TEEN TITANS GO! TO THE MOVIES Blu-ray Review

TEEN TITANS GO! TO THE MOVIES (Blu-ray + DVD + Digital)

Release Date: October 30, 2018

Studio: Warner Home Entertainment

Video: 1.78:1 1080p Widescreen

Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, English DVS 5.1, French Dolby Digital 5.1, Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1, Portuguese Dolby Digital 5.1

THE RATINGS

The Movie Itself - ★ ★ ★ ★ ½

Video Quality - ★ ★ ★ ★ ½

Audio Quality - ★ ★ ★ ★ ½

Special Features - ★ ★ ★ ✰ ✰

Overall - ★ ★ ★ ★ ✰

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THE FILM ITSELF Our Reviewer's Take
Tinseltown's most adorable knuckleheads.

Reviewed by Gavin King

Films like Teen Titans Go! To the Movies remind me why I love what I do. Anyone who's good friends with me knows I'm a sucker for animation - always have been, always will be - and when animation's done right, it's pretty much a field day for me. Good, entertaining animation is the kind you can stick in the Blu-ray player and watch over and over again - think The Secret Life of Pets or Incredibles 2 - with all of the accolades that make a movie great: slick dialogue, colorful animation, witty humor, lovable characters, and an enticing story to cap it all. Teen Titans Go! To the Movies is the zenith of all of that. This is a near-perfect, hugely enjoyable film in practically every way. It's big and colorful enough for the kids but is also blessed with insanely funny moments and a unexpected real big heart. Simply put: one of the biggest surprises of the year.

Aren't we just the coolest superheroes you've ever seen?

Jump City is under attack! The inflatable Balloon Man (voiced by Greg Davies) is bent on terrorizing the town's citizens and robbing the nearby bank. But fear not - the Teen Titans, Robin (voiced by Scott Menville), Beast Boy (voiced by Greg Cipes), Starfire (voiced by Hynden Walch), Raven (voiced by Tara Strong), and Cyborg (voiced by Khary Payton), are here to save the day! They deflate the vile Balloon Man... or so they believe, until Superman (voiced by Nicolas Cage) and his crew put a stop to him beforehand. The rest of the Justice League deems the Titans as a bunch of "goofsters" and nothing more than immature potty-humor lovers who would rather dance around to sick remixes than put the effort to defeat an evil-doer. They all claim this is why the Titans have never yet gotten a movie about them greenlit to Hollywood... just look at Batman, Wonder Woman, and Green Lantern (...but we don't talk about that). Leader Robin is determined to coin him and his ragtag group a big-name Hollywood movie... but what exactly makes a good superhero movie? An arch nemesis, of course! The Titans enlist the curiosity of Deadpo -- er, I mean, Slade (voiced by Will Arnett), a tough-as-nails wisecracking supervillain who Robin believes would make a great fit for their potential film. But, just like everyone else out there, Slade feels the Titans are way too childish and silly for his liking. Now it is up to Robin and his gang to win Slade back and net their names on the Hollywood marquee with help from acclaimed superhero film director Jade Wilson (voiced by Kristen Bell).

Here's the funny thing: this animated feature-length version of a not-so-well-received Cartoon Network television series is arguably better than most other DC films today (I personally didn't understand the hype for Wonder Woman in 2017). That's seriously saying a lot, especially considering the massive hype culture built around films like Batman v. Superman. The film moves at a wonderfully fast pace thanks to its witty dialogue, crazy-awesome gags, blink-and-you'll-miss easter eggs, and all around cheerful buoyancy that's on display with almost every scene. It only helps that the animation is bright and quirky - one of the film's funniest scenes is a full-on Lion King reference in which DC universe characters hop, run, and act like the classic Disney film's animals, and the accuracy is quite frankly startling - and I mean that in a good way.

2016's Batman v. Superman in a nutshell.

Speaking of, the film features some of the greatest and most memorable meta moments and Flash-fast references ever conceived in a film, animated or otherwise. And this is a Teen Titans Go movie! From subtle things like an awed Starfire pointing out about the WB lot, "That is where the Animaniacs live!" to in-your-face delights like a prominent cameo from the late Stan Lee (which, by the way, rest in peace... what a legend), the film reaches Ready Player One levels of easter egg goodness that propel it to so much more than just a typical 2018 Hollywood animated outing. It's too bad the film was overlooked opening weekend (the picture opened to just $10 or so million on its release weekend); many internet-dwellers were led to believe that, from the film's lackluster teaser trailer, TTGTTM was simply going to be an unnecessary cash grab that only appealed to kids with low attention spans. But that's the problem with marketing. Major movie studios have to make it out like that to appeal to the millennial audience. The true core of the film is nothing short of an absolute delight and those who scoffed it off during the film's release window are missing out. 

Part of the reason why audiences may have been fended off by TTGTTM is due to the "immaturity" of our main characters, the Titans themselves. This is something that is poked around a great deal in the film. The Titans are a respectable deal childish; they love to crack toilet gags, dance around to pop remixes, and binge on carbs and junk food. The film itself in turn makes light of this by pointing this out as the reason the Titans don't have a major motion picture on them in the first place. Think about it; DC characters like Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and Aquaman have netted themselves big-name Hollywood motion pictures because they boast so-called deep origin stories and supposedly interesting adventures in battle. The Teen Titans are just... goofy. In battle, they most likely wouldn't go to forms of violence, warfare, or rollicking grandeur. Their plan of success would be in playing their trademark theme song to prove how awesome they are, not punching the villain to near-death. But that's what makes our heroes happy in the long run. At the end of the day, the Titans would much rather go to sleep knowing that they did what made them happy rather than being forced to prove that they're something they're truly not. Sure they have effective (albeit somewhat tame) methods to rid a villain externally, but these heroes are all about friendship, not merciless savagery. And isn't that what matters most when the sun sets?


TEEN TITANS GO! TO THE MOVIES Blu-ray - Video Quality

Teen Titans Go! To the Movies is blessed with a lovely 1080p presentation that will undoubtedly put a smile on fans' faces. There's a fair bit of aliasing evident throughout the duration, most notably on heavily curved lines and such, but otherwise this one's a real charmer. Colors lack much in the way of nuance by design but standouts are aplenty. Starfire's bright pink hair pops. Beast Boy's ultra-dominant green sizzles. Joyous splashes in Jump City and in the Titans' T-shaped house are eye-pleasers. Essentially every scene is graced with incredibly vibrant and punchy color aesthetics that don't disappoint in the slightest, light or dark, cheery or dismal (in tone, of course). Line art is as sharp as a tack and minor detailing on backgrounds is crisp and inviting. Blacks are deep and whites are brilliant. Banding and other major eyesores are off for the day. Great stuff from beginning to end.

TEEN TITANS GO! TO THE MOVIES Blu-ray - Audio Quality

Teen Titans Go! To the Movies' DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track is lively and involving, a excellent compliment to the terrific movie. A 7.1 mix would have been nice but there's no mistaking the 5.1 track's prowess. Sound effects of all sorts thump and blast with authoritative spacing and realization. Sounds swirl, explosions thrash, and the entire stage becomes a hugely entertaining sonic cacophony of surrounding goodness. Music boasts skilled placement and immersive, crystal-clear instrumentals in each of the six channels. The Upbeat Inspirational Song About Life sequence in chapter four is a joy that involves pinpoint channelization of musical elements, fun placement of sound effects, and nonstop crispness, making for one of the track's most enjoyable pieces. Ambience is lightly immersive and does a commendable job of transporting listeners into the film's varied environments. Dialogue runs into zero issues. A first-class, no-frills listen.

TEEN TITANS GO! TO THE MOVIES Blu-ray - Special Features

- "GO!" Lil Yachty Music Video (1080p, 2:09) Lil Yachty takes over the Titans' theme song.

- Silkie Sing-Alongs Sing-along music videos of three of the film's songs.

Go! Rap (1080p, 1:56)

Upbeat Inspirational Song About Life (1080p, 2:41)

My Superhero Movie (1080p, 2:23)

DC Super Hero Girls: The Late Batsby (1080p, 4:14) A short film release theatrically with TTGTTM that acts as a teaser to the DC Super Hero Girls series from My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic creator Lauren Faust.

Red Carpet Mayhem (1080p, 2:10) The Titans take the red carpet and answer some burning questions.

Teen Titans GO!: WB Lot Shenanigans (1080p, 3:56) The Titans get into some antics on the Warner Bros. lot.

Everything is Fake (1080p, 0:51) A scrapped song that describes how everything on a movie set is a bunch of baloney.

Teen Titans GO!: Translated (1080p, 2:18) Select lines from the film shown in different languages.

Storyboard Animatics include the following:

Time Cycles (1080p, 1:07)

The Final Battle (1080p, 1:34)

TEEN TITANS GO! TO THE MOVIES Blu-ray - Overall Recommendation

Films like Teen Titans Go! To the Movies are the kind of escapes that help you overcome a crappy day at work, relieve afternoon boredom, and enjoy with the whole family or a group of film-loving friends. It's in the vein of The Lego Batman Movie as one of the finest self-aware motion pictures of the decade and also is blessed with thrilling action, toe-tapping musical numbers, and a huge warm heart. It's an overlooked little surprise and one of the best animated films of 2018. Warner Bros. has packaged together a great Blu-ray release, too, with excellent video and audio and a bunch of fluffy, brief supplements for the kids. Very highly recommended!

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