Once again Warner Premiere has released another good animated DC film. Its no surprise that this one is also a Batman movie. Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 1, based off the Frank Miller comic of the same name, is a pretty good film.  It tells the story of an older Bruce Wayne who retired the cape and cowl after the death of Jason Todd, known to fans as Robin II. He now spends his time keeping to himself, drinking, and keeping up his philanthropic endeavors with the city. Every once in awhile he will have a drink with Commissioner Gordon who knows his true identity as Batman. The city is being terrorized by a new group of criminals called the Mutants, whose leader’s brutality is compared to that of the Joker’s. After seeing all the new clips of the Mutant’s crimes and having flashbacks of his parents Bruce decides to become Batman once again. This movie sports the most buff Batman I have ever seen even with his advanced age. He looked more like a boxer and fought more like one too. This movie also sports the first animated female Robin in the form of Carrie Kelley. Unlike the other Robins, the redhead chose the costume, seeking Batman out herself, and even saving his life from the hands of the Mutant Leader. While this film is very good I feel as if the characters aren’t given as much depth as in Batman: Year One or Batman: Under the Red Hood. This may be because the film is actually one half of a full story with the second half due out in early 2013. This gives them plenty of time to flesh out some of the characters further.  I feel this was a good adaptation of the first half of Frank Miller’s comic and I eagerly await the second. Which, according to me is the most exciting and better half. This was a good film that I thoroughly enjoyed. It was a nice take on Batman, far different than any I’ve seen before. While watching this I was reminded of The Dark Knight Rises, which makes sense as they both use the same source material. This film was a good treat for any Batman fan out there. I recommend fans get out there and see this film and prepare for the second half due out next year. I give Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 1 a Decent 8.5/10!