Adam was kind enough to send me a link to a phenomenon that I'd apparently completely missed out on.

Batman: Dead End

It's an 8-minute, $30,000 fan-fiction project hailed by notable writer Kevin Smith and artist Alex Ross as the best Batman ever put to film.

I beg to differ. Not that it wasn't entertaining and well done, mind you, but it's not entirely possible to put together any 8-minute film that is better than 1989 Batman movie or Mask of the Phantasm.

Now, that being said, it managed to do certain things spectacularly. The actors for both Batman and Joker were spectacular. For my money, Andrew Koenig (known most for being "Boner" on the TV show "Growing Pains") beats out Jack Nicholson. Koenig gave the Animated Series feel of the Joker in a way that I did not know could be accomplished by a live actor.

My only complaint for Batman was that his script read a bit dry for me. Batman's supposed to be dry, of course, but it was regular dry, not batdry.

Unfortunately, the film makes a break about half-way through analogous to that in the movie From Dusk Till Dawn where the movie is turned on its head in a way that feels disjointed. Having only eight minutes of air time, there really wasn't time to make the switch like they did. They should have chosen either Joker or the twist, not both.

Of course, I'd rather they have picked Joker, but the twist was necessary for what they were trying to accomplish. It was as much a graphic design demo for writer/director Sandy Collora as anything else (and reminded me more of the Onstar commercials with Batman than any of the films). On that mark it was a smashing success as the directing didn't leave much to be desired and the special effects were decent on the budget they were given.

If you have a super-duper high speed connection or a few days to download it, check it out.

I have more to say on the subject, but I don't care to spoil anything, so I'll put it in the "read more" section.

******** SPOILER **** YOU'VE BEEN WARNED *********

Okay, so it was as much Batman vs. Alien vs. Predator as anything else. Very good idea for hype purposes and it apparently went over really well at Comicon. As mentioned in the main section, I'd much rather they have stuck to Batman vs. Joker, but for the promo purposes this was obviously designed for, it was a veritable goldmine.

Having said that, it very much detracts from the notion that this is a quintessential "Batman" production. It makes Smith's and Ross's comments borderline ludicrous or at least represents a very fundamentally different view of the character than how he is portrayed in most media.

Yes, yes, I am aware that Batman has squared off against both Alien and Predator in the comic books. Incidentally, those sorts of crossovers are generally referred to as Elseworlds and it's thus not prime material to select from for "the best Batman production to date" or whatever.

For what it was, it was good. I'm glad they did it and I enjoyed watching it.

This brings me to the odious message board at Aint-It-Cool-News. I should have known better than to read the message board as I generally stay away from such things.

Notes and retorts:

* - I find it ironic that something that is billed as a "fanboy's wet dream" is primarily criticized by... well... fanboys (to the point that the general retort to criticisms are "You're just a fanboy geek").

* - Some people hate the movies so much I think they would put bat ears on a rotten pear and call it the "Best Batman Ever."

* - The same people that say "IT'S THE BEST THING EVER" also say that if you don't like it it's cause you're taking it too seriously.

* - I am apparently not allowed to talk anymore, cause LinkyLindy directs everyone with criticisms to "SHUT THE F*CK UP" so I guess the review ends here, except to quote two other people:

mtoast:

Like a lot of people, I was psyched to see the film, liked the beginning, LOVED the action in the alley, ADORED the cape shot, and then rolled my eyes when the Alien showed up. BUT overall, I think Mr. Collora deserves more respect and credit than he's been getting in the TBs. I'm guilty of it too. But I've come to understand that he didn't make this for ME or YOU. He made it to showcase his skills. A large part of his skills are in creature-building, so there are creatures. Yes, he could have used, say, Killer Croc and remained truer to the "pure" Batman mythos. But what Hollywood suit would have recognized Killer Croc? Eight fanboys would have been delighted, but it wouldn't have been Sandy's best career move. He made it for his own reasons. We just happened to get to see it. So stop the bashing. I have.

iamnicksaicnsn:

Fine, fine, best you could do, etc etc. I take that only because he knows that he doesn't deserve all this hype. I'm disturbed people are calling it the best costume ever, I only thought the Cowl and cape were worth anything. I mean, I guess the simplicity of it is charming in a "Year 1" sort of thing (Bruce Wayne just starting out, etc etc). And best film ever? That's complete balderdash. Is it a great concept? Sure. Definately not better than Burton's (ESPECIALLY not better than Nicholson), and definately not better than the Animated Series stuff.