Batman : Le Défi

Ah, heres a movie I remember fondly from my childhood. Man I had it all, the toys, the McDonald's happy meal toys (not to mention those cool large plastic McDonald's cups my mom bought me) the sega video game, the trading cards, the t shirts, the batmobile candy dispensers, all kinds of neat merch based on the movie. of course in retrospect, this is not at all a kids movie, despite the fact its batman and was aimed at kids who bought happy meals. but that doesn't mean its not a great movie. not every superhero movie has to cater strictly to the kids. nevertheless, my 6 year old self was too in love with batman to care about how dark it was, I still loved anything and everything having to do with my favorite superhero and I must have watched this movie, along with the other 2 movies (1989 batman and batman forever) a zillion times on video.

here's the premise. Batman truly does Return in this sequel to the 1989 mega hit, and this time hes better then ever. hes got some new toys (like the electronic self-targeting Baterang), vehicles and even has 2 new classic villains to contend with.

penguin is a classic Tim Burton character in this one, but that can only be a good thing. in this movie, Burton makes the characters very ambiguous. is the penguin really half animal, half human? is cat woman part cat, part woman? these questions never really get answered. personally, i don't believe they are part animal at all. the penguin is all human albeit a VERY deformed and ugly one, and is only called Penguin because of his deformities. Catwoman is always human but the whole "9 lives" thing makes it ambiguous whether she has supernatural powers or whether shes just very lucky. its debatable. Batman is the only normal guy in this. in fact, Keaton being the calm cool hero both as Bruce Wayne and batman, grounds the movie and keeps it together whereas the 2 villains are completely crazy and psychotic nut cases. it seemed Keaton didn't have it all together in the last movie, he had a a lot of demons to fight with, but by the end you got the feeling he found his purpose in life, now that hes got a bat-signal and the law on his side. so naturally, in this one he seems more together and knows what hes doing. its the villains who are not together and have all these obvious mental problems, so much so that they actually make batman look normal. if it was anyone else playing batman, it wouldn't have worked. but Michael Keaton has a unique screen presence that when he puts on the bat suit, he literally IS batman and lets face it, no one before or since has had the manly swagger that Michael Keaton had as batman. he was a bit older, getting some greys, was this sort of gruff everyman but has this seriousness and "normal guy" look that makes you take him seriously as batman. other actors who have played batman seem too pretty boy or hand picked and thus don't feel real. Keaton is like the everyman normal looking 40 year old gruff guy and he demands you take him seriously. this is a very artsy film, compared to its blockbuster brother from 1989, which was basically a cut-&-dry blockbuster action/adventure. but it really didn't have any emotion or depth to it, despite Keaton's sincere efforts. Thats where Returns comes in. all the characters are very interesting and in a way, they all echo Batman. Catwoman is the dark vigilante side of him, while the Penguin shows what Bruce Wayne could have been if he turned bitter against the world.

I've heard many ppl say that this batman film is not really about Batman himself, and that too much attention is given to the villains, but i will say again, its not a bad thing, and doesn't ruin this film. batman himself is really not a very interesting character when you think about it. hes essentially a guy who's see's his parents get killed as a kid, he trains for X years, then decides to becomes batman for revenge purposes. OK. thats it. there's no more to it really. certainly not something i want to watch for a whole 2 hours. i really didn't see a point in making a whole movie about his origin a couple years ago, i think it was a waste. i was always kinda hoping they would bring back the Burton style of filmaking for batman movies, or maybe even get Burton back to direct. but alas, we got something that felt like a lesser version of the 1989 film. sad. but hey, we always have the Tim Burton films to enjoy. those, IMO, captured the real batman, beyond the facade of "comic book" movie looks (which, in Burton's case, is actually a good thing). as far as i'm concerned, Burton is the only guy to have directed Batman movies. hes the only one who i believed truly understood batman, as you can see in his various films. the other directors never really...got it. they just don't get batman. they only got him as a character, thats it. but Burton KNEW batman, he understood his plight in life, and the darkness inherent in the material. thats why this is to me, the best, and most personal, Batman film. it shows batman, and his villains, at there most raw. they are all hurt individuals, and thats what makes this film so powerful. this is what a batman film should be. serious, witty, playful, phycological, and DARK. while still retaining the comic book style that we all expect. this film also paved the way for the wonderful Batman: The Animated Series, which also shares Tim Burton's dark, Gothic look and feel from both of his Batman films. it even uses the same theme!

A nice follow-up to blockbuster fantasy epic that renewed Hollywood's faith in media blitzing. Batman returns contains a lot of noisy action ,thrills, chills and dazzling production design. The caped crusader is back in Gotham City, where even the criminals are afraid to walk the streets alone. There's a new breed of criminals in Gotham City led the the sinister the Penguin. While Batman (Michael Keaton) deals with a deformed man calling himself the Penguin (Danny DeVito) wreaking havoc across Gotham with the help of a cruel businessman (Christopher Walken), a female employee (Michelle Pfeiffer) of the latter becomes the Catwoman with her own revenge. From the Sewers of Gotham, and New Villain Emerges. From the Rooftops of Gotham, the Purrrfect Enemy Comes to Life. And the Only One Who Can Save this City, is a Creature of the Night. While She Craves a Romance She can Sink Her Claws Into, He Plots a Fowl Reign of Destruction, Above Gotham, Looms Its Greatest Hero.

This is a dynamic, fast- paced and entertaining movie. Full of action , it's complemented by violent images, thriller and breathtaking scenes with overwhelming fights and traditional FX along with brief computer generator special effects. The dark story is made believable and the script has more pace to it than former film Batman (1989). The picture relies on terrific flying sequences, impressive struggles, black humor and breathtaking pursuits. More of the same from director Tim Burton with Batman more of a supporting role overshadowed by provocative villains. With Danny DeVito cruely misshapen Penguin who seeks to role over Gotham City. Michelle Pfeiffer is the dangerous and exotic Catwoman who has more than a passing personal interest in Batman and Christopher Walken in the maniacal tycoon Max Shreck. Keaton is surprisingly good as the dual personality hero though Pfeiffer steals the show, she fares best in her wickedly sexy character and second-skin costume completed with bullwhip.

The motion picture was well directed by Tim Burton. Being preceded by ¨Batman¨ (1989) with similar cast : Michael Keaton , Michael Gough, Jack Nicholson , Kim Basinger , Robert Wuhl , Tracey Walter , Pat Ingle , Jack Palance. Followed by ¨Batman and Robin¨ (1997) by Joel Schumacher with Val Kilmer, Chris O'Donnell, Uma Thurman, Alicia Silverstone , Michael Gough , Arnie, Pat Ingle , John Glover. And ¨Batman Forever¨ (1995) by Joel Schumacher with George Clooney, Chris O'Donnell, Jim Carrey , Nicole Kidman , Drew Barrymore , Deby Mazar , Don Dragon Wilson, among others .

Very rarely do movie sequels ever match the grandeur of the originals. BATMAN RETURNS however, does so with gusto. The sequel to 1989's BATMAN, BATMAN RETURNS neither milks the success of the first movie nor totally disregards it; it's a wonderful sequel and a spectacular movie in its own right. There's something for everyone in this movie - humor, high drama, plenty of action, and lots of cool things to look at. Of course, viewers have to get around Tim Burton's morbid and sometimes offensive sense of humor, but that shouldn't be too much of a problem in this era of SOUTH PARK and THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY. While the movie has many great moments, it also has its flaws. The plot seems rushed, stitched together. Danny DeVito tries his best as the Penguin but doesn't quite pull it off. Christopher Walken appears as a secondary bad guy, but his performance is lackluster compared to the others. And many of the action sequences, though breathtaking, seemed forced and are occasionally absurd. All that aside, there's all kinds of surprises in this movie - smart humor and dialogue, characters you can't help but love, lots of satire (Homer's Iliad, CITIZEN KANE, and the American political scene are all lampooned), and many memorable scenes that only serve as a testament to Burton's colorful imagination. I hope to get this movie on DVD, where I can enjoy it on my big screen TV in all its glory. Not exactly the best Batman film ever, but still a fascinating movie to watch over and over again.

Ah, Batman Returns, is it possible to have a sequel to be almost as good as the original? With Batman Returns, it came pretty close! We have terrific actors and a great plot with the dark knight and two new villains, Catwoman and The Penguin. We have Michael Keaton back as Batman and he's still awesome than ever. Michelle Pfieffer, the perfect choice for Catwoman and was perfectly cast into place. As much as I love and is such an incredible actress Annette Benning, she couldn't have been Catwoman, she doesn't really have the look. Danny DeVito, who could have imagined him as The Penguin? He was just great and terrifying!

Batman returns with a more loving community of Gotham City, they are celebrating Christmas time with, Max Shrek played by a creepy Christopher Walken. The perfect villain who mistreats his lovely secretary, Selina who happens to hear too much at his office causing him to push her out the window in hopes that she dies and will never reveal the information of knowing the Penguin and the attempt to make him loved in Gotham. When she survives and is awakened by cats, she wants revenge and is ready to go at it with her cats! But there is also another active villain, The Penguin who is in search of his parents that abandoned him and now he is looking to be the new mayor of Gotham City! Can Batman be able to stop both super villains from creating their hanous acts and stop the mayor from destroying the city as well?

You'll have to see! Batman Returns is just as good as the original Batman, despite the first one remaining the true classic, this one still takes you for a ride. And come on, I mean we've got Michelle in leather! Her classic moment of just meeting Batman and The Penguin "Meow" is classic! There are memorable characters, lines, and sets! You'll have a blast! Trust me!

9/10

I've enjoyed this movie ever since I was a kid and I still do. I also liked Batman forever back then but the real difference is that THIS movie didn't date when I grew up. I did notice a few scenes in this film that didn't make any sense like: 'Hhmm... the crowd is angry. Hey! Where did they get those tomatoes from?' Then I thought: 'who cares? This movie is not 100% serious anyway!'

The original Tim Burton Batman was great as well but it was a bit cheesy at some parts and I didn't like all the actors. This movie improved on almost every aspect with a wonderful cast, a more Gothic style and no involvement of Prince.

Nowadays, many fans of the Christopher Nolan movies dislike Burton claiming that the Nolan movies are more serious and therefore more loyal to the comics. I don't think this is entirely true: -There has never been an adaptation of the original concept of Batman which was a vengeful criminal killer with a gun. -Batman has taken many forms over the years peeking its silliness in the 60's (and a bit with Batman & Robin). A director is free to choose what kind of Batman he's going to portray as long if it's good.

My opinion: Batman doesn't necessarily have to be serious. It's about a man in a rubber suit with pointy ears. Burton managed to create a perfect balance between the silliness and the darkness surrounding the whole idea.

I just recently watched the Nolan movies and I love those ones as well (especially The Dark Knight). There's simply something about this movie that interests me more. Nolan's goal was to give the character much more depth and in doing so, he looked for an explanation of nearly every aspect of Batman. That's a bit too much for me, I'm a bigger fan of the more abstract version of Batman. The Burton movies are more theatrical and centered around the atmosphere.

My conclusion is that you shouldn't compare the Nolan with the Burton movies. They're just different and it's up to you to decide which one you like better. My respect is for both directors.