Rating: Summary: brilliant Review: Its been written that the Batman name deserved better, but who's too say? All I know is that this film is a wonderful valentine to flights of fancy capable only in childhood, before society has denuded us, leaving only,by and large, sterile minds incapable of concieving of the majestic, and intolerant of the absurd(to be met with "Superior and correct" condescension, as is proper). Comic fans dismiss this outright, as do most critics (most of them would do well to choke on their venomous bon mots, I think. The world would not morn), not to mention the esteemed (though not by me) Sydney Lumet, but is it truly fair? My opinon-Nay, I have only the most vile, unprintable obscenities as a response to those who [degrade] it on the basis of plot holes. I wish soul-destroying attrocities on the silly, self righteous comic fans who snarl at the thought of their beloved comic idols being translated to the screen with even minor changes. This film is to me beautiful in scope, beautiful in design, beautiful in every catergory. The acting is not "oscar-worthy"(most oscar winners nowadays don't truly receive awards based on merit, but politics. How else to explain Julia Roberts snagging one?);instead it is "just right" for the material. Its a surreal fantasy, juvenile yes, but the best things in life are experienced in youth, not when one is closer to the grave than to the cradle. I see the penguins with torpedos march towards Gotham Plaze,-I think "Wonderful"! The meek secretary who's suddenly a skilled gymnast? "Fantastic"! I like classic films as much as any worthless snob, but my feelings toward these old gems, however strong, are still muted in comparison to what the Burton Batman pictures ingnite in me. They show a world of infinite promise, where every corner, hides a surprise(not unlike an O.Henry tale). One perfectly complimented by Danny Elfman's score. The music is a delicacy to my ears as a ripe cherry cut from a soaked bush after a spring rain would be to my tongue. Its tonal varations are fascinating to follow, from its dizzying heights in the opening credits, to its ominous lows in the Penguin's sewer lair(the excellent use of a choir still makes my spirits soar)this is one piece of film music which is not dependent on the movie. It lives, it breathes as few musical masterpieces do in this business, where everyone and his...brother gets a shot to rewrite your work with his tired hand that would better serve the world severed. Fools have written that Dardevil is the movie Batman should've been. While I cannot deny Daredevil's many good qualities, that movie is like one of the Burton Batmans, yet mercilessly stripped of its unique touches. I prefer seening the Penguin spitting out his monocle (Burton's subtle way of giving the finger to comic purists), to a thousand scenes of Matt Murdock taking vicodin to ease his pain. Realism simply pales before the grandoise, because its so easy to pull off. Make people bleed, make them have conflict, make them speak in halting sentences full of "erms," and "uh's", make them take pain pills. That's not hard. An original idea though, try that one on for size.
Rating: Summary: The second Batman movie is even worse, Really.... Review: Tim Burton's second Batman movie is even worse then the first with a repulsive Penquin, a very smooth but boring Catwoman, and Keaton's return to the Batman role which again leaves little time for character development. Sam Hamm;s script is laughable, the production design is too comic book looking, and the ending is about as hollow as a dead oak tree.
Rating: Summary: The Bat is Back Review: Many people would say that this is a very dark, evil movie, and I would agree with them. However, it definetely works for me.The dark tone and gothic settings make this movie an ideal place for the Batman saga. The movie basically begins with the soon-to-be-Penguin's parents dumping the disfigured child(Oswald Cobblepot) into a river. A brief cameo appearence by so-called "Peewee Herman" as Penguin's father is interesting also and noteworthy, also. We continue to present times. Here, at the Lighting of the Tree ceremony in Gotham city, the Penguin lets loose a barrage of his evil minions to capture millionaire tycoon Max Shreck, played wonderfully by Christopher Walken. Batman, however, stops the procedures, even thogh Max is captured anyway. Once in the Penguin's lair, Max is forced by Penguin to help him find his parents. While this is happening, however, he secretary of Max, named Selina Kyle(played by the beuatiful Michelle Pfeiffer), gets home, only to realize that she has to go back to work to look up some files on the new power plant Shreck is building. Once there, she finds out that the power plant will actually suck out the power supply of Gotham. However, she is found by Max Shreck, who promptly pushes her out of the window to ensure the safety of his power plant. Meanwhile, the Penguin finds out his real name, and becomes a hero after saving the mayor's baby. He finds that his parents are dead, and is then convinced by Shreck to become mayor, even though the election was in November. Selina Kyle is having her own troubles, however. It seems that, like a cat, she has nine lives, and Shreck appaently just used one up. Hoever, the fall seemed to awaken something buried deep inside her, and she then creates the Catwoman costume. The next day, Bruce Wayne, a.k.a. Batman, is having an argument with Schrek. Bruce has decided not to sponsor the power plant, and right when Bruce is about to leave, Selina shows up, giving Max quite a shock. As she leaves, Max says "Next time, I'll push her outta higher window." Also, as if that wasn't enough, Penguin is starting his campaign formayor, and evceryone wants him. Another attack ensues that night by the Penguin's henchman, and this time Batman catches up with the Penguin and finds out that he really is an animal. Then, Catwoman comes jumping out of nowhere and just after she says the word"Meow" the building behind her explodes. Penguin, taking the chance to run away, does just that, leaving Batman to follow Catwoman and, after a brief battle, kills her again. Then to make matters worse, the Penguin frames Batman for killing someone, thus all of a sudden making Batman the badguye. The Penguin,however, decides that he doesn't like Catwoman anymore, and the kills her. Selina, after meeting Bruce a second time, is invited over to Wayne's house, where they start getting into some heavy stuff, but Catwoman, afraid he'll see the scar he gave her, stops it. They then both leave. Then the Penguin's henchman disesembLE Batman's Batmobile, and when he tries to ride in it, it is controlled by Penguin to wreak havoc on passing civilians. Batman finally gets contrl, and at Penguin's big speech the next day, makes everyonr hate him using a voice recording of some evil things the Penguin said about the town. That night, at a masked ball, Batman and Catwoman finally figure out eachother's secret identidies.They go outside, and it's a lucky thing, because at that moment, the Penguin comes crashing in, announcing that he's going to steal and kill the first borns of every family. Batman then goes out and saves them all. The Penguin, by now completely infuriated and definitely off his rocker,sends out his penguin friends and instructs them to blow everything up wuth rocket packs on their backs. When Batman foils this plan also, Pengiuin goes out to find him, and in a very anti-climactic duel, is tossed to a watery grave. Catwomean then comes in andfinally, after briefly talking to Batman, defeats her old nemisis Max Schrek. Not before, however, she is shot several times. The movie then ends with Batman going away, convinced that Catwoman is still alive. He is right, however, as the last thing you see is her head in the screen. Overall an awsome movie.
Rating: Summary: The best of the Batman movies Review: This has to be the best of the Batman movies so far. Mostly due to Michelle Pfeiffer(catwomen) who steals every scene she is in. Very dark and creepy just as Batman was originally intended to be. May be too scary for kids.
Rating: Summary: DARK! VERY DARK! Review: Michael Keaton returns as Batman in this DARK movie involving the Penguin (Danny Devito) & the Catwoman (Michelle Pfeiffer) who combine forces to humilate & destroy Batman. Pheiffer RULES as the Catwoman. HOT STUFF! Danny Elfman's music steals the show. See Batman as you've never seen him before! MEAN!
Rating: Summary: It's still Batman! Review: This is a great sequel to a great movie. Batman is a must-watch must-own DVD. The sequel is the exact same with one exception; If you do not already own Batman, it is a higher priority. These are the best of the Batman film series. I own them both, and have decided to let the others stay on the shelves at my local video store. If you are a big Batman fan, buy them all. If you are only a moderate fan, buy Batman and Batman Returns. Either way, you must own this movie. So go ahead and stick it into your shopping cart now, after all Amazon.com has the lowest prices on the net and you will have to buy it sooner or later. 5 out of 5 stars. Put it in your cart.
Rating: Summary: Not as good as BATMAN but still worth 5 stars Review: In my opinion, the Batman series just goes downhill every movie. BATMAN was just too good. BATMAN RETURNS was excellent, but not was good as the first. BATMAN FOREVER got worse than the second. And BATMAN & ROBIN was just the worst out of them all. But sticking with Batman Returns, it was an awesome movie. It still was directed by Tim Burton which was why Batman Returns was the last really good Batman movie. He stuck with the gothic, dark look and kept Michael Keaton as the Dark Knight, as it should have continued with. The villains in this movie are The Penguin (played great by Danny DeVito), The Catwoman (played acceptionaly well by Michelle Pheifer) and Max Shreck (played by Christopher Walken). Now Max Shreck was definatly not one of the best aspects of the movie but I disagree with some people saying that the movie could have done without him. It is hard to explain but Max Shreck did complete a big gap in the movie. The plot was fairly simple, more complicated than the first, but still played simple. The Penguin wants to become a citizen of Gotham City with the help of Max Shreck. He does this out of the Penguin's black mail threat to expose to the world that Max's power plant produces toxic waste and that he killed his partner. So whle he is becoming a citizen, Max brings on the idea of The Penguin running for mayor. The plot gets simple from there, the Penguin wins over the people but on the inside, he is still evil and is planning a crime to slaughter the first born of every family because he was the first born and because he looked different, his parents abandoned him. And while this is all happeneing, Selena Kyle (Catwoman) is getting revenge against Max for killing her when she found out about the evil plans of Max's new power plant. But just like a cat, Selena has 9 lives. So she comes back to life and joins forces with The Penguin to kill Batman while still planning revenge on Max. So The movie turns into this huge triangle of revenge. The Penguin wants to kill the first born children, Catwoman wants to kill Max, and Max wants to keep everyone from knowing about his evil secrets. And all three of them want to [terminate] Batman. This movie is definatly the second best in the BATMAN series. A great and worthy buy. "Batman Returns" runs for about 2 hours. It is rated PG-13 for some scenes of strong violence and some language
Rating: Summary: The best in the Batman series! Review: This is my favorite entry in the best Batman series. Danny DeVito is good, Michael Keaton is great, but Michelle Pfiffer steals the show. 5 out of 5, and it's the best one so far...
Rating: Summary: A Disgrace to the Dark Knight Review: People all over complain that Joel Schumacher killed the Batman franchise. As far as I'm concerned, the only thing that kept that Bat-series alive was the huge amounts of cash it raked in (Batman was the highest-grossing superhero film of all-time until they released Spider-Man). From the very beginning, the movies were a disgrace to the original comic book (which to this day I am still a devoted fan of). First of all, people accept without question that Michael Keaton is the best choice to play Batman. I'm thinking... no! Michael Keaton is a bad actor, and, despite popular belief (although I love Jack Nicholson), Jack was not right for the role. He was a good villain, but a bad Joker. Anyway, off to THIS movie. Everything that was wrong with the first film is still here. Poor casting (the only one they ever got right was Alfred), bad script, mangled storylines, and everything. The mangled storyline is what I'm most concerned about here. And I bet you know whos. Oh yeah, the Penguin. First off, he never was a mutant. Penguin was always just a nickname. Second, he never lived in a sewer. The Penguin is a crime-tycoon who lives in luxury, not some ... . Third, he DEFINATELY, NEVER, EVER, ATE RAW FISH! People just can't understand! He is not a Penguin! That is his nickname! And killer penguins? Sheesh... But seriously? You would think in this case that it would be cheaper to stick with the storyline (since the wouldn't have to have all those extra set pieces, and they wouldn't have to bribe Bob kane to let them use it). But anyway, Danny DeVito does a good job, considering the... script-type thing, he has to work with. Also, they should have left out Max Schreck entirely. Just, no. Other than the silly script, the bad acting, and the mangled plot, this movie is fine. And the music and set design are so amazing, I was nice enough to give this poor excuse for a film an extra star. Anyway, I am simply ecstatic that the Batman movie franchise is being rebooted! SOMEONE AT WB FINALLY CAME TO THEIR SENSES AND PULLED THEIR HEAD OUT OF THEIR ...
Rating: Summary: "Burn, Baby, Burn!" said Penguin. Review: Batman (Michael Keaton) is back, sort of. In "Batman Returns," the Caped Crusader hardly makes an appearance in this sequel. Oswald Cobblepot a.k.a. "The Penguin" (Danny DeVito) likes to live in the sewers with the penguins and eat raw fish. What kind of a person is this? After saving the mayor's son from an insane clown, he gains popularity from Gotham City and they pity him. Selena Kyle a.k.a. "The Catwoman" likes to slice and dice muggers in the street and play with her whip... They join forces to get rid of Batman, but he spoils the fun. This movie was disgusting. Penguin likes to eat and eat and eat. Even Catwoman put a bird in her mouth. Bruce Wayne (Michael Keaton) ate cold soup and said it was cold. What's with the food in this movie? Christopher Walken's hair is genius like Albert Einstein. This is a good sequel directed by Tim Burton.
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