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Batman Forever

Batman Forever

List Price: $19.98
Your Price: $17.98
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Lots of Flash, Very Little Substance
Review: The Schumacher Batman movies have been much maligned, especially since "Batman and Robin," but "Batman Forever" isn't that bad. It isn't a Burton film, but it doesn't try to be. Schumacher's new take is that Batman is "whole." His is not the brooding obsessive as freakish as the monsters he fights whom Michael Keaton plays. Schumacher is not a good enough director to fully realize his vision, which is why the resolution is so hollow and anti-climactic, so he expands the supporting cast, brightens the art direction and focuses on techno-wizardry over mood.

It isn't as layered as Burton's efforts, but it's slicker. From Jim Carrey's over-the-top performance to the sexy grooving soundtrack, it feels like an average summer thrill ride, but it is thrilling. What little substance there is comes from the actors, who have little to work with. Nicole Kidman (again) delivers a performance better than the movie deserves and makes Chase Meridian the most complex character in the film. Tommy Lee Jones (and Two-Face, a fascinating member of Batman's rogues gallery) is wasted, but he finds a moment at the end of the film.

Compared to the Burton films, these moments are rare, but "Batman Forever" looks nice. With its cartoonish characters, colorful sets and lack of brutal violence, it will also appeal to young kids more than the first two. The DVD version, no frills though it is, is therefore a better deal -- the format preserves the bright colors of the visuals and stomach-stirring subtleties of the sound.

The DVD chapter review also offers the chance to edit the movie, thus creating any of a number of much better films: a quirky soap opera (Kidman scenes), a screwball comedy (Carrey scenes) or even, yes, homosexual erotica ("You'll need a friend." "Not just a friend, a PARTNER.")

It may not be the Batman movie Burton fans had hoped for, but as junk food for your brain, it's a fun way to put your brain on hold for a couple of hours.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: GOOD RATHER THAN GREAT BUT I MISSED TIM BURTON'S DARKER TONE
Review: First of all let me start by saying that I really liked Batman Returns but thought Batman was a little slow and boring. The third instalment of Batman is however a bit of a mixed bag, although overall an entertaining third instalment.

Visually it's still great and there are a whole new array of bat toys, although the darker tone of Tim Burton's previous two movies is replaced here with a little more of a mass audience commerciality. To my mind this is something of a shame. Yes, Batman Forever is good but it does take this franchise back a step from the darker tone (which I like) of the original comic strips and Tim Burtons first two instalments of this franchise. It does have a great cast though and its all good fun.

Val Kilmer doesn't do anything wrong although he fails to outshine Michael Keaton as his replacement in the batsuit. Jim Carrey is very well-cast, in a role he was born to play, as The Riddler even if his riddles aren't that great (it is after all a family film and kids have to understand them too). The reliably excellent Tommy Lee Jones as "Two Face" is however outshone by Jim Carrey's "Riddler" and Nicole Kidman although sultry and sexy doesn't get enough screen time to make a lasting impression. All in all the movie is good family entertainment, although fans of Tim Burton's darker toned movies may be a little disappointed.
Batman **
Batman Returns ****
Batman Forever ***
Batman and Robin *

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: An embarassment to all involved.
Review: I'm giving this two instead of one star because Nicole Kidman is in it, but even SHE couldn't bring any life to the insipid script, contrived scenes, and lackluster characters. The best character in the whole schlocky mess is Alfred, and it probably would have IMPROVED this wretched movie if he made like the old TV show and put on the Batsuit.

The attempt to combine gothic noir with headache-inducing flashiness AND grade-school humor fails miserably, but I ask you, what ELSE would result from such an idiotic combination, and in an ACTION movie no less?!

What a terrible, terrible movie. I think it managed to barely be better than Batman and Robin, but that's not even an accomplishment, more a necessary law of nature...

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Val Kilmer = A good Batman!
Review: I have been a fan of the whole Batman franchise as long as I can remember, I got the original 1966 version of Batman & Robin for Christmas when I was 5, and it all pretty much took off from there. Although I enjoy Tim Burton's dark interpretation of Batman in the first two flicks more, I find Batman Forever to be sort of a breath of fresh air. It is also one of my many guilty pleasures. Joel Schumacher's direction in this installment is pretty good. The sets are lavish and brilliant, and not as violently colorful and comic-bookish as the sequel that follows this. Nicole Kidman is nothing short of gorgeous in this movie. She definetly is the best female Batman has chased in all of his movies. Val Kilmer takes over after Michael Keaton left the series and does a surprisingly great job of being Batman. He is actually (Dare I say this?) a BETTER Batman. He adds so much more to the character that wasn't there before. And Jim Carrey, I swear, the role of the Riddler was made for him. He really carries a lot of this movie through parts that would be otherwise boring. Tommy Lee Jones and Chris O Donell aren't really worth much of a mention however, both overdo their parts and come across as phony. The story has a few plotholes: How could Two-Face be the killer of Bruce's parents? We already saw in the first one that it was the Joker, he admitted it, we saw footage of him actually killing them, he said the exact same quote to Batman as he did to Bruce's parents, etc. I don't quite understand how Two-Face fits into that. But otherwise, Batman Forever is a fairly excessive, but enjoyable flick. Trust me, you have seen worse.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Wasted Potential
Review: The thing that bugs me the most about Batman Forever is that it had the potential to top the two films that came before it, but due to drastic cuts and revisions, the finished product feels woefully incomplete.

While Batman Returns is my favorite of all the films, I don't mind the fact that Warner Bros decided to lighten the franchise *slightly* in order to draw in a bigger crowd (then they took this *slightly* and changed it to *drastically* for 'Batman and Robin'). A lot of the changes are rather cool from a visual effects point of view: Gotham might have gone neon and colorful, but it's still the same dangerous urban jungle it always was, complete with gothic statues. I have no problems with Val Kilmer; those who watch the animated series (especially Batman Beyond) know that Wayne was very obsessed and distracted. His portrayal was different from Keaton's, but not necessarily worse. (At least he didn't smile while wearing the bat-suit, like Clooney did.) Carrey as the Riddler was a stroke of casting genius. Yes, it feels like Superman III (where a popular comedian ate up screen-time and was used to draw in more moviegoers) but here, Carrey *works*. His antics take the Riddler to a whole new level, and he adds a lot to the film. Kidman was underused as the love interest, but she does a credible job with her material. O'Donnell establishes his Dick Grayson rather nicely. Unlike the later addition of Batgirl, Robin is actually crucial to the plot, because the death of his parents re-trigger's Wayne's dreams and painful memories.

Now for where the film failed. Tommy Lee Jones was good as Two-Face, but after awhile he was sidelined to the status of common thug. In the comics and animated series, Two-Face had a serious personality disorder, none of which is explored here. Two-Face could have carried the entire movie by himself.

But more importantly, the film lost a lot of the fine plot details that could have elevated it greatly. Most of these were trimmed out to keep the film to a 2hr running time. The original function of the red diary was that it contained words from Bruce's father that made it seem like Bruce forced them to go to the movies that night (and therefore, was responsible for their deaths.) When a young Bruce reads this, he runs out into the storm, falls into the cave, and meets the giant bat. Later, after the attack on Wayne Manor, Bruce loses his memory. He finds the diary and realizes he read his father's words wrong, therefore erasing his guilt. Bruce then confronts the giant bat again. Later scenes show a hidden level to the batcave where the Batwing, Batboat, and sonar suit are kept, which explains how they escaped the Riddler's rampage. Sounds cool, doesn't it? Well like I said, all this was cut out. Having Batman make peace with his past was a good idea. Instead of hunting criminals out of guilt, he would now do it for justice. Too bad that by cutting out these crucial scenes, the heart, as well as the meaning of 'Batman Forever' was ruined completely.

So 'Batman Forever' gets three stars. It's a fun enough romp, but it could have been sooo much more. In fact, I hope WB revisits this title and gives it a special edition treatment complete with all the deleted scenes. Until then, this VHS copy will have to suffice.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A Colorful Sequel.
Review: Batman (Val Kilmer, Replacing Micheal Keaton) has to face a Dangerous Villian named Harvey Dent/Two-Face (Tommy Lee Jones, Replacing Billy Dee Williams). While a Psychiatrist (Nicole Kidman) has a Crush on Batman. When a Deranged Scientist (Jim Carrey) wants to take over the mind of T.V. Viewers by Builting a Unusual Decive that sucks the mind of a Person, make himself much Smarter and he becomes The Riddler. When Two-Face Killed a Family of Accrobates, when a young man named Dick Grayson (Chris O`Donnell) wants to take on Two-Face, because his family is Dead. Now Two-Face and The Riddler teamed Together. The Only way Batman could Stop Them by having a Partner with the help of Dick, who become Robin.

Directed by Joel Schumacher (Batman & Robin, 8mm, Tigerland) made a Striking Visual Film. The film Visual Effects and Production Designs are Great (If a Bit Over-Killed). The Over the Top Performances by Jones and Carrey might keeps your Attention Awake. This a Playful Sequel, the Plot is Quite Good, Written by Lee Batchler, Janet Scott Batchler and Akiva Goldsmen. This is very much like the Comic Book and also very Different then the First-Two Films. One of the Highest Grossing films of 1995. Ed Begley Jr. appears Unbilled. Grade:B+.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Good, not Great!
Review: Batman Forever is a good film. Not a great. Unlike Batman and Robin, you can sit through it and not get bored! Val kilmer plays Bruce Wayne pretty good. But his Wayne is pretty restrained. Kilmer's Batman is close, but no cigar. Chris O'donnell is pretty good a Robin, htough his Dick Grayson is pathetic at times. The villans are pretty weak, not evil like Nicolson's Joker. Jones hames up his role a bit too much fr me to take, but he isen't the center of the film. If he was, I'd probably give this movie two stars. Carrey is just MARVELOUS as the Riddler! He dosen't have to be very evil(has the Riddler ever been very evil?), so it's easy for Carrey to portray the Riddler. Carrey's only fault is that he hams his part up a bit. Good directing by newcomer Shulmaker(far better than Batman and Robin!). This guy had good iedas. Overall, a good movie, and perhaps the only Batman movie that the family can watch together(well, maybe Batman and Robin, too) Overall,a good movie!

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Bad Bad Bad!
Review: This was bad it wasn't the tim burton style. this movie wasn't dark, He did not have a partner in 1,2, the batmobile didn't change, now look he has a different face what happened to Michael Keaton.I'm telling you Val kilmer doesn't suit batman Michael Keaton suits it. And one thing they are trying to make batman a sex symbol for batman forever and batman and robin he is not. Joel Schmacher the director of this and batman and robin he is not creative like tim burton. some parts in this film were ok but other parts were bad. Joel Schmacher did a terrible job for this and batman and robin. Batman forever and Batman and robin are not connected to batman and batman returns.
This movie wouldn't be good in your collection.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Better than Batman Returns!!!
Review: It may not have Michael Keaton, but this is a very good improvement over "Returns", Although not as good as the original, it definately delivers what it promised, Val Kilmer takes over the title role & is surprisingly good, Jim Carrey is perfect as the Riddler, like Jack Nicholson's Joker, he is very over the top & at times out does Nicholson's past performance, Tommy Lee Jones is also good as Two-Face, this film has a much lighter tone, there is comic book feel to it that is not overdone, the tone is just right & Nicole Kidman is perfect eye candy as Kilmer's love interest, Carrey & Jones play their roles to perfection as the villians who want Batman dead, the Batmobile is awesome here, even though it suffers an unfortunate accident courtesy of the Riddler, Carrey's one-liners keep coming as you can tell he was having fun, although this film had a troubled production, it doesn't show, & is a feel good Batman that ranks with the original.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: batman never forever
Review: riddle me this, riddle me that, whos afraid of the big black bat. Everyone should be be because this movie blows, i mean whats the point of Val Kilmar being batman, he is the worst of them all. I think the only could thing about this movie is that there are some funny parts but the rest might as well be riddles that someone should flush down the toliet, cause thats how bad this movie is. Oh and no one has ever made easier riddles than jim carry in this movie.


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