvd for the most part but if you're a fan from before 2000 pass this one up you won't be missing much

Rating:

- Saved by the Extras
The movie itself was nicely done and it shows the origins of green lantern, Martian Manhunter and others. My main complaint is thats the movie is a bit on the short-side, about 75 mins, and at times it feels like they are rushing the story along.
I give the movie itself about 3 1/2 stars (maybe 4 on a good day), but what really saves this product is the extras, 2 commentaries, a very well done history of the Justice league(and pretty much superhero comics in general), 3 entire episodes of Justice League Unlimited, and an in depth sneak peek at the upcoming release of Batman: Gotham Knight.
Overall its a good movie packed with some great extras and it's a must have for fans of the DC universe.

Rating:

- Old School Justice League
If you were born in the 70's and you are a comic fan then this is a must see for you! Unfortunately this Justice League is not the same with the JLU. This is for old school fans. I cant get used to Batmans costume, he looks like the one in the Scooby doo show! I gave it 3 * because of the nice visuals and some good extras.

Rating:

- Potentially great if it weren't for that stupid, stupid plot
There's a lot to like about Justice League: The New Frontier, but I'm afraid all of that is counterbalanced by one of the silliest stories I've ever seen in animation.

Set mostly in the 50s and featuring the DC hero fashion of that period the paranoid US government have blackballed all superheroes, claiming that they have something to hide beside their identities and dismiss them as Commies. The Flash is even ridiculed because of his RED costume. But soon they will have to come together again to fight a common enemy when (and I'm not kidding) a large floating, living island of dinosaurs called The Center plans to wipe out humanity.

I've read hundreds of comic books in my life and that is seriously the dumbest crap I have ever heard. Every other part of JL: TNF is far superior to this 'Center' nonsense, so it's such a shame that the main plot drags it down. I especially like the story about the Martian Manhunter and the Flash. Most of the JLA get a look-in but these two have the most substantial plots.

The animation style will be familiar to those who are fans of Warner/DC cartoons such as Batman and the 50s production design creates a nice atmosphere.

But that idiotic plot...

The Blu Ray looks brilliant in 1.78:1 1080p with a surprisingly good DD+ sound design. I do wish that Warner would give more of their feature length comic-book animations such as Batman - Mask of the Phantasm (Keepcase), The Batman Superman Movie, Batman & Mr. Freeze - SubZero, Batman - Mystery of the Batwoman (Keepcase) or maybe even some of the Scooby-Doo animated movies. Come on Warner...give us what we want/demand.

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