Son of Batman

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Son of Batman
Home video release cover art
Directed by	Ethan Spaulding
Screenplay by	Joe R. Lansdale
Story by	James Robinson
Based on	Batman and Son by Grant Morrison Andy Kubert
Produced by	James Tucker
Starring	Stuart Allan Jason O'Mara Thomas Gibson Morena Baccarin
Edited by	Christopher D. Lozinski
Music by	Frederik Wiedmann
Production companies	Warner Bros. Animation DC Entertainment The Answer Studio (animation services)
Distributed by	Warner Home Video
Release date	April 22, 2014 (2014-04-22)
Running time	74 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Son of Batman is a 2014 American animated superhero film which is the 20th film of the DC Universe Animated Original Movies and the third film in the DC Animated Movie Universe.^[1] It is an adaptation of Grant Morrison and Andy Kubert's 2006 "Batman and Son" storyline.^[2][3] The film was released as a digital download on April 22, 2014,^[4] and was released on physical media on May 6.^[5][6]

At the headquarters of the League of Assassins, Ra's al Ghul grooms Damian Wayne, the young son of his daughter Talia and Batman, to succeed him. The League is ambushed by a group of assassins led by Slade Wilson, Ra's al Ghul's initial choice for successor before Damian's birth. Ra's is fatally injured by Slade, dying before he can heal his injuries with the Lazarus Pit. After the incident, Talia takes Damian to Gotham City to meet his father and remain in his care while she and the League deal with Slade. The aggressive, highly independent Damian frequently disobeys his father's orders in an attempt to avenge Ra's himself. After Nightwing accosts him for brutally attacking an associate of Slade, Batman berates Damian for his recklessness and willingness to kill. Batman then has Damian don the mantle of Robin to teach him discipline.

Slade, now calling himself Deathstroke, captures Talia as well as Dr. Kirk Langstrom, a scientist previously working with Ra's. Commissioner Gordon warns Batman about an abandoned stadium believed to house Deathstroke's men; after infiltrating the stadium, Batman and Damian attempt to question Langstrom, who initially refuses to leave as Deathstroke is holding his family hostage. When Damian becomes violently impatient and inadvertently alerts the enemy to their arrival, the group is confronted by a swarm of Man-Bats, which Langstrom explains is part of Deathstroke's plan to create superhuman flying assassins. While Nightwing works with Langstrom on an antidote for the Man-Bats, Batman and Damian set off to rescue Langstrom's family. Batman deduces that Talia has been abducted and Damian is relayed her location via a ransom video given to Langstrom's daughter.

Nightwing learns that Deathstroke is operating in an oil rig off the Scottish coast, and Damian goes to the rig alone to rescue his mother. He finds her in an underwater base with a swarm of Man-Bats and another Lazarus Pit, which Deathstroke intends to sell for profit. Deathstroke attempts to kill Damian, mortally wounding Talia as she shields her son from a gunshot. Batman arrives to assist and heals Talia in the Lazarus Pit, while Nightwing and Langstrom cure the Man-Bats.

After a brutal fight, Damian manages to defeat Deathstroke, but refuses to kill him because it is not what his father would do. The underwater base is destroyed when the disoriented Man-Bats break the glass elevator shaft. Batman, Talia and Damian escape to safety, but the unconscious Deathstroke is left behind.^{[N 1]} Discussing what to do with Damian now that Deathstroke has been neutralized, Batman believes that Damian should remain with him as Robin while Talia wishes to recreate the League with both of them at her side. Talia allows Damian to stay in Gotham with his father, but states her intention to return for him someday.

During the credits, the fight between Damian and Nightwing is shown.

The soundtrack to Son of Batman was released on May 20, 2014, with music composed by Frederik Wiedmann.^[7]

Tracklist

The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 64%, with an average score of 6.4/10, based on 11 reviews.^[8] IGN gave the film a rating of 7.5 out of 10, saying that "Son of Batman finds the humor amidst the more adult-oriented action elements in this latest DC animated adventure".^[9] On Rotten Tomatoes the film has a rating of 64% based on 11 votes, with an average rating of 6.4/10.^[10] Common Sense Media gave the film a 4 star rating out of 5, saying that "violent and noirish Batman is engaging but cynical".^[11] Conversely, Brian Lowry of Variety stated that "at times this feels like a sitcom premise — a chop-socky "Full House", or maybe, "Full Cave".^[12] Tommy Cook for Collider.com also gave the film a negative review: "Striving for the dark edge of what I guess people expect from a Batman movie while still maintaining that Saturday morning toon sheen, the film feels mass produced to appeal to all (give the adults – gore; the kids – a spunky child sidekick); however in the effort to appease everyone, SoB in fact caters to none".^[13]

The film earned $7,035,623 from domestic home video sales.^[14]

Three sequels were released including: Batman vs. Robin in 2015, Batman: Bad Blood in 2016, and Batman: Hush in 2019.

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• Son of Batman at IMDb