Overall: B-
Cast: C
Plot: B
Special Effects/Stunts: D
Similarity to Comic: D
Director: Tim Burton
Comic Company: DC
Stars: Michael Keaton, Jack Nicholson, Kim Basinger
Rating: PG-13
See the IMDB page
See the Rotten Tomatoes page
This movie is everything it should be, unfortunately it's also a few things it shouldn't be too. Overall I found it to be a decent version of the classic Batman origin story, and considering the era in which it was made it couldn't have been much better visually. Still, it lacks some key components and has a few plot holes, but nothing is hard to overlook as this movie provided a blueprint for many of the Batman films that followed.
The Good: Most of the good things about this movie come straight from the director; Tim Burton. Although the film is flawed, he made the first Batman movie that followed dark themes and gritty cinematography. When this film came out on VHS its said that it had been lightened from the version that was shown in theaters, because the main complaint from viewers was that it was so dark they had trouble seeing what was going on. Tim Burton made this film from an idea, and that idea has stuck to this day.
The other major positive about this movie is Jack Nicholson. The cast is otherwise under animated and poorly chosen, but having Nicholson as the Joker is simply one of the greatest casting moves of all time. He was high on cocaine for the majority of the filming, which adds to the legitimate and consistent feeling of insanity he brings to every scene he's in. Heath Ledger did a fantastic job playing the Joker in 'The Dark Knight' but when one watches this movie they get the feeling that Jack Nicholson is the Joker, which makes all the difference.
The Bad: Well I've already said it; the cast. Other than Mr. Nicholson nobody else seems to bring their A-game to the movie. Michael Keaton was dreadful as Bruce Wayne as well as Batman and Kim Basinger seemed to just not care what was going on around her for the entire movie. The actor who played Jim Gordon made him seem more like an incompetent bumbling idiot than a wise street cop gone administrator. And Billy Dee Williams might as well of had his Lando costume on because he certainly didn't portray Harvey Dent correctly.
So lets say you can get past a bad cast and the 80's special effects, what else could go wrong? The basic Batman plot lines of course. Batman is NOT in love with Vicki Vale and the Joker did NOT kill Bruce Wayne's parents. I almost got the feeling that the producers weren't planning on making a sequel so they decided to dumb down the entire franchise into one clean little movie so people weren't left asking questions. The problem with that strategy is that when you DO make a sequel, nothing else is going to line up.
The Interesting: The bat gadgets. I don' think any other Batman movie has him use so many gadgets or show the Batmobile having so many toys. I was a fan. I think the gadgets and technology Batman possesses are a huge and underrated part of his talents and it's seldom shown to such an extent in the films. Was it all believable? No, but they tried, and that's the important thing.
Guns! We all got so used to the idea that Batman doesn't use guns that when the Batmobile showed me it's cannons and machine guns I almost had to do a double take. Not only did the Batmobile have them but the Batwing did too, and he even shot at people! This is the kind of Batman I wouldn't mind seeing more of in the future.
Conclusion: This movie is from 1989, it does not have great special effects or a great cast and it certainly isn't the origin story we're all used to hearing. But what this movie does have is spunk, action, and some ridiculously crazy guy fighting a dude in a rubber suit who can't move his neck. Overall it's worth watching as long as you know what you're in for.
Cast: CPlot: B
Special Effects/Stunts: D
Similarity to Comic: D
Director: Tim Burton
Comic Company: DC
Stars: Michael Keaton, Jack Nicholson, Kim Basinger
Rating: PG-13
See the IMDB page
See the Rotten Tomatoes page
This movie is everything it should be, unfortunately it's also a few things it shouldn't be too. Overall I found it to be a decent version of the classic Batman origin story, and considering the era in which it was made it couldn't have been much better visually. Still, it lacks some key components and has a few plot holes, but nothing is hard to overlook as this movie provided a blueprint for many of the Batman films that followed.
The Good: Most of the good things about this movie come straight from the director; Tim Burton. Although the film is flawed, he made the first Batman movie that followed dark themes and gritty cinematography. When this film came out on VHS its said that it had been lightened from the version that was shown in theaters, because the main complaint from viewers was that it was so dark they had trouble seeing what was going on. Tim Burton made this film from an idea, and that idea has stuck to this day.
The other major positive about this movie is Jack Nicholson. The cast is otherwise under animated and poorly chosen, but having Nicholson as the Joker is simply one of the greatest casting moves of all time. He was high on cocaine for the majority of the filming, which adds to the legitimate and consistent feeling of insanity he brings to every scene he's in. Heath Ledger did a fantastic job playing the Joker in 'The Dark Knight' but when one watches this movie they get the feeling that Jack Nicholson is the Joker, which makes all the difference.
The Bad: Well I've already said it; the cast. Other than Mr. Nicholson nobody else seems to bring their A-game to the movie. Michael Keaton was dreadful as Bruce Wayne as well as Batman and Kim Basinger seemed to just not care what was going on around her for the entire movie. The actor who played Jim Gordon made him seem more like an incompetent bumbling idiot than a wise street cop gone administrator. And Billy Dee Williams might as well of had his Lando costume on because he certainly didn't portray Harvey Dent correctly.
So lets say you can get past a bad cast and the 80's special effects, what else could go wrong? The basic Batman plot lines of course. Batman is NOT in love with Vicki Vale and the Joker did NOT kill Bruce Wayne's parents. I almost got the feeling that the producers weren't planning on making a sequel so they decided to dumb down the entire franchise into one clean little movie so people weren't left asking questions. The problem with that strategy is that when you DO make a sequel, nothing else is going to line up.
The Interesting: The bat gadgets. I don' think any other Batman movie has him use so many gadgets or show the Batmobile having so many toys. I was a fan. I think the gadgets and technology Batman possesses are a huge and underrated part of his talents and it's seldom shown to such an extent in the films. Was it all believable? No, but they tried, and that's the important thing.
Guns! We all got so used to the idea that Batman doesn't use guns that when the Batmobile showed me it's cannons and machine guns I almost had to do a double take. Not only did the Batmobile have them but the Batwing did too, and he even shot at people! This is the kind of Batman I wouldn't mind seeing more of in the future.
Conclusion: This movie is from 1989, it does not have great special effects or a great cast and it certainly isn't the origin story we're all used to hearing. But what this movie does have is spunk, action, and some ridiculously crazy guy fighting a dude in a rubber suit who can't move his neck. Overall it's worth watching as long as you know what you're in for.
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