JUSTICE LEAGUE: THE NEW FRONTIER
2008
Written by Stan Berkowitz, based on the graphic novel by Darwyn Cooke
Directed by Dave Bullock
What is it that's so appealing about superheroes? The basic idea, that there's someone with incredible strength and ability who will stop at nothing to protect us from those who would wish us harm, is comforting. But is it merely wish-fulfillment? I think in certain cases it is, such as the enduring popularity of Superman, or the resounding success of the Spider-Man films in the wake of 9/11. The same doesn't hold true, though, for something dark and brooding like The Dark Knight, which may be a fantasy, but a bleak one; the hero is shunned, a loner, a fugitive. Perhaps we're fascinated and impressed by how one man could go on under that kind of strain yet still do heroic things without compensation. Maybe that's how America envisions itself: One nation, divided and depressed, but carrying on through it all, surviving every blow it takes. These are the kinds of issues which Justice League: The New Frontier attempts to tackle.
Of course, a 75-minute direct-to-DVD animated film isn't going to be able to offer the same kind of power and insight of a six-issue comic book mini-series. Darwyn Cooke's 2004 book DC: The New Frontier explored the DC Comics heroes of the 40's and 50's in the kind of historical and social context that was impossible at the time. The heroes confront McCarthyism, the red scare, the space race, and other generational milestones which were touched upon in the original stories, though mostly with Superman punching out Commies. It was a beautiful, moving ode to the supeheroes of past, present, and future, basically showing why the characters are heroes and why they fight injustice.
The movie, given the "Justice League" moniker to hook in fans of the terrific Justice League TV show, isn't as good because of its limitations, but it's a commendable effort. It doesn't require as much foreknowledge of comics history as the book did, but this is a movie that jumps right into the thick of things from the beginning. Superman (Kyle MacLachlan) and Wonder Woman (Lucy Lawless) are government agents fighting in Indochina, while back at home in the States, Batman (Jeremy Sisto) has become a fugitive after refusing to register for Uncle Sam's men in D.C. These three iconic characters are used wisely and sparingly, acting more as a throughline for the movie to focus primarily on three burgeoning heroes.
Hal Jordan (David Boreanaz), a pacifist Korean War vet conflicted over the soldier he had to kill in the moments immediately after the war ended, becomes a test pilot for Ferris Industries. Jordan's always wanted to go to the stars, but his romantic involvement with company head Carol Ferris (Brooke Shields) may prove to jeopardize his position on the manned Mars mission if the testy Col. Rick Flagg (Lex Lang) has anything to do with it. Speaking of Mars, Martian J'onn J'onzz (Miguel Ferrer) was brought to Earth by a scientist who died of a heart attack upon seeing J'onn. Thus, J'onn, guilty over the death and yet enraptured by the progress of Earth society, takes upon the friendlier guise of Gotham City Detective John Jones after watching a hard-boiled film noir on television. Rounding out our group of heroes is Barry Allen AKA the Flash (Neil Patrick Harris), a lighting-fast superhero who feels bad because while Superman and Batman get to help save the world, he's stuck fighting giant apes and idiots in bad costumes. As these heroes rise to prominence, an ominous entity known as the Centre (Keith David) begins to emerge through cults and supervillains alike, and it means to destroy life as we know it.
One of the most interesting and exciting things about the recent spate of DC animated projects is getting to hear well-known actors take on such classic roles as Green Lantern, the Flash, and Wonder Woman. It gives nerds like me the chance to say, "Angel and Dr. Horrible just did a movie with Number Three!" The voice-acting here is certainly always intriguing, but a little spotty. David Boreanaz, capable of giving better performances than many Oscar-winners from his time with Joss Whedon, is an odd fit for Green Lantern, who was a country boy in the book; sometimes Boreanaz makes a half-hearted attempt at such an accent, but forsakes it most of the time. Neil Patrick Harris, another outstanding Whedon alum, should've been the perfect fit for the witty quipster Flash, but his line readings occasionally sound stilted and over-rehearsed, though his charm is hard to deny.
Making much stronger impressions are Lucy Lawless as Wonder Woman, who has now played both famous Amazons; Krya Sedgwick as a much better Lois Lane than the erratic Anne Heche in Superman: Doomsday; and Jeremy Sisto, who, despite having very little screentime, is a compelling choice for Batman, his gravelly voice a nice match. His brief moments with Kyle MacLachlan's Superman give them both a chance to shine. The animation style is a rough amalgam of Cooke's cartoonish retro drawings and the more modernized fashion of the DC animated universe; as such, at times it's weird hearing certain characters speaking in different voices than the ones they've been using for a decade or more, and at others it's oddly appropriate.
The biggest problem with The New Frontier is its length. It simply can't contain all of the story in Cooke's book, which largely consisted of strong, well-placed character moments. It took a long while for the Centre mystery to come together, whereas it's the movie's biggest angle from the opening sequence, and a lot of the smaller characters like Green Arrow or Adam Strange are mostly shunned aside. Still, the story in and of itself has a universal emotional resonance which remains intact. There's just something about seeing all of these superheroes with different backgrounds and different abilities coming together for the common good, which is awe-inspiring, even for a Marvel man such as myself. When framed by John F. Kennedy's "new frontier" speech, it's enough to put a lump in anyone's throat, and pride in the heart of any mere mortal that we could possibly aspire to such heights.
- Arlo J. Wiley
October 2, 2008
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