Product Details

• Actors: Will Friedle, Mark Hamill, Kevin Conroy, Angie Harmon, Dean Stockwell
• Directors: Curt Geda
• Writers: Bob Kane, Bruce W. Timm, Glen Murakami, Jerry Robinson, Paul Dini
• Producers: Alan Burnett, Benjamin Melniker
• Format: Animated, Closed-captioned, Color, NTSC
• Rated: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Warner Home Video
• VHS Release Date: December 12, 2000
• Run Time: 70 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (267 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 0790749068
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #230,665 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

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

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.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

48 of 49 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's finally here, this ain't no kids stuff, August 13, 2002

By 

N. Durham "Big Evil" (Philadelphia, PA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Batman Beyond - Return of the Joker (The Original Uncut Version) (DVD)

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.

42 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Review to Clear Up The Misconceptions About The Bluray Release, April 6, 2011

By 

Brandon - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray)

This review is not for the actual movie, suffice it to say it is one of the best products to come out of the DCAU. Rather this review is to clear up the misconceptions caused by other reviewers on this site. I own all 3 currently available versions of ROTJ: the edited DVD, the unedited DVD, and this bluray release. Now to make this perfectly clear, here's what you need to know.

1) The bluray version is UNEDITED. It contains all the scenes removed from the edited version including both shootings and all blood that was removed from the original release.

2) The bluray version is full frame because that is how the movie was originally animated. If you want widescreen use the zoom feature on your TV or bluray player and you'll have the exact widescreen animation as the previous unedited release. The issue is that the movie was originally animated for television, so it was animated 4:3. However the producers thought ahead to the rise of widescreen TVs so they blocked the animation to work in widescreen as well. When you zoom the picture on the 4:3 to fill a 16:9 screen with whatever function your TV has for "widescreen fit" or "fit zoom" or "smart zoom" you are not losing any actual animation, you're just removing extra space above and below the frame the animators originally included for TV broadcast. Again, IF YOU ZOOM IN IT'S THE EXACT SAME PICTURE AS YOU'D HAVE ON THE ORIGINAL WIDESCREEN RELEASE.

3) This is a true 1080p HD transfer, no upscaling. WB did an absolutely brilliant job and the movie has never looked better.

33 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Without doubt, the greatest batman movie of all time!, August 20, 2002

By 

"ryecroftwood" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Batman Beyond - Return of the Joker (The Original Uncut Version) (DVD)

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.