1) Batman: Mask Of The Phantasm (1993)
It’s a little known fact that this movie spinoff from the stupendous Batman: The Animated Series actually had a limited cinema release – simply because it was too good to go straight to video as intended.
Mask of the Phantasm is at once a fresh take on Batman’s beginnings (with a far better romance than Bruce and Rachel Dawes) and a thrilling whodunit set in the prime of the Bat’s career, as a new vigilante is murdering hoodlums and framing The Dark Knight. Basically, it’s everything you could ever want in a Batman film – complete with an emphasis on detective work.
Just as with BTAS, the dark deco animation style is beautiful and the voice acting – from the likes of Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill and Dana Delany – is pitch perfect. Not to mention the score from Shirley Walker is as good as anything from Danny Elfman or Hans Zimmer.
If you haven’t seen this sadly forgotten Batman movie, go check it out now. You’ll thank us later.