SubZero (1998) (V)

Director:

Boyd Kirkland

Writers:

Bob Kane (creator: Batman)
Boyd Kirkland (written by)

Release Date:

17 March 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Animation | Crime | Drama | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Plot:

When a desperate Mr. Freeze, to save his dying wife, kidnaps Barbara (Batgirl) Gordan as an involuntary organ donor, Batman and Robin must find her before the operation can begin.

Plot Keywords:

Submarine | Batman | Ice | Chase | Desperation

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Kevin Conroy	...	Bruce Wayne / Batman (voice)
Michael Ansara	...	Dr. Victor Fries / Mr. Freeze (voice)
Loren Lester	...	Richard 'Dick' Grayson / Robin (voice)
Efrem Zimbalist Jr.	...	Alfred Pennyworth (voice)
George Dzundza	...	Dr. Gregory Belson (voice)
Robert Costanzo	...	Detective Harvey Bullock (voice)
Bob Hastings	...	Commissioner James 'Jim' Gordon (voice)
Mary Kay Bergman	...	Barbara Gordon / Batgirl (voice)
Marilu Henner	...	Veronica Vreeland (voice)
Dean Jones	...	Dean Arbagast (voice)
Jane Alan	...	WGBS Reporter Summer Gleeson (voice) (as Mari Devon)
Liane Schirmer	...	Lieutenant Renee Montoya (voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Rahi Azizi	...	Koonak (voice)
Townsend Coleman	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Brian George	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Ed Gilbert	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Carl Lumbly	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Tress MacNeille	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Neil Ross	...	Police Officers / TV Announcer / Sub Crewmember / Radio Weatherman / Additional Voices (voice)
Randy Thompson	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Lauren Tom	...	Mariko (voice)

Also Known As:

Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero (USA) (promotional title)
Batman Animated Movie II: The Iceman's Cometh (USA) (working title)
Subzero (USA) (alternative title)

Runtime:

70 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Brazil:Livre | Australia:PG | Finland:K-8 (video premiere) | Germany:12 | UK:PG | USA:Unrated

Company:

Warner Bros. Animation

Trivia:

The numerous addresses shown within the film place Gotham City withing the state of New York, and all phone-number area codes and ZIP codes correspond to New York City. New York City was one of the original inspirations for Gotham City.

Goofs:

Factual errors: At the beginning of the film, a polar bear breaks through the sheet of ice and starts to swim downwards. The ice sinks, but real ice floats.

Quotes:

Barbara Gordon: You don't need to put somebody under for a blood transfusion!
[pause, realizes]
Barbara Gordon: It's *more* than that, isn't it?

Movie Connections:

Followed by The Batman Superman Movie: World's Finest (1998) (TV)

Soundtrack:

I Only Have Eyes for You

Lacks atmosphere - is more for kids than anyone else

When his artic base is disturbed, Dr Freeze's lab is destroyed, meaning his life support for his wife breaks down. With little time to save her, Freeze is forced to come to the city to find a live donor for an immediate transplant to save his wife. However the only donor is none other than Barbara Gordon - the commissioner's daughter and Batgirl herself! When Freeze kidnaps her it forces Batman and Robin into a race to rescue her before she dies on the operating table.

I love Batman - I consider him to be one of the darkest of the comic book characters that I am familiar with (I'm not really into that scene - but I know what I like). I will always try any of the Batman products because occasionally the films and the cartoons get it right (well, the odd time). In this case however I didn't feel like it had done a good job of making the cartoon something that could translate to the adult audience. The plot echoes a part of the Batman & Robin film but, like that, fails to develop a lot of the darker strands. It still engages and does enough to entertain but I would have liked the film to look at the complexity of Dr Fries/Freeze - he is not a bad guy, he is driven by love, however the film only part succeeds in letting us understand him.

The animation is good for a cartoon but lacks atmosphere for the most part, I need shadows and dark colours to echo the material. However the film is bright and colourful or black; it doesn't really do shadows but it just uses black a lot - however the characters are colourful and that goes against the grain of the film. The voice work is pretty good apart from a few weak links and it's always good to have a voice that rings a bell - in this case it's George Dzundza and Dean Jones.

Overall I quite enjoyed this film even though it wasn't really dark enough or complex enough to really satisfy my needs from a Batman story. However it manages to make more sense that the similar live-action film and is more enjoyable than that! It will satisfy older children and adults will be able to sit through it even if they hope for more.