Catwoman: Hunted
review by Bobby Blakey
DC has been on a role churning out so many great animated features with most focusing on the big three of Batman, Wonder Woman and Superman. Now they are shifting the focus on their latest to the feline thief for a new features Catwoman: Hunted featuring the voices of Elizabeth Gillies and Stephanie Beatriz as Catwoman and Batwoman respectively. Could this latest entry to their animation collection deliver or will it fail to pull off the big score?
Catwoman: Hunted follows Catwoman’s attempt to steal a priceless jewel that puts her squarely in the crosshairs of both a powerful consortium of villains and the ever-resourceful Interpol, not to mention Batwoman. It might just be enough to contain her. Or not. Also featured is Jonathan Banks as Black Mask, Steve Blum as Solomon Grundy, Lauren Cohan as Julia Pennyworth, Keith David as Tobias Whale, Zehra Fazal as Talia al Ghul and Nosferata, Jonathan Frakes as King Faraday and Boss Moxie, Kirby Howell-Baptiste as Barbara Minerva/Cheetah, Kelly Hu as Cheshire, Andrew Kishino as Mr. Yakuza and Domino 6, Eric Lopez as Domino 1, Jacqueline Obradors as La Dama, and Ron Yuan as Doctor Tzin.
I have been a fan of pretty much every animated feature DC has put out and while I really enjoyed this one it is a mixed bag. This time around they have presented a full on anime which is a beast of its own so it stands apart from the previous films. I am not into anime much these days, but did dig the overall look of this film. The animation and character designs look excellent and really brings out the dynamic visuals throughout. It is jam packed with action complete with heroes, villains, mechs, monsters and everything in between. That is where the film stumbles as it is kind of all over the place.
The first half of the film works quite well featuring Catwoman doing her thing and offers up some creative and fun sequences. Then somewhere along the way it goes off the rails and seems almost like a whole new film with over the top fights and the above mentioned plethora of genres. It’s not bad it just throws in so much it never has the depth a lot of the previous DC animated films have brought. If you are a fan of the DC animated flicks or just Catwoman herself then decide for yourself and check it out.
In addition to the film this release offers up bonus content including documentary on the history of Catwoman and a featurette taking you behind bringing this film to life. Grab your copy of Catwoman: Hunted available now on 4K, Blu-ray and digital from Warner Bros Home Entertainment.