Product Description

The greatest villain of all comes out of the past to threaten Batman, Bruce Wayne and all of Gotham City in Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker, the first feature-length Batman Beyond movie. The sleeker, deadlier and seemingly immortal Clown Prince of Crime is back with his own unique brand of havoc and mayhem. While trying to uncover the Joker's secrets, the new Batman, Terry McGinnis, discovers the greatest mystery in the life of the original Caped Crusader: What happened the night he fought the Joker for the last time. When Bruce Wayne is almost killed in one of the Joker's latest attacks, Batman vows to avenge his mentor and put the Joker to rest forever. Get ready for heart-stomping action, awesome adventure and amazing revelations in Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker.

DVD Features:
Audio Commentary:Commentary by the filmmakers
Biographies:Animated Character Biographies
DVD ROM Features:Links to Warner Bros. Family Entertainment web sites, Special web events, Sampler trailers
Deleted Scenes
Documentary:Behind the scenes documentary
Interactive Menus
Music Video:"Crash" by Mephisto Odyssey (featuring Static X)
Other:Animation tests
Production Notes
Scene Access
Theatrical Trailer

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #6567 in DVD
• Brand: Warner Brothers
• Released on: 2002-04-23
• Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Animated, Color, Full Screen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, French
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 77 minutes

Amazon.com
Some diehard Batfans have been slow to warm to the animated series Batman Beyond even though it was created by the same team responsible for the excellent Batman cartoon of the early '90s. The Dark Knight should be a brooding avenger in a noir-nightmare Gotham City, the purists argue, not some smart-aleck teen four decades in the future, with jet packs, invisibility shields, and other sci-fi gizmos loaned him by an elderly Bruce Wayne (voiced, excellently as always, by Kevin Conroy, his stony bass given a raspy hint of old age), now confined to hobbling about on a cane and monitoring his protégé's activities from the Batcave. Between its respectful reexamination of the "tortured hero" mythos and its sleek, anime-inspired look, this feature-length movie should go a long way toward quieting their complaints. Of course, it doesn't hurt that they've brought back the most legendary figure in the Rogues Gallery (voiced by Mark Hamill, deliciously deranged), but exactly how and why the Joker has managed to turn up 40 years after his last meeting with Batman still as youthful and diabolical as ever is explained not only logically but terrifyingly as well. The secret behind his arrival is perhaps the saddest, grimmest twist any purported "kids' show" has dared to attempt. (Parents may well want to preview this tape before screening it for the very young.) Once again, Warner Brothers' cartoon Batman has outshone all the live-action films, never allowing the thrilling action set pieces or flashes of wry humor to drown out the drama, even tragedy, of the all-too-human superheroes. --Bruce Reid

Customer Reviews

It's finally here, this ain't no kids stuff
The original Batman animated series of the 90's might have been aimed towards children, but it was so well written and slick that older audiences enjoyed it as well. While I was a big fan of that original series, I'll admit I really wasn't too fond of Batman Beyond (although the idea behind it intrigued me). I had originally seen the original cut version of "Return of the Joker", and I somewhat liked it, but when I heard about the uncut version finally getting released, something told me I had to see it. I will tell you that in every way, shape, and form, this uncut version tops the cut one. The uncut version clears up some holes from the cut one that were created so the more "violent and mature themed" scenes could be cut out, plus we get to really see just what kind of lunatic the Joker is, I mean who would do that to a kid? Seeing that image of what happens to Robin will make you understand why Warner Bros. cut out the scene. Not to mention we also get to see how the Joker really met his demise, and why Bruce Wayne walks with a cane. Kevin Conroy is great as always as Bruce, while Will Friedle is pretty good as Terry McGinnis, but the film belongs to Mark Hamill, who is always fantastic but here much more sadistic, as the Joker. Other voice talents include Dean Stockwell, Melissa Joan Hart, Angie Harmon, Michael Rosenbaum, and good 'ol Henry Rollins as one of the Joker's henchman (we also get to see what really happens to him too). All in all, if your older but love anything Batman, steer clear of the cut version and get this fantastic uncut edition, but if your buying this for your kids or a young child (like say under 10), get the cut version because this uncut edition may be too intense for them.

Without doubt, the greatest batman movie of all time!
When I saw Batman Beyond for the very first time, I concluded that it was good but nowhere near as dramatic or as exciting as the original 1992 Batman animated series, or Mask of the Phantasm for that matter. When I heard that the first ever Batman Beyond movie would feature the Joker's return, I anticipated the movie with high expectations. After I finished watching the film, I concluded that it was fatihful to most die-hard Batman fans, the holder of an amazingly engrossing storyline, fantastic action and mystery, the answerer of questions regarding the future Batman series, and in general, a brilliant movie.

I didn't know it at the time but the version of Return of the Joker i had watched was in fact the edited version. After hearing of the uncut version, I purchased the american DVD to discover what had been edited out. After watching the Uncut version, I immediatly discovered that this was more faithful to the Batman legend than the edited version of the film. The final battle between the Joker and Bruce Wayne is a lot more darker in this version, and how the Joker dies in this version is a lot more appropriate and makes Tim Drake's guilt a lot more understandable and convincing.

This is where Terry McGinnis (the future Batman) truly shines. He ultimately proves to his critics and his peers that he is worthy of the Dark Knight persona. He handles the situation with the Joker very seriously and proves once and for all that he IS Batman.

This movie portays the Joker at his absolute deadliest and once again proves how dark and sinister he is. The Joker has always been the most haunting figure in Bruce Wayne's life, and he certainly doesn't hold back in tormenting his arch-foe even more in this!

Will Friedle(Terry McGinnis/Batman) + Kevin Conroy(Bruce Wayne) voice their characters with supreme excellence but it's Mark Hamill who steals the show (as always) as the Joker. It's always hard to believe that it's Hamill who's voicing the Joker (mainly because he always does such a damn good job of voicng the character) but it is him.

In general, Return of the Joker has a great storyline, amazing animation, fantastic music and is quite easily better than all the live action Batman movies. The edited version is good but the unedited version is a million times better. The uncut version is even better than the legendary ace film known as Mask of the Phantasm, making Return of the Joker (uncut version) beyond a shadow of doubt, the greatest Batman film in existance.

The DVD has first class special features (trailers, documentry, character bios, audio commentry etc) making this an essential purchase for any die-hard Batman fan. If you have to get Return of the Joker, it just HAS to be the uncut version.

There's no contest.

A Well-Done Cartoon Movie
For those of you who don't know the story of Batman Beyond, it is a spin-off of Batman: The Animated Series, widely regarded to be one of the best superhero cartoons in history. Batman Beyond takes place about 40 years in the future. Bruce Wayne (Kevin Conroy) is old and has retired from being Batman, but when evil shows its face again in Gotham City, Wayne trains a new protege, college student and one-time prisoner Terry McGinnis (Will Friedle). In addition to learning martial arts, the new batsuit is equipped with rocket boots, a gliding mechanism, a cloaking device, and magnets on the boots. With Bruce Wayne guiding him, McGinnis takes on crime in Gotham, and the Jokerz, a new gang in town that idolizes the original Clown Prince of Crime, is causing him a lot of trouble.
This movie begins with the Jokerz attempting to steal a high-tech machine, but their efforts are thwarted by Batman. It turns out that the Jokerz have a new leader, a man who claims to be the original Joker (Mark Hamill) from the "cape and cowl days". He looks and sounds exactly like the old Joker, but more importantly, he THINKS just like the Joker, meaning that he is a psychopathic genius.
When the Joker first reveals himself to the Batman duo, Wayne is very reluctant to give Terry any information that can help explain how the Joker might have returned, and he tells McGinnis to leave and that his days as Batman are over. Upon questioning Barbara Gordon (Angie Harmon/Tara Strong), the former Batgirl and daughter of Commisioner James Gordon, who is now commisioner herself, Terry learns of a horrible incident in the past involving the Joker, Harley Quinn (Arleen Sorkin), and Robin #2 Tim Drake (Dean Stockwell/Mathew Valencia) (Dick Grayson, the original Robin had left Gotham to become Nightwing).
For a cartoon movie (and one that is only 75 minutes long) this is actually pretty good. Seeing as how this is my first foray intot the Batman Beyond world, I can't compare it to otehr BB stories, but I feel as if it does continue the mood and theme of its parent show. It is dark, it is violent, and it is intelligent. This isn't for young kids; the Joker is a monster and acts as such. The things he does, both in the past and in the future, are horrific. While I don't see this winning any awards, Batman fans should check it out. As I said, for a cartoon, this is above average storytelling.