Last week I started ranking all the Batman films that have been released theatrically. Today, I’ll look at numbers seven and six. Here we go…
NO. 7 – BATMAN: THE MOVIE (1966)
NO. 7 – BATMAN: THE MOVIE (1966)
Holy Batmania, they made a movie? What’s a Batman film list without Adam West and Burt Ward? On the heels of the campy 60’s TV series, Batman: The Movie is a fun action packed with visual gags and silly puns galore. Batman and Robin face a quartet of villains that include, The Joker (Cesar Romero), The Riddler (Frank Goshin), Catwoman (Lee Meriwether) and The Penguin (Burgess Meredith). This movie also showcases no less than three additional modes of transportation for our dynamic duo, the batboat, batcycle and bathelicopter. It’s by no stretch of the imagination a cinematic masterpiece. But what it is is a cult film that true Batman enthusiasts should see and have as part of their video library.
***1/2 (out of 5 stars)
No. 6 – BATMAN (1989)
Remember how highly anticipated Marvel’s The Avengers was? It pales in comparison to 1989’s Batman by director Tim Burton. Remember how people felt about the casting of Heath Ledger as The Joker in The Dark Knight? Well, thank god for no Internet because of the uproar when it came to casting Beetlejuice star Michael Keaton as Batman. Of course the big coup was landing Jack Nicholson as the clown prince of crime, the Joker. I felt this way when I was 16 and I feel this way now, Keaton more than holds his own against Nicholson’s eccentric
Batman is a landmark film among the comic book film genre. It doesn’t mean that it’s the best because it’s not. It’s not even the best Batman film but without it, there may not be much to talk about today and films like Guardians of the Galaxy, the many films that make up Marvels’ cinematic universe and I haven’t even mentioned the highly contested and almost eagerly awaited Batman v. Superman film due out in 2016. That’s the type of impact Batman had. Has it aged well in the last 25 years? Not really but that’s okay, I still enjoy it. Batman’s lasting affect weighs so much more. It broke box office records and transcended the genre that’s being felt even today.
***1/2 (out of 5 stars)
My next blog will look at numbers 5 and 4. Until then…
My next blog will look at numbers 5 and 4. Until then…
May the Dork be with you,
JPB
The Dork Knight
