Merry Little Batman follows the story of Damian Wayne who wishes to be a superhero like his Dad, Batman, while the latter has virtually wiped off crime from Gotham city. This, until a vicious Christmas plot forces Damian to don the superhero costume and save the day! The story here is quite a simplistic superhero film which did seem like an extension of the ‘cartoons’ that are telecast on television during Christmas. And it formulates a decently entertaining watch. The screenplay standing at 90 odd minutes is taut which means that no time is wasted in dragging the plot after a point. But more importantly, I feel that this film is strictly catered towards kids, targetting the below 10 age demographics. 

There has always been a phase in our childhood wherein we all wish to be a superhero. This might emulate from books or films that we create our version of superheroes in our head, something that we idolize. And this may also arise from a real-life human being, mostly featuring people around us. This concept was nicely tackled at the beginning of the film with the little protagonist wishing to be a superhero like his father. The other side of the coin featured an over-protective father who wished no harm for his child(typical of a father), and therefore virtually eliminated all the crime in the city. But with a themed Christmas festival on the horizon, the writers introduce a conflict by separating the father-son duo and allowing the son to face the newly bred crime in the city! 

I did find some nicely integrated homages of some of the most famous films like Home Alone, or some films back home like Andaz Apna Apna and Mr India. The proceedings are laced with humour which did bring about a chuckle every now and then. But the one complaint(for a lack of a better word) that I had about the writing was that it was too simplistic and predictable. There could have been a few moments created which were slightly more layered even featuring the face-off between young Damian and all the famous villains of Gotham. The events were entertaining but quite straight-forward wherein you could easily predict the beats of the drama. Having said that, the proceedings are laced with a lesson for kids who aspire to be future ‘superheroes’, with the messaging being in the motto. The final act is decent followed by a hint of a heartwarming ending which ought to have been slightly more fleshed out in the spirit of Christmas. But overall, the screenplay is decent and enjoyable in parts.