Batman Returns (1992)

A sequel to the 1989 installment, directed by Tim Burton, hit the screens in the year 1992. Michael Keaton reprises his role as Bruce Wayne and the Dark Knight, Batman. Along with him are two comic villains The Penguin and Catwoman, and an original villain Max Shreck.

 

So Gotham is plagued by the Red Triangle Gang, masterminded by the Penguin. (The members of the Gang are discovered by Bruce Wayne to be children who had been abducted from circuses in the past.) The Penguin is rumored to be the Penguin Man, who has hatched a plan to return to the surface and reclaim his birthright. He wants to rise and shine and rediscover his roots (learn his human name, Oswald Cobblepot), a noble cause for a man who spent his first Christmas in the sewer from infancy. But he intends to wreak his vengeance on Gothamites' children the same way he was robbed of his childhood, since he has seen the city decay under the decadence of the older generation.

 

But The Penguin enlists the help of Max Shreck (Christopher Walken), a business tycoon intent on building his giant capacitor instead of a power station to bring Gotham to its knees. Together, they conspire to discredit the mayor and take over Gotham so that The Penguin can become mayor and Shreck can materialize his plan.

And there is Selina Kyle (Michelle Pfeiffer): she is a lowly secretary who has met many men in her life and has been taken advantage of. The last straw is drawn when Shreck attempts to kill her after she discovers his fiendish plot. But apparently she is not dead and returns as Catwoman. She would ask herself why she is Catwoman. Well it transpires that she is "a woman, and can't be taken for granted." It seems she plays a feminist of Gotham and proves herself to fiendish, devious and seductive, and becomes Batman's love interest. (By the way, she dons the cat suit because she thinks her own cat has fun on its own escapade, and she was bitten by a hoard of cats while comatose.)

 

One of the most climatic moments is where Bruce and Selina reveal their identities to each other and evolve to the point where they were meant to be. Bruce would want Selina to put aside her vendetta, tie the knot and live their lives together.

 

This movie has been slated for being darker than its predecessor, not just for its scenery, but also for scenes of bloody injury, sexual content and the ghastly Penguin make-up. Plus, the Penguin's vendetta against Gotham's children, notably the firstborn, was said to be anti-Semetic. But nonetheless it has been praised for character development, plot, picture, production value, solid acting, costumes, quotes and the early computer work on the Batmobile. (Somehow I learned that the movie was wrongly certified in North America with a PG-13, targeting the wrong audience. However at the time, it was appropriately certified 15 in the United Kingdom since the 12 certificate was not introduced until 1994, thus not allowing the wrong audience to watch the movie.) As a result the movie underperformed at the box office even though it was better received by critics and fans alike than the first movie.

 

Either way this movie will always be remembered for Catwoman, a seductive villain and love interest to Batman. I'm sure Burton would have made significant improvements in his next films had he been given another chance. He may not be an action movie director, but he resurrected the Batman franchise to popularity.

Batman Forever (1995)

Warner Bros. were not quite satisfied with the performance of Tim Burton's Batman Returns (1992). It is darker than Batman (1989), was aimed at a wrong audience in North America, and underperformed at the box office. So they replaced him as director with Joel Schumacher and reassigned him as a producer.

So how does this film fare? Well it is lighter and more family-friendly,  and has made more money at the box office. The theatrical release is certified PG because of this. However, there have been some hitches in this movie: the hammy acting, the motivation of the villains, the overly colourful scenery of Gotham City, and even some campy elements reminiscent to cartoons.

If you have watched Batman: The Animated Series, you would note that there is no villain who would act overly insane other than the Joker himself. The villains in this movie are Two-Face (Tommy Lee Jones) and The Riddler (Jim Carrey). The two form an alliance to bring the Batman to ruin, and embarrass themselves on screen as opposed to the villains in the aforementioned TV series.

So how does Two-Face come about? Former district-attorney Harvey Dent was brutally scarred when Salvator Maroni threw acid on his face before Batman could storm in and save him. Now Two-Face blames Batman for his tragic assault and vows to hunt him down to his death. On the other hand,Edward Nygma was fired from his job for turning his boss into a guinea pig for his unethically insane experiment, before throwing him through the office window to his death. Now he wants to disgrace Bruce Wayne with riddles and unmask 'the man behind the Bat'. Plus The Riddler intends to use his invention to tap into people's minds and acquire all the knowledge of men.

I would like to point out that the motivation of Two-Face is highly questionable and contradictory to the comics; not to mention his obsession as tiresome and repetitive. His character is too idiotic to take seriously and I'm pretty sure Jones ended up looking worn out and mortified by his performance. It would be preferable watching the animated series to wash out this escapade from any sensible minds.

And one other point to note is that in Batman Harvey Dent was played by Billy Dee Williams; yet he does not reprise his role in this movie and turn into Two-Face. But since this movie was directed by Schumacher, I prefer Williams did not reprise his role, for his performance on screen would have devastated him completely. Though it would have been a different story had Burton remained a director. 

Another obvious change is the actor who plays Bruce Wayne/Batman. It emerged that since Tim Burton was removed as director, Michael Keaton declined to reprising his role for the second time. I guess Keaton was right to do so after what we have seen; besides, I think he was not ready to take his chances with Schumacher in charge of the project. So Val Kilmer was chosen for his role, and I must be frank he did execute his part with dignity. Some viewers and critics noted this actor to be the better option for the role than Keaton himself, even though they both played their roles equally adequately. 

Despite his overacting, The Riddler shows more commitment to his plan to buckle the Batman as opposed to Two-Face's taste for Batman's blood. The Riddler has shown Two-Face that to kill the Bat is not as easy as he thinks; even though Face has repeatedly tried and failed in the course of the flick to kill him. Thus this makes The Riddler look more intellectually endowed unlike Two-Face.

And let us not forget Dr. Chase Meridian (Nicole Kidman). She is another one of Batman's love interests. But in this case, first it is Batman then Bruce Wayne. This film is aimed at the family, but this theme evolves to a point of sensuality, just like the previously movie. It appears that she could be the reason for some of the racy scenes and Batman's unusual dialogue. One scene which most notably falls short of appropriateness is what I call the 'romantic window scene'. Here she sleeps nude, awakens to Batman's presence at the balcony window and gets really intimate with him (all this while she is covered in a silk sheet). Romantic as it seems, this would not fit in a PG-certificate movie if it is more suited to a 12- or 15-certificate movie.

But nontheless the picture is not entirely over-the-top in flamboyancy and so appeals to families unlike Tim Burton's movies. It has its moments, but it does mark an improvement as far as Warner are concerned.

I discovered that had Burton remained a director, Batman Forever would have starred The Riddler as the movie's only villain, played byRobin Williams, and another female actor as Batman's love interest, without the bloody injuries from the previous films, campiness or over-the-top flamboyancy of thid film. However circumstances transpired and prevented such movie becoming reality. 

 Below is Tim Burton's vision that never transpired. Thanks a lot, Warner!

Batman (1989)

In the year 1989, Tim Burton brought to us a Batman movie. This flick is dark in its atmosphere, reflecting Gotham's image as a crime-plagued city. And there lies a caped crusader who stalks criminals at night, bringing fear into their hearts. By day he is Bruce Wayne, a billionaire businessman.

 

When Michael Keaton was cast to play the roles of Bruce Wayne and Batman, there was universally negative speculation against Burton's decision. After all, his last movie was Beetlejuice in which he starred as the titular character, and that has been the reason for the backlash. However, his performance in this movie has proven critics and the public wrong about Burton's decision and has since given the movie the acclaim it deserves. We can see him execute his main roles as seen in the comics without turning it into the campy television series of the 1960s.

 

Starring in this movie is a villain called The Joker, played by Jack Nicolson. Formerly known as Jack Napier, this villain has a motive for his existence: he was set up over a woman, snitched to the police, and then accidentally dropped into a chemical vat by Batman. So what does he intend to do after his revival? Kill Gothamites with laughter by contaminating cosmetics with his laughter-inducing toxins. So it is up to Batman to destroy his plans before he causes more loss of lives.

However, many noted that the story hugely focuses on the villain instead of the hero: his origin and his escapade. If this is the case, then the movie would have been better titled The Joker. But nevertheless, Jack Nicolson gave us a performance like no other. He might have been more creepy than scary, but he still proved to be charismatic in character.

 

And there is Vicki Vale, played by Kim Basinger. She is a love interest to both Bruce Wayne and The Joker. She works as a photographer for the Gotham Gazette. Bruce Wayne finds it hard to secure woman who can understand and accept his dual personality, and Vale is no exception; even when she is ushered into the Batcave by Alfred (Michael Gough).

 

Most notable is the climax: there has been some backlash over who killed Bruce's parents. It was Burton's idea to build up to 'the duel of the freaks', and to do so would to have Jack Napier instead of Joe Chill perpetrate the murder. Nevertheless the movie still does its job to at least end triumphantly, with Batman earning the trust of Gothamites as their savior.

 

The success of this movie must be the reason for initiating the production of Batman: The Animated Series, which is to date rated as the greatest animated series of all time. The animated series has since used similar theme score from the movie in the opening and closing slots. It has also been acclaimed for returning Batman to popularity since the 1960s television series.