Okay, with
Batmania running wild with the release of
The Dark Knight Rises, I've decided to revisit the original
Batman films and see how the movies hold up all these years later. Up first is
Batman, staring
Jack Nicholson as the
Joker and
Michael Keaton as
Batman. When this first hit the theaters back in 1989, this was a cultural tidal wave. You couldn't escape the image of both the
Joker and
Batman. Wherever you turned, there they were. It was probably 2 weeks after the premiere date did I go and see it. My initial reaction to the movie after it was over? It sucked. I thought it was the most overrated and definitely one of the most boring Superhero Comic Book films ever. I will say this is better than
Daredevil. But that's not saying much.
That was then, but what about now? It's still a weak film in a lot of ways. Many people argued that the film back then was "too dark". I for one thought it wasn't dark enough. I actually thought it was still campy, but not so campy to be lumped in with the
Adam West / Burt Ward TV series. But watching it now, it is definitely too campy to my liking and that all falls on the shoulders of
Jack as the
Joker. He's really just doing an imitation of the late, great
Cesar Romero. This movie is just not that good overall. It really is a boring movie and it has nothing to do with the characters or story, but everything to do with how
Tim Burton shot it.
I will give him props on some of the set pieces he designed and there are some iconic one-liners that still get their share of press today. Back in the day, a lot was said of the casting of
Michael Keaton and how he would ruin the movie. He was the only thing I liked the first time around and the only thing I like now. The rest of the movie is just average at best.
I say give this a
Rent to see where it all started (not counting the
Adam West / Batman: The Movie), leading up to the eventual reboot by
Christopher Nolan. But if you want to watch a kick ass movie, the one that this should have been, you absolutely can't go wrong with
The Crow. Stylistically, visually and character-wise,
The Crow is the far more superior film.