Movie Review: Teen Titans: The Judas Contract
It’s been a long time since I read the modern classic comic story, Teen Titans: The Judas Contract, and being rather young when I did, I don’t remember a hell of a lot, so it was nice going into Warner Bros. latest animated movie Teen Titans: The Judas Contract fairly fresh without the need or ability to really compare it to its source material.
Based on the classic comic story by Marv Wolfman and George Pérez Teen Titans: The Judas Contract brings together a rather interesting Teen Titans team consisting of Nightwing, Starfire, Damian Wayne aka Robin, Blue Beetle, Beast Boy, Raven, and Terra.
Led by Starfire, the Teen Titans – Beast Boy, Raven, Blue Beetle, Robin and the just-returned Nightwing – have built a cohesive team in their never-ending battle against evil; but their newest teammate, the mysterious and powerful Terra, may be altering that dynamic. Meanwhile, an ancient evil, Brother Blood, has awakened, and familiar foe Deathstroke is lurking in the shadows – both waiting to pounce. Ultimately, the Teen Titans will need to battle their enemies and their own doubts to unite and overcome the malicious forces around them in this twisting tale of intrigue, adventure and deception.
The story really relies on two things, the twist of the story and the Teen Titans dynamic. The dynamic for the team is fantastic. Even within, there’s a lot going on and it feels like the early years for this team. Nightwing and Starfire are well into their relationship, but it’s clear the Blue Beetle is still struggling with his powers, Terra is having issues fitting in, and Robin, well it’s Damian Wayne, so he’s an ass as expected. This is a team that’s struggling and since no one is perfect, it all feels easy to relate to.
But, the story is really all about Terra and it’s hard to review the movie truly without spoiling things. Without doing so, my biggest issue with the film is a scene with Terra where she tries to seduce someone and it’s a bit creepy, since she’s supposed to be a teen. Garth is clearly a teen and trying to date her, so for her to try to throw herself at an adult and the adult to reciprocate in a way is really disturbing.
The bad guys of Deathstroke and Brother Blood are decent. Deathstroke stands out for sure and the action scenes involving him are fantastic, especially fights with Nightwing and Damian. Brother Blood on the other hand… it all feels like a plot we’ve seen so many times before, stealing heroes powers, and then there’s his taking of everyone’s, including Blue Beetle, which seems like an odd thing to take since how his powers work.
The animation as always is top notch with great action and character designs. There’s a style that’s worked across every movie so far, and done so in a way that it all feels like a cohesive universe. The voice acting too is always great. The actors match their characters well, and while none of it really stands out, it’s entertaining.
Teen Titans: The Judas Contract is a fantastic movie that feels like it does a good job of translating the classic comic story for this DC Animated Universe and does so in a way that it all flows well and feels like a natural evolution of the characters. Judging by the end, there’s a lot more coming, and I can’t wait.
Overall Rating: 8.15
Warner Bros. provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
Warner Bros. Animation and DC Entertainment bring one of the most momentous Teen Titans plotlines in comics history to animated life with the all-new, feature-length film Teen Titans: The Judas Contract. Inspired by the 1984 DC story arc from Marv Wolfman and George Pérez, Teen Titans: The Judas Contract will be distributed by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on April 18, 2017.
