DISCLAIMER - If you do not like anime, or things remotely Japanese you will probably hate this film.

    So imagine Batman + Anime + Feudal Japan, okay so close your eyes and picture that, picture the wackiness, the craziness, the amount of no sense it makes. Got it? Now multiply that by 20.
 

This movie is Bat-shit. Just fucking crazy. Literally 5 times in this film I said out-loud, "okay, it can't get weirder than this there is nothing more  ridiculous they could poss-" This is probably the most Japanese thing I have ever seen, I guess it comes off stronger when it's portraying  American Characters but this is full craziness.

    So with that out the way, if you think you can set all logical thinking aside, yes literally all logical thinking including but not limited to Gravity, Time, Bats, Buildings, Monkeys, Ninjas and Giant Mech's

    If you can do that, then maybe just maybe, this film rock your socks.

    Let's start with the good. I love the animation done here, the backdrops are gorgeous, the 3D cell shading is great to look, the colors pop and the designs are bonkers. The visuals are the best part of this film. Twice in this film I was taken back and thought wow this is gorgeous. The fight scenes are cool and fun to watch though a little too hectic and confusing to follow, it still delivers a satisfying sensation of speed and impact. The way the film approaches 'in world' graphs, props, and maps was really entertaining to me. I generally liked the costumes and designs of all the characters, besides Robin... he looked rough...

    I watched it in Japanese, I don't even want to know what the English cut will sound like, as I said above, it's Japanese with a capital J. The performances were all good, with a standout of course being the Joker.

  Now the bad. The story is slim and non-essential. There is no real growth or theme or substance carrying this film across, it feels like the story is just backstage for the big set pieces for which there are many. But one scene specifically, I'll call it 'the farmer scene' blew my mind. Not only visually, which was just a gorgeous simple penciled look that made me want to bask in it. The way the camera flowed in and out of perspectives, the composition of it, the visual thread of it was so spot on, truly one of the best visually shot scenes of the year. but also, the emotion behind it was actually surprising as well, and the performances were just flawless. With that being said, that scene doesn't really make sense or flow well with the film, but it did spark a desire as to why they didn't take this film a little more seriously, add more weight, more emotion, more character growth and themes and it could've been groundbreaking.

So, in ending

--- 7/10 - Good -

 This film is just a big-batman-anime-Japanese crazy mess of a film that really shines visually. Watch it for the Bat-shit stuff, don't think, at all, and you'll have fun. It falters in all the other ways. Specifically the stories and writing.