Batman (15.)
Directed by Tim Burton.
Starring Jack Nicholson, Michael Keaton, Kim Basinger, Robert Wuhl, Pat Hingle, Michael Gough, Billy Dee Williams, Jerry Hall, Tracey Walter and Jack Palance. 126 mins.
1989 was the summer of the logo, the Bat logo. The hype for it was everywhere, so forceful that it swept aside any notions that maybe the film wasn't equal to it. It caught the moment. Perhaps a millionaire who spent his fortune fighting crime was the ultimate expression of Reagan's trickle-down economics.
Burton's film is probably the most static action movie ever. The narrative is a clunky thing, constantly cutting back and forth between Batman/ Bruce Wayne dialogue scenes and Joker dialogue scenes, with the occasional diversion to see what reporter Knox (Wuhl) and photojournalist Basinger are talking about. Moving around in the suit or using any of the Bat-vehicles and Bat-paraphernalia seemed to require such a fearful effort that afterwards the film always needed to take a breather. Watching it when it came out was enormously frustrating - every time when it seemed to be getting going it would grind to a halt, usually with a cut back to the reporter Knox (Wuhl) in his newsroom.
But, what you get instead of action is a rather splendid character piece, filled with zippy dialogue. A lot of that would become ingrained in fans' memory by their use on the soundtrack album of Prince songs that accompanied it. Some have it that Nicholson's Joker is just another one of his overblown eyebrow performances but the movie's conception of the Joker as a homicidal artist, "I make art until people die," is as compelling as The Dark Knight's take on him as a compulsive agent of chaos and Nicholson is as effective as Heath Ledger. Keaton was a controversial choice but he is inspired. By playing Bruce Wayne not as a confident playboy but an introverted, socially awkward outsider, he makes him that bit braver.
Thirty years ago darkness was its main selling point, and it still is today. Its release necessitated the BBFC, or whatever the British censor was called back then, to introduce the 12A certificate. It's remarkably twisted, but charmingly so.
Next, Batman Returns
Directed by Tim Burton.
Starring Jack Nicholson, Michael Keaton, Kim Basinger, Robert Wuhl, Pat Hingle, Michael Gough, Billy Dee Williams, Jerry Hall, Tracey Walter and Jack Palance. 126 mins.
1989 was the summer of the logo, the Bat logo. The hype for it was everywhere, so forceful that it swept aside any notions that maybe the film wasn't equal to it. It caught the moment. Perhaps a millionaire who spent his fortune fighting crime was the ultimate expression of Reagan's trickle-down economics.
Burton's film is probably the most static action movie ever. The narrative is a clunky thing, constantly cutting back and forth between Batman/ Bruce Wayne dialogue scenes and Joker dialogue scenes, with the occasional diversion to see what reporter Knox (Wuhl) and photojournalist Basinger are talking about. Moving around in the suit or using any of the Bat-vehicles and Bat-paraphernalia seemed to require such a fearful effort that afterwards the film always needed to take a breather. Watching it when it came out was enormously frustrating - every time when it seemed to be getting going it would grind to a halt, usually with a cut back to the reporter Knox (Wuhl) in his newsroom.
But, what you get instead of action is a rather splendid character piece, filled with zippy dialogue. A lot of that would become ingrained in fans' memory by their use on the soundtrack album of Prince songs that accompanied it. Some have it that Nicholson's Joker is just another one of his overblown eyebrow performances but the movie's conception of the Joker as a homicidal artist, "I make art until people die," is as compelling as The Dark Knight's take on him as a compulsive agent of chaos and Nicholson is as effective as Heath Ledger. Keaton was a controversial choice but he is inspired. By playing Bruce Wayne not as a confident playboy but an introverted, socially awkward outsider, he makes him that bit braver.
Thirty years ago darkness was its main selling point, and it still is today. Its release necessitated the BBFC, or whatever the British censor was called back then, to introduce the 12A certificate. It's remarkably twisted, but charmingly so.
Next, Batman Returns
