Our ongoing series reviewing the greatest Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror movies. Note that these reviews may contain spoilers.
Directed by: Tim Burton
Produced by: Peter Guber, Barbara Kalish, Chris Kenny, Benjamin Melniker, Jon Peters, Michael E. Uslan
Written by: Sam Hamm (story), Sam Hamm and Warren Skaaren (screenplay), Bob Kane (Batman characters)
Starring: Michael Keaton, Jack Nicholson, Kim Basinger
Original Release: 1989
Reviewed by: Sam Christopher
Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars (Highest Rating)
Synopsis: The crime-ridden streets of Gotham City have a new protector, a shadowy figure known only as The Bat by the superstitious and cowardly criminal lot. The only man in the city outside of law enforcement and the aforementioned criminals who believes in The Bat is reporter Alexander Knox, who is derided as a fool by his colleagues but whose work somehow attracts the attention of superstar international photog Vicki Vale. Vale likewise attracts the attention of wealthy young man about town, Bruce Wayne, who is in reality The Batman—that’s what he calls himself. Gangland boss Jack Napier, calling himself The Joker after being disfigured in a chemical accident, takes it upon himself to bring down the Batman (who he blames for the accident) and destroy Gotham at the same time. The two spar back and forth, both with the city at large and in the wooing of Vicki Vale—who figures out the secret of Batman before being explicitly taken into confidence by Alfred Pennyworth, the butler. All of this leads to a Big Showdown at the end of the film with Batman foiling Joker’s grand scheme of poisoning the entire population of the city with gas then defeating the villain in (nearly) single combat in the bell tower overlooking the center of town.
Review/Comments: This was everything I ever wanted in a Batman film when it came out. It was dark and moody, with a brooding hero who used his wits and guile to battle the forces of evil that were trying to destroy everything he held dear. And make no mistake, Batman truly loves his fellow man. That’s why he sacrifices so much, trains so hard, works so diligently as a detective. Paying back the scum who murdered his parents really never enters into it for him. As a logical man Bruce has to realize that is most likely not his destiny, depending, of course, on the incarnation of the character we’re talking about. In this film we’re told that Jack Napier is the killer of Bruce’s parents, but even Bruce doesn’t realize that until the two meet face to face in Vicki Vale’s apartment. Once Bruce does know it certainly appears to have little affect on his strategy. It perhaps makes him a little more grimly determined to end the Joker’s threat. Nothing more.
The three people most responsible for this film being the masterpiece of modern sf that it is would be:
Tim Burton: When this film was announced, there had been talk of a Batman film starring Bill Murray, a comedy along the lines of the comics fan-reviled (at the time) ‘60s TV show. Then the studio hired the guy who gave us Pee Wee’s Big Adventure and Beetlejuice. Ads were placed, “To avoid a Bat-Travesty”, urging fans to write in. Burton, however, with his love of gadgetry and his larger-than-life eye for direction was the perfect match for the Batman. The set pieces and feel of the city of Gotham are just magnificent, setting the tone for not only the subsequent movies of this series but also for the tremendously underrated Flash television show which debuted the next year on CBS. In virtually every respect Burton made the right choices, even down to his choice for the title character, a choice that sent fans at the time into apoplexy…
Michael Keaton: Until this time, Keaton was known as strictly a comedic actor. He had even starred in Burton’s own Beetlejuice. And that’s where Burton got the idea. He saw then the kind of actor Keaton could be, something that MK has proven time and again since. Keaton’s Batman is the sullen force he was in the comics, the quiet Caped Crusader who strikes fear into the hearts of his adversaries through the use of shadow and substance in just the right mixture. But it is his Bruce Wayne that transcends. MK’s Wayne is tight and controlled, an intense whirlwind straining to be let loose, only with a sense of fun when appropriate. A very human portrayal that really stands out in this comic book type of film. Burton himself would say of the hire that he could see a lot of people playing Bruce Wayne but that it would take a very special someone to play both Wayne and Batman without looking foolish. Which brings us to…
Jack Nicholson: This veteran actor, it was feared, would steal the show from Keaton’s title character, and in some ways it may well be said that he did. He was electric in the role, a role which he played very differently from Heath Ledger’s own celebrated turn on the Joker Character from 2008′s The Dark Knight. Nicholson’s Joker was more comic book and garish, a choice that fit this film in just the way Ledger’s Joker fit the more recent film. Nicholson played every scene as a romp, with even the murder and attempted mass murder scenes filled with fun and a somewhat dark though comic humor. Nicholson played the slightly unbalanced Napier very well and the incredibly unbalanced Joker amazingly well. As with Keaton, many actors could have done what Nicholson did, but very few could have accomplished what he did with the role.
Today, with the advent of Batman Begins and the incredible success of The Dark Knight, not to mention all the other super heroes on celluloid, it can be easy to forget the greatness that sometimes came in an era without CGI, in a time when comics movies were much more discussed than accomplished. This film, and even the slightly inferior sequel, Batman Returns, is actually a wonderful piece of work, both for its time and for all time.
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