Batman

The 1943 Batman Movie Serial, starring Lewis Wilson as the Batman and Lewis Croft as Robin, is definitely one of my favorites. The evil Dr. Daka, played with devilish delight by J. Carol Naish, has enlisted a number of 5th columnists to subvert American interests, on U.S. soil. Innocent Americans are transformed into mindless zombies in order to assist the sinister Daka and his evil minions. Despite every advantage, the Batman manages to stop Daka and save America from the "Doom of the Rising Sun!" Watch for Shirley Patterson as Bruce Wayne's love interest, Linda Page, who definitely makes a wonderful damsel in distress. William Austin plays Wayne's faithful butler, Alfred and provides comic relief. Batman creator, Bob Kane, even makes an appearance in the first chapter as a newsboy. Batman fights fo

Discovering the Batman serial and the strip cartoon at the age of eight must have shaped (warped?) my taste for the rest of my life.

Even pre-pubescent, I could tell this one was superior to the draggy Sam Katzman chapter plays which engulfed my Saturday afternoons. Encountering it again in the sixties when it was a star turn in the low camp boom wasn't an anti climax. The imagery (imagery yet!) of the comic book survived diluted and distorted. Batman silhouetted against a night sky made white by the deep red filter, after Robin strikes fear into the hearts of the henchmen by showing the bat signal on their wall, remains embedded in the memory bank. A disguised Bruce Wayne waves a gun at one stage and we miss the Batmobile but Bob Kane made over his drawings of Alfred the Butler to look like William Austin.

Add on another forty (gulp) years and we've had political correctness an a version removing Knox Manning's narration about the wisdom of a government that locks up it's evil Nipponese citizens in a camp or the fetching Shirley Patterson shrieking "A Jap" when faced with J. Carrol Naisch, his Irish eyes pulled back into the fiendish mask of Dr. Dakar the sadistic son of Nippon feeding henchmen to pet alligators. The baggy forties suits and baggy 4F extras, along with the tackiness of the hand me down sets have become period detail as much as drab. We do notice that they have only two zombie hats so if there are a couple on screen, one has to go out and send another one in.

Along with that however, there are some remarkably well staged action scenes - the chase after that armored car we keep on seeing in old Columbia movies, the fire that showers (The) Batman with burning rafters,apparently staged by western specialist Harry Frazer who gets a writer credit.

Lewis Wilson, Douglas Croft and Shirley Patterson must have resented the fact that their careers peaked here but how about poor old Lambert Hillyer who was one of the architects of the classic westerns of William S. Hart and has now survived only as the director of record of this rush job kids actioner.

This is one of the best of Columbia's serials produced in the 40s. There's no Batmobile or Batplane but hey, this was 1943.

There's the usual assortment of narrow escapes, last minute rescues, zombies, an alligator pit and an endless supply of the villain's henchmen.

Also included are some great stuntwork and excellent fight scenes.

Lewis Wilson and Douglas Croft make an credible Batman and Robin and their alter-egos Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson. Two distinct advantages this serial has is it's wartime setting and the casting of the excellent J. Carroll Naish as the chief villain, Daka who is trying to install "The New Order" in America. Many serial and "B" movie veterans are cast in other roles. Look for George J. Lewis, Tom London and Dick Curtis as various henchmen and Charles Middleton, on the right side of the law for a change.

Batman is not technically as "good" as other serials such as most Republics, but I do like it better and enjoy it more than most others. Sure it is too long in the middle with 15 chapters and all, but there is just something about it that really appeals to me.

First of all it is Batman. Second, it just drips with atmosphere. All of the scenes in Daka's hideout are done so well that I can hardly imagine them being improved on. There is a darkened smoky atmosphere to the hideout with its walls covered with Japanese paintings and designs. Can anyone possibly think of a better way to have that set look? The theme music and the scraping sound heard when the door to the hideout opens are very distinctive - though minor elements of the serial, they add incredibly to the sum total of my evaluation.

J. Carrol Naish's portrayal of Dr. Daka is amongst the best acting ever done on film. The character and his dialog are just so fitting as the epitome of a villainous "jap" spy. Credit needs to go to the scriptwriters for dreaming it all up and to Naish for the brilliant execution of it. His lines and the trance like expression on his face as he talks about the emperor being the "heavenly ruler and prince of the rising sun" and freeing the "enslaved people of America" are just unbeatable acting.

Some of Daka's underlings are "zombies". They wear a radio headset receiver which has a wire connected to their spine so he can control them. Sure - that makes sense. This is the best example of serial logic and science I've ever seen. Its the perfect thing to describe to people in order to explain how things work in serials.

Of course Daka's scientific devices are powered by radium! Is it just me or do a lot of super scientific devices in serials run on radium? Saying its powered by radium somehow makes it all make sense.

Daka and Emperor Ming are the two ultimate serial villains. Sure there are some others that were really cool, but no one really even come close to them.

Nuff said!

I know that it's a Columbia, but it is one of Columbia's best. Lewis Wilson and Douglas Croft are the definitive Batman and Robin. The story is great, the acting is great, the casting was great, and the photography was great. There are also some great fighting sequences and awesome cliffhangers.

Dr. Tito Daka is a classic villain. Daka was Japanese (He prefers to be called Nipponese) and was probably hated very much because remember, this serial was made during WW2.

The Batcave was pretty cool. I like it how Batman and Robin were taken directly to the scene of the crime by Alfred. There was no Batmobile.

I recommend this serial to anyone.

10/10 Stars