Rating:  -
Works good..I love this film always have. Trying to get most if not all of them.
Rating:  -
Bought this to get the Prince videos and watched in horror as I discovered that they put a poorly edited version of the Partyman video and not the full version. If they ever do another special edition of Batman, they MUST include the real versions of the Prince videos and not crappy edits.
Rating: -
This review focuses on Burton's Batman (Batman89, Batman Returns), Nolan's Batman (Batman Begins, the Dark Knight), and 1992 original Batman: The Animated Series. I'm excluding Schumacher's Batman (Batman Forever, Batman and Robin), the 1960's Batman series, and "The Batman", simply because I believe they are the weakest representations.
To be perfectly honest, I love Burton, Nolan, and BTAS equally. All three interpretations are so different, that they cannot be compared. And it is really annoying that I find people on YouTube trying to see which one is better (most opinions are biased). So here it goes with MY opinions:
BATMAN: Michael Keaton, Kevin Conroy, and Christian Bale have given us excellent performances. Conroy (from BTAS) has the perfect voice for Batman, though the physical depiction seems a bit too much. Bale really acts well as Bruce Wayne, but his voice for Batman is too deep and goofy. To me, Keaton is the ultimate "Bruce". He has the awkwardness and the eccentricity of the character, and plus his hoarse voice for the Bat is far superior to Bale's. It's too bad that he doesn't get that much screen time in both of Burton's films.
VILLAINS: Mr. Freeze, Riddler, Clayface, Mad Hatter, Scarface, Killer Croc, Bane, Baby Doll, Penguin, Clock King, Harley Quinn, Professor Milo, Poison Ivy, and Rupert Thorne appear only on BTAS, and they are marvelous in their own right.
The Scarecrow was better portrayed in BTAS (voice by Henry Polic II) than he was in Begins. Cillian Murphy looked too young as Doctor Crane, and the actual villain was much underused in the film. Two-Face had the scariest appearance in TDK; Aaron Eckhardt was flawless. However, Two-Face in BTAS (Richard Moll) had a much better origin. Years of suppressing anger can do that, you know. Ra's al Ghul is much more interesting in BTAS (David Warner); Liam Neeson's performance in BB was just above average as he wasn't very believable to me. The Penguin, one of my favorite Batman villains, has been blessed with both BReturns and BTAS. Danny Devito and Paul Williams have done superb jobs with this antagonist. Same goes with Catwoman: Michelle Pfeiffer had the better dialogue and better catsuit, while Adrienne Barbeau was a better Selina Kyle, and her chemistry with Batman is deeper.
Finally, for the Joker we have Jack Nicholson (B89), Mark Hamill (BTAS), and Heath Ledger (TDK). All three of them are perfect. Nicholson has the best dialogue, Hamill has the best laugh and look, and Ledger has the best sadism. Three different worlds, three different performances. People on YouTube should understand that.
SUPPORTING CHARACTERS: I couldn't see Michael Caine as Alfred, so it's thumbs down from me. Efrem Zimbalist Jr. and Michael Gough are the ideal Alfred's. Aaron Eckhardt is truly a one-of-a-kind Harvey Dent. I Believe in Harvey Dent! Billy Dee Williams was great in B89, also, and he had the tough and virtuous personality, as did Richard Moll in BTAS. Gary Oldman and Bob Hastings are the definitive Commissioner Gordon's; Pat Hingle is the weakest, but certainly not at all terrible. He's just a bit too short. Morgan Freeman is the one and only Lucius Fox; Brock Peters of BTAS had the better persona, but Freeman had the better chemistry with Batman.
GOTHAM CITY: Burton captured the dark and gothic feel of the hellish city perfectly. It looks as if "Hell came sprouting out of the concrete and kept right on growing. You gotta give credit to Anton Furst, the film's art director, for creating this atmospheric universe. Gotham in BTAS also has its advantages. The towering skyline, the dangerous alleys, and the red sky make it all more mesmerizing. Nolan's Gotham looks hellish, too, but it looks too much like Chicago (filming location for both BB and TDK). But other than that, it succeeds in creating a Faustian nightmare.
EVERYTHING ELSE: The gadgets in BTAS were the most realistic, while the Batmobile for B89 was better-looking. Keaton's Batsuit is classic, while Conroy's cape and cowl is ultimately frightening. The heroines (Basinger, Holmes, and Gyllenhaal) are lovely additions, although I wish Basinger would stop screaming throughout B89. And let's not forget the music: let's give it up for Danny Elfman, Shirley Walker, James Newton Howard, and Hans Zimmer. These are the composers who gave us those catchy Batman themes. We will never forget them or their work.
CONCLUSION: Burton's universe, Nolan's universe, and Timm's universe are near ideal. I love them equally, really. I can't wait for the next film.
Rating:  -
I love this movie! Michael Keaton is the best Batman before Batman Begins. But the Joker a.k.a Jack Nicholson steals the show. Hes much better than Ceaser Romeros Joker. The fight scenes are some of the best. My personal favorite is and is proably everyones is Joker vs Batman. The movie could have more fight scenes and the fact that Joker killed Bruces parents in the movie didnt bode will with me because his parents were killed by some nameless crook. But it still is a great movie and I give it 4 out of 5 stars. tommorow Ill be reviewing Batman Returns. And to tell you Im using my moms msn name so call me The Cable Guy.
Rating: -
+ AS A BATMAN STORY
It's simply the worst I've experienced. I've read bad Batman comics, I've seen bad Batman television episodes, but this goes above and beyond that. We have nothing to establish Bruce Wayne as a character, nothing to flesh him out beyond "rich guy, wears Batsuit." While this is essentially a Batman/Joker story operating around the theme "the enemies that made each other," even that works as nothing but a cheap twist. Neither of the characters are fleshed out, making them shells of the iconic characters we've read and watched. While I like when film makers take liberties from the source material, giving the Joker the role that they give him in this movie (in relation to Bruce's past) is ridiculous and, again, is simply a cheap twist that has absolutely no emotional resonance. The actor's performances are passable--though there is nothing close to a spark, or really anything convincingly romantic, between Michael Keaton and Kim Basinger--and even Jack Nicholson doesn't wow in this film. Plus, since when does Batman kill people? Is he the Punisher now? They might as well have gave him a different costume, a different name, and called the film something else, because this bears no resemblance to the real Batman.
+ AS A TIM BURTON FILM
Not only does this movie not live up to the "Batman" name, it also doesn't live up to the rest of Tim Burton's directorial accomplishments. You'd expect this kind of movie from a run-of-the-mill hack director, but from the man who brought us Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and so many other good films? Not so much. Even Burton himself said "there's parts I liked, but it was a little boring at times." When I purchased this, I thought I'd be in for a treat. How can you go wrong with Burton and Batman? Turns out, you can go very, very wrong.
+ AS A MOVIE
The back of the DVD really convinced me to buy this from the used pile. "The best movie of the decade," it boasted. Back then, it was the selling point. Now, I'm shaking my head and chuckling at the audacity and falseness of it. This is simply a bad movie.
1/10
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