Ridldle me this. Riddle me that. Who's afraid of the big, black bat? (Batman Forever (DVD))

Member Name: yackers1

Product:	Batman Forever (DVD)
Date:	23/05/09 (178 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Entertaining, a good adaptation, Carrey makes a perfect Riddler

Disadvantages: Keaton isn't playing the lead role and Kilmer just doesn't cut it

Working my way through the Warne Bros adaptations of the Dark Knight, Batman, I thought I had better continue with the third in the series, Batman Forever.

Written by Lee Batchler, Janet Scott Batchler, Avika Goldsman, and directed by Joel Schumacher, with the brilliant Tim Burton co-producing, Batman Forever was released back in 1995. This is a review of the film only.

****Story line****

Bruce Wayne (Val Kilmer) is growing tired of his daily existence. Not being content with being rich, powerful and influential during the day and being a crime fighter at night Bruce is at his wits end. His empty feeling is not helped as he is haunted by memories of his parent's death.

In this saga Batman has secured the attention of two individuals, both of whom are out to make his life a misery. Harry Dent "Two Face" (Tommy Lee Jones) is a serial killer with mental health issues who blames Batman for an accident that left him with permanent disfiguration to one side of his face. Dr Edward Nygma "The Riddler" (Jim Carrey) is a former employee of Wayne Enterprises that was given the boot after developing a dangerous invention and after identifying the man behind the Caped Crusader he seeks his revenge. In true comic book style these two individuals come together and team up to try and defeat Batman.

As a side issue Dr Chase Meridian (Nicole Kidman) is assigned to look at Harry Dent and help him overcome his insecurities and issues. A love triangle between Dr Chase/Batman and Bruce Wayne causes much confusion. How will the relationship develop?

During a charity function Two Face and his motley crew gate crash the party and takes out a family of circus performers. The youngest performer Dick Grayson (Chris O'Donnell) survives the attack and vows to avenge the death of his family. Dick is invited to stay at the Wayne manor and after finding out about Bruce Wayne's alter ego he decides to assist him in the fight for justice. Donning a superhero suit Dick becomes Robin.

Will Batman and Robin defeat the deadly partnership of Two Face and the Riddler? Will Robin avenge the death of his family? Will Bruce ever find happiness with Dr Chase?

****Other characters****

The cast list is huge and includes many different characters. This film is centred round the main cast, obviously, and the other characters merely offer a supporting role with little input. I guess this was to be expected given the large A list actors who star in it.

The other characters do a good job and keep the film rolling along like it should but none of them give outstanding or memorable performances and are quickly forgotten as the film moves towards its conclusion.

****My opinion****

There was nearly a three year gap between Batman Returns and this release, which in reality isn't that long (after all there was an eight year gap between Bad Boys and Bad Boys II) but the age old question still arose..... Was it worth waiting for?
Batman Forever is the third of Tim Burton's Batman adaptations (although he didn't actually direct it but he did have a big role as the co producer) and whilst the writers may have changed, the quality of the overall film has not suffered one bit, despite some poor choices of actors. Many have commented that Tim Burton's adaptations are the best and by the time Batman Forever was released the series had gained a massive following.

In true Burton style Batman and Robin maintains the unrealistic and fantasy storyline as well as the dark and eerie atmosphere that was evident in both Batman and Batman Returns. I am glad that the original formula was still being used as I am a great believer in 'if it ain't broke then don't fix it' and the tried and tested method was so popular it would have been madness to change it.

Batman Forever is a 'busy' film and contains quite a few different stories that all end up merging in to one. Personally, I think that the producers have tried to cram too much story in to this film, although it doesn't make it any worse for it, however it does mean that you have to concentrate a bit more to make sure that you don't miss anything.

Whilst the pace of this film is slightly faster, and hence more involved than the first two, it is suitable and had me gripped from start to finish. Not once did I get restless waiting for the next action scene, nor did I ever clock watch.

Whilst Batman and Batman Returns both had star studded casts the actors wanting to be involved in these films were getting bigger and bigger and the producers appear to have taken full advantage of this.

Val Kilmer was given the dream role of donning the Bat suit and whilst he did an admirable job I don't think he was as good as Michael Keaton, his predecessor. Keaton had confidence, sophistication, charisma and all the other attributes that are necessary to play the dual role of Bruce Wayne and Batman. In my opinion Val Kilmer did not have these attributes and was just too weak, or was it Keaton was just so good?

In this film we are introduced to Batman's side kick, Dick Grayson "Robin". I can remember watching the camp Batman series on TV where Robin was, and I don't mean to be nasty about this, an annoying and skinny twerp that was more of a hindrance (with his stupid questions) than help. The image I had of Robin was based on the bloke in the TV series so I was not overly impressed when Chris O'Donnell first came on screen. In my opinion he is too good looking, too buff and is too charismatic to play Robin. Despite my feelings on this I can't deny that O'Donnell does a very good job and gives a great performance.

The first of Batman's (and Robin's) arch enemies in this film is Harvey Dent "Two Face". In my opinion Tommy Lee Jones is an absolute legend and a fantastic actor. I can't think of a single film where his performance hasn't been up to scratch and he maintained his high standards in this film. His performance is absolutely brilliant, although not quite as good as that of Jim Carrey, and he plays the role of Two Face very well. I wouldn't say that the role is perfect for him and I am sure that there are other actors that could have played the role just as well although I am struggling to think of any at present.

The second arch enemy is Dr Edward Nygma "the Riddler". In my opinion Carrey was perfectly cast for this role and I can't think of any other actor that could have done a better job. In my mind the Riddler is meant to be over the top, in your face and totally off the wall and this suits Carrey's acting style down to the ground. All of Carrey's previous roles involve these over the top characters (he plays them so well, almost to the point of being a one trick pony) and I'm sure his role in the Mask was the deciding factor (other than the money of course) in being cast as the Riddler. I think that Carrey hogs the limelight in this film and I think it is well deserved since, in my opinion, he gives the best performance by a mile.

With her beauty, class, style and sheer presence Nicole Kidman was a great choice for Dr Chase, and she gives a very good performance. I do question the need for a love interest though since I don't think it adds anything to the film. In my opinion Batman and his new sidekick should be loners with only each other for support. They both have clear objectives in their minds and a love interest shouldn't happen. This film should be based purely on Batman and Robin protecting the City of Gotham.

Technology has clearly moved on in this saga and Batman not only has the Batmobile to get around in but he also has access to the Batwing, Batboat and Batsub, all of which are very cool. Rather than bombarding the audience with 3 new modes of transport in one film I think the producers would have been better off spreading them across future films, but hey ho. The gadgets in Batman's utility belt have also increased in this film.

Whilst this film is dark and contains scenes of violence there are no scenes of a sexual nature nor is there any foul language. This makes it an ideal family film that will be enjoyed by both a young and old audience.

This film is rated a PG, which I think it should be. Previous Burton Batman films were rated 12, which I think is a bit high given the content of the films. It is good that the censors have awarded this one a more realistic certificate.

****Conclusion****

Whilst Batman Forever doesn't really follow on from Batman and Batman Returns and can be watched without viewing the first two films I think that these films should be watched in sequence. Whilst Batman Forever is a great film, and very enjoyable, I do not like it as much as the first.

This film definitely has the most star studded cast of Burton's adaptations to the date of release but I don't think Val Kilmer plays the role as well as Keaton ever did. Don't get me wrong, he does a great job but he just lacks that 'something'. Carrey does an excellent job as the Riddler and is very entertaining.

If you enjoyed Burton's other attempts then you are definitely going to like this and I would highly recommend it.

Summary: Another good offering from Warner Bros but it has lost it's 'oomph' since Keaton has gone