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Fathom Events, Warner Bros. and DC Comics invite you to a premiere event when Batman: The Killing Joke comes to select cinemas nationwide for a special one-night event including an introduction from Mark Hamill plus two never-before-seen featurettes. Based on the acclaimed DC Comics graphic novel, take a journey into the dark psyche of the Clown Prince of Crime. Now escaped from Arkham Asylum, The Joker sets out to prove that one bad day can make anyone just as insane as he is. Featuring the return of Kevin Conroy as Batman, Mark Hamill as The Joker and Tara Strong as Batgirl, witness the birth of a super villain, the fortitude of a hero and the punchline that will leave you speechless!
R (for some bloody images and disturbing content)
Action & Adventure, Animation, Drama
Bob Kane, Bill Finger, Alan Moore, Brian Bolland, Jerry Robinson, Brian Azzarello
Jul 25, 2016 limited
The Answer Studio
as Bruce Wayne/Batman
as The Joker
Ray Wise
as Commissioner James Gordon
as Batgirl/Barbara Gordon
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Critic Reviews for Batman: The Killing Joke
All Critics (41) | Top Critics (1)
Batman: The Killing Joke is borderline unsettling - and not in a good way.
Jul 25, 2016 | Rating: C+ | Full Review…
Ben Travers
It really felt like 2 episodes of the animated series crammed together with nothing particularly cinematic to set the animation apart.
Feb 6, 2019 | Rating: 2/5 | Full Review…
Rachel Wagner
Rotoscopers
Writers didn't know what to do with Barbara back in 1988, and they don't know now.
Jan 9, 2019 | Full Review…
Amanda Greever
The Daily Times (Tennessee)
Talking about this film, this story, is rough. It's rough because it commands a lot of questions on multiple levels of the creative process.
Emily Asher-Perrin
Just take my advice and begin where the comic does, or the joke's on you.
Oct 25, 2018 | Rating: 5.5/10 | Full Review…
The Hollywood Outsider
A faithful retelling of the classic graphic novel, albeit with some odd decisions regarding Batman and Batgirl's relationship.
May 17, 2018 | Full Review…
Sean Curry
Why would you watch the K-Mart version, when you can just read it as it was meant to be?
Steph Cozza
Aggressive Comix
For anyone who's not a die-hard fan when it comes to these DC animated films, no one could blame them for taking a pass.
Sep 19, 2017 | Rating: 2.5/4 | Full Review…
The Cleveland Movie Blog
A reason to see this movie is that it shows exactly how to not write a heroine. It shows how to fail at empowering her.
Aug 1, 2017 | Full Review…
Marcy Cook
It just turns the story into The Sorrows of Young Barbara, first sexualized by Franz, then rebuffed by Batman, and finally brutalized by the Joker.
May 17, 2017 | Rating: 2/5 | Full Review…
eFilmCritic.com
The film only has life when the Joker is onscreen and that's for only half the film.
Apr 21, 2017 | Rating: C+ | Full Review…
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews
A film that stays halfway between the apology and good intentions, failing to pay homage to the graphic novel and its controversial story. [Full review in Spanish]
Apr 19, 2017 | Full Review…
Nicolás Ruiz
Código espagueti
View All Critic Reviews (41)
Audience Reviews for Batman: The Killing Joke
...and so Warner Bros continues their abuse of DC comics by completely ballsing up one of the best Batman stories.
Marcus W Super Reviewer
http://cinephilecrocodile.blogspot.co.uk/2016/09/batman-killing-joke-dir-sam-liu-2016.html
Anthony L Super Reviewer
One of the most formative stories of the entire Batman canon, Batman: The Killing Joke is adapted for the screen as a full-length animated film. Based on an Alan Moore comic (though uncredited), Batgirl gives up the life of a vigilante after things get too personal but is pulled back in when the Joker escapes from the asylum and attempts to settle old scores and break Batman. Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill reprise their roles as Batman and Joker and give solid performances. The animation is also pretty good, though not that much better than DC's usual straight-to-video features. And even though it has an R rating, it doesn't seem to do anything that daring or edgy with it. Batman: The Killing Joke is a disappointing film that fails to live up to the reputation of the comic.
Dann M Super Reviewer
Shares the few weaknesses of the short comic it is based on, but adds a bunch of its own new weaknesses to try and get it up to a theatrical runtime and justify its cinema release. I think part of the reason the reception for The Killing Joke has been so overwhelmingly negative is that the expectations were so high going in. But that wasn't without cause. It sees the long awaited return of both Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill to their famed DC roles, and the comic it's based on is widely regarded as one of the better stories ever published by the company. And of these lofty expectations, The Killing Joke falls short. Hamill is great, and Kevin Conroy usually is as well. There are a couple of occasions that the latter slipped though. I don't know if he's rusty or just didn't care, but his voice performance is not 100%. The story essentially meets that of its source material, but rather than expand the existing story, they chose to awkwardly force an entirely different one in beforehand, to the point that this is essentially two episodes of two different shows, rather than a single cohesive movie. The Killing Joke is a little gross and is not the return to form for DC Animation that we all had hoped it would be, but the final sequence is fantastic and I don't know that the movie overall deserves quite as much vitriol as it has had.
Gimly M Super Reviewer
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