ForComicJunkies: BATMAN FOREVER: 20 YEARS LATER - A COMIC JUNKIE'S RETROSPECTIVE

Batman Forever. For most fans it's either love it or hate it. Maybe both. But there's no denying that it was something special when it was released. This was at a time when big budget movies weren't a weekly summer occurrence. Big budget movies were like events. I remember the first time I heard of this movie I was in Washington DC with my family on vacation. We were in a shop and I found this poster:

Nowadays, when I hear about a new Batman film it's from www.superherohype.com, www.newsarama.com, or www.batman-on-film.com (usually all of the above cuz I check those sites daily). Back then, it was a random poster my dad bought me while on vacation. I remember waiting for the train and seeing the poster there too. We all talked about the different characters and what was going to happen in the movie. I don't think I ever actually saw a preview. I just saw TV commercials, posters, and action figures. Remember how I said I had a ton of Batman Begins stuff in 2005? Yeah well . . . it was worse when I was a little kid in 1995. Haha . . . good times . . .

I loved this fucking toy

I want to share with you the things that I think still hold up about Batman Forever. Some of you may have written it off after the Batman and Robin fiasco (and please read my blog for further clarification on that) but the film is actually pretty well done. Yes there are some weak parts, but the truth is that the movie was actually pretty deep and interesting. It explored the Bruce Wayne character in a way the previous films did not and gave us a great origin for Robin. So without further ado here we go:

VAL KILMER AS BRUCE WAYNE / BATMAN

It's incredibly frustrating that Kilmer only had one shot at being Batman. He's a great actor and his take was very good. He might have had a lackluster script but he still pulled off a wonderful Bruce Wayne. The scene where he has his first flashback to his parent's murder is really great. "I killed them." It's a great line that says a lot about Wayne's character. He takes on the responsibility and guilt of Gotham City. Any crime he can't prevent haunts him. Plus the dude was buff! He looked like he actually hit the gym before filming started. Rumor has it that he and Joel Schumacher didn't get along and that's why he wasn't in Batman and Robin. I don't know, but I watch the film now and love Kilmer's performance.

THE SECRET ORIGIN OF ROBIN

It's a shame that Chris O'Donnell didn't get more screen time as Robin. He had a great performance as Dick Grayson. He was angry, vengeful, but willing to learn from Bruce to be a hero. You can see his progression from angry young man to hero by the end of the film. Despite it's cheesiness, the scene where he steals the Batmobile is pretty cool. When he fights that (weird) neon gang and then tries to beat up Batman is fantastic. It shows just how angry he really is. When he suits up, it's iconic and awesome. He gives a great performance and I really looked forward to him interacting with Batman in a sequel . . . Hey it was great while it lasted.

STUDYING BATMAN'S PSYCHOLOGY

The main reason for having the love interest in this film be a psychologist is to explore Bruce Wayne's psyche. And having her be played by 90's era Nicole Kidman is just . . . It's just great. The scenes between Bruce and Chase are really well done. You learn a lot about Bruce's past and the guilt he has for his parent's death. As I said before, this film did a great job of exploring Wayne's origins and well as Grayson's. Kidman's performance is a little over the top but she still does the part well. She's fascinated by Batman and later by Bruce due to his traumatic past. It works well in the movie.

JIM CARREY AS THE RIDDLER

Jim Carrey killed it as the Riddler. I mean yeah, the performance is pretty much 90's era Jim Carrey but there are some truly creepy moments. The idea of him being obsessed with Bruce Wayne and then trying to replicate his success is really well done. He gets a Bruce Wayne haircut, a fake mole like Kilmer has, and wears glasses when Bruce puts on his glasses at the Ritz Gotham. The first scene with him is brilliant. I love his line, "You were supposed to understand. I'll make you understand." You see the transformation from lowly tech at Wayne Enterprises to the Riddler. Carrey gives us a somewhat sympathetic villain due to his delusions and the fact that he hates Bruce's "ignorance" toward his work. I think Carrey was great as the Riddler. He was evil, cunning, brilliant, and of course funny. Like I said, some scenes are a bit ridiculous (it was Jim Carrey on the rise after all) but he still stole the show as Batman's smartest adversary. Despite their feud in real life, he had great chemistry with Tommy Lee Jones as Two-Face. The characters seemed to fit together well and were fun to watch.

This film will always hold a special place in my heart. I showed it to my nephew recently and he fell in love with it. It's a great way to get kids into Batman. He hadn't quite reached the super-campiness of Batman and Robin and the nipples are barely visible.