The second half of Warner Bros. Animation's Batman: The Long Halloween adaptation concludes the cinematic reimagining of Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale's celebrated comic. Reassembling its all-star cast to complete the tale, The Long Halloween Part 2 covers far more narrative ground than its predecessor and runs at a breakneck pace. Fortunately, the movie's cast pulls out all the stops in their performances to bring a memorable close to the story, while also quietly leaving room for further exploration into this animated world.
Picking up from the cliffhanger ending of the adaptation's first half, Gotham City remains terrorized by a serial killer striking on a different holiday each month. As the killer targets victims linked to the city's organized crime, Bruce Wayne finds himself completely under the thrall of Poison Ivy and sidelines his crimefighting efforts as Batman. Meanwhile, Harvey Dent and Jim Gordon face mounting pressure not only to stop the rampaging serial killer but topple the Falcone crime syndicate for good as Batman's infamous rogues gallery surfaces.
While Part 1 of this animated adaptation took its time to introduce a noir-tinged vision of Gotham and its major characters, Part 2 hits the ground running. This is no standalone animated movie. As the title suggests, it works as a natural continuation and complement to its predecessor. The look and tone from Part 1 are obviously retained but, with the stakes already set and the bulk of the major characters woven into the story, Part 2 comes out the gate swinging as the body count rises with each passing month.
That isn't to say that there isn't broader character development in Part 2. However, when the action and narrative progression of time slows down in the back half of the film, the change in pace can be a bit disorienting. This is especially apparent in the final act, which perhaps goes on a bit longer than it should. Its deviations from its source material don't stick the landing.
Where Part 2 surpasses its predecessor lies within its impressive ensemble cast's ability to overcome these faults in the narrative's flow. Katee Sackhoff's Poison Ivy, who only appeared at the very end of the previous film, makes her full debut here. Sackhoff is clearly having fun portraying the character and playing up her seductive menace to the hilt. Jensen Ackles' Batman gets more to do than brood as he confronts his inner demons head-on. The biggest standout from the cast is Josh Duhamel, pulling double duty as Harvey Dent and villainous alter ego Two-Face. Duhamel tragically captures the battle for Harvey's tortured soul.
Staying true to much of the story, and certainly the spirit of what Loeb and Sale delivered 25 years ago, Batman: The Long Halloween Part 2 dials up its sense of menace and paranoia. Working best when it keeps its narrative moving at a steady, focused pace, Part 2's noir atmosphere is elevated by its main cast. It excels at putting pressure on its heroes while it quickly becomes clear to them just how deranged Gotham City has become while Batman and the law focus on organized crime instead of the rise of supervillains.
Batman: The Long Halloween, Part 2 arrives digitally on July 27 and on Blu-ray Aug. 10.