In a time of high crime rates and economic turmoil, one man steps up to take control of the country and bring about a new period of peace and prosperity. That person is none other than newly elected President Lex Luthor (Clancy Brown). After a bit of time in office, it seems the changes he has made are working out. Not only have the streets been cleaned up, but a huge host of superheroes actually work for Luthor as a more legitimate team of crime fighters.
Notably not on Lex's list of employees are Batman (Kevin Conroy) and Superman (Tim Daly), who after many years of fighting side-by-side have become good friends. When word gets out that a huge meteor is hurtling towards Earth, the duo start looking into ways to solve the problem, but public opinion goes against them when Superman is framed for killing one of his long-time villains, Metallo. Lex claims that the approaching piece of Superman's home world is causing the hero to have a mental breakdown and he must be contained while the government works on a solution to the approaching meteor. He offers a bounty of 1 billion dollars to whomever can stop Superman, thus inciting a series of attacks by random minor DC villains (and even a few heroes including Captain Atom and Power Girl, who are both under Luthor's command). So not only do Batman and Superman have to work together to find a way to stop a hurtling meteor, but also reveal the frame job that Luthor is pulling on Superman.
Unfortunately, I haven't had the chance to read the Superman/Batman comic issues that this animated movie is based on, but I have learned that there are quite a few places it diverges from the original story. On one hand, this will annoy comic book elitists who prefer the way the original story played out. On the other, it should make the events a bit less predictable for those same people who already know how it all ends.
As for special features, this 2-Disc version comes packed with a lot of material. Not only is there a sneak peek for the next DC animated movie, Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths (which is actually a bunch of interviews with the movie's crew), but also an interview with Conroy. Featurettes include one concerning the "World's Finest" comic series which was an early version of the current Superman/Batman line, and another featuring the current DC comic event, Blackest Night and several others concerning other DC animated features recently released. Another nice feature is the inclusion of two Superman Animated Series picked by Brice Timm (one of the creators of the recent DC animated movies).
If you've been watching the other DC animated movies to come out over the past couple of years, then you should know what kind of quality to expect from Superman/Batman: Public Enemies, and you won't be disappointed. The movie's visual style borrows heavily from the comics it is based on (the most distinctive feature being Superman's design), and while the story isn't completely faithful to the original story, it is still enjoyable and does a good job of throwing in a ton of DC cameos. Superman/Batman: Public Enemies is simply a nice movie to add to your DC collection, and the 2-Disc version comes with a lot of additional features that should make the overall experience that much more enjoyable.
