When I first started collecting Batman on DVD I was amped because it felt like I had a Batman movie for every season. Tim Burton's Batman had a parade which made it seem very summer-like. Batman Returns had a Christmas theme which made it a great Winter Batman film. And then there was Batman forever, where they went all in to show us that this was taking place around Halloween and thus gave us Batman in the Fall. But unfortunately, Batman Forever is often lumped together and sometimes mistaken for the much hated Batman and Robin film starring the atrocious George Clooney and Alicia Silverstone. I for one however think that this is unfair, for although Schumacker had his hand in both, Batman Forever was vastly superior to Batman and Robin and ...well...I liked it. Not as much as Michael Keaton and Tim Burton's run, but I still liked it. Here's why: Val Kilmer as Bruce Wayne really had it all. He was handsome, looked good in a suit, and in one scene where Alfred was patching him up you could see that he had the type of physique you'd expect Batman to have. In addition, Val had a voice that was perfect in both his Bruce Wayne and Batman guise. After Conroy, Kilmer goes down in my book as one of the the best Batman voices around. (right after the guy in Arkham Origins) He also was very good at pulling off the tortured and deeply disturbed individual look that gets to the root of who Batman really is. Schumalker was quoted at comicon as saying that when Val didn't sign on for Batman and Robin that's when things started going down hill. Well, that wasn't the only thing wrong with Batman and Robin, but Val's absence sure didn't help. If you didn't find Nicole Kidman as Chase Meridian, Batman's love interest incredibly hot, you probably don't have a pulse, and still that's no excuse. Can you imagine this woman longing after you. I'm sorry, the night Batman paid a visit to her apartment and she was lying in bed naked, well lets just say I wouldn't blame him if he let the whole city go up in smoke that night. Kim Basninger was the one you brought home to mom, Michelle Pfeifer was the one you know you shouldn't be mixed up with but dated anyway, Nicole is the one we all search for, the combination of good girl and bad girl. Riddler and Two Face IMO Jim Carey and Tommy Lee Jones were not bad in their roles. Over the top, yes. campy, yes. But bad, not really. Not Batman and Robin bad anyway. Lets face it, when you hired Jim Carey back then you were paying for over the top performances. Period. So if he was over the top, well that's what Schumaker wanted and this was his attempt to do what the studios wanted, namely get away from the dark, mature themes, Batman Returns was criticized by parents for. Remember the line where Penguin says "Just the ***** I've been looking for." Blame that line and other positions and statements for the lighter tone Batman forever took. Carey probably borrowed heavily from Frank Gorshin's take on the character, but it was a good homage. Tommy Lee Jones, was a little manic, but he was far more interesting then the guy playing Two-Face in the Nolan verse (post disfigurement). Jones probably followed Carey's lead, however I like how unlike the Riddler he wasn't playing around with Batman, he wanted Batman dead, and his dual nature was captured perfectly. To me his best scene was when he was tryng to decide whether to blow Riddler's "damn head off" or join him in his scheme to unmask the Bat, and used a coin to decide it. Carey's face was priceless as he watched the coin toss decide his fate. I think the two worked well together and made the movie fun. Robin: Yes I like Chris O'Donnel's portrayal as Robin in the movie too. Unlike his portrayal in Batman and Robin where he was clearly channeling his inner Burt Ward, here he played the role of new orphan Dick Grayson pretty well. Other than the holey rusted metal wink at the fans, he played the part seriously and acted in a way I would expect a young adult going through what he was going through might act. He was a little old for the part but I accept this a lot more readily then the 10 year old kid Batman has been running around with lately. The Robin costume design is awesome in this movie and when the video game to my surprise I played for Robin way more than I did for Batman. He too made the movie into an adventure. The kid looked as though although he meant business he was not so dark he could not appreciate the thrill of the adventure he was on. Soundtrack: I love Scandolous and face to Face from the first two movies, however, Seals Kissed by a Rose was played so often I don't know of anyone who doesn't know the words or at least the melody. Whethe rit was in a Batman movie or not I have no doubt it would have been a good song, we just lucked out that it wasplaced on the Batman forever soundtrack first. The Plot: Its not Shakespeare or Hitchcock, but it was not bad. Harvey Dent wants to Kill Batman. Edward Nigma wants to destroy Bruce Wayne. They both learn that the Bat and Bruce are one and the same and decide to join forces. However, little do they know that rather than outnumbering the Bat, he has just added a new partner to the team to help even the odds...Robin. Now its up to the dynamic duo to rescue the damsel in distress, beat the bad guys and save the city. Sound campy. It shouldn't because its basically the same plot as the other two movies except remove robin and depending on whether it Batman or Batman Returns, one villain. The movie is not the Godfather the way some compare Nolan's The Dark Knight to, but it was the classic Batman story we all came to see and expect back then, only in neon. And lets not forget the new, intriguing, and often overlooked subplot the story had in it. In the first movie, Batman had visions in which he saw the face of the person who killed his parents. He later deduces that it was Jack Napier aka the Joker whose face he was seeing. This leads to the whole you made me first dialogue. In Batman Forever, however, he has these visions again and this time it Harvey Dent's face he sees as the shadowy figure killing his parents, which I interpret as meaning Joker didn't kill his parents and neither did Harvey Dent. However, if you are a criminal out killing or endangering people Bruce's subconscious sees you as the one who killed his parents and pursues you the way he wishes he could persue the one who truly did it. It was an intriguing psychological look into Bruce Wayne really that nobody ever remembers. Couple that with Dick Grayson running off, Chase getting captured and the assault on Wayne Manor, and this movie had drama to spare. So, next time someone wants to discuss the movie that killed the Batman franchise make sure they get it straight. It was Batman and Robin NOT Batman forever. Until next time I leave you with this greeting...
I agree on Kilmer. Best movie Batman so far IMO. But I also thought the Nolan movies were utter and complete turds; so i know my opinion differs from 99% of the Batman 'fans' out there. I didn't really like Riddler, i thought he was a bit too over the top. I would have liked Two-Face to be calmer on the "Good Harvey" side. Other than those two things, very much loved this Batman movie. Also, IMO, there has yet to be a truely good Batman movie ... or actor playing Batman. Other than Kilmer (who I think got it around 10% wrong) every other actor has gotten the role about 70% wrong.
A lot of the stars were flavors of the month actors, Chris was the noob, never cared for Val, he hurt Cindy Crawford, at the time she was #1 model n my crush was big LoL
My biggest fault with it was the villains. I like Jim Carrey a lot, but I would have liked to have seen a more serious Riddler. Tommy Lee Jones though just didn't feel lawyer turned villain to me.
He's a nice(ish) guy ... but I really dislike most of the movies he produces and casts himself in ... they are boring, preachy, and poorly acted. ... ... but George Clooney's a genius! Yet ... when Melisa McCarthy produces a super funny comedy and casts herself in the lead Clooney calls it "A completely worthless vanity project" ... ... but when he does it its producing
It wasn't a bad film, but the seeds of what went wrong with Batman and Robin were there to see. Biggest performance issue for me was Tommy Lee Jones as Two-Face. It wasn't until near the end of the film that you actually got a glimpse of the dual personality showing through, which is a shame because he's a great actor. It also didn't help that you also had the Animated Series running around the same time with a GREAT portrayal of Two-Face, done by Richard Moll (Bull from Night Court) incidentally. Soundtrack I have no problems with, I'm a soundtrack junkie anyway. LOL Beyond that, the gratuitous butt shots while gearing up and (as much as I hate to go to that cliche) the nipples on the outfits were just out of place, even if you're going for camp. Even watching it the first time, I sat there after that sequence and just found myself asking, "Okay, why exactly were those shots in there?" Took me right out of the moment, and that's BAD for a film.
Riddler+bat nipples...It seemed they were going more for weird Gotham than dirty Gotham. Just my humble opinion, but, I do hate Jim Carrey, so I'm biased, as usual.
You take the good, you take the bad, you take them both and there you have Batman Forever, Batman & Robin. And since there's no place else to put this Fact of Life... Anyone else had a mad crush on the foreign Australian exchange student near the end of the show's run. I loved that accent and wild curly "fro." Sherrie Austin (Krenn) as Pipa McKenna
