BATMAN FOREVER
A film review by Michael John Legeros
Copyright 1995 Michael John Legeros
(WB)
Directed by Joel Schumacher
Written by Lee Batchler, Janet Scott Batchler, and Akiva
Goldsmith
Cast Val Kilmer, Tommy Lee Jones, Jim Carrey, Nicole
Kidman, Chris O'Donnell, Michael Gough, Pat Hingle
MPAA Rating "PG-13"
Running Time 121 minutes
Reviewed at General Cinemas at Pleasant Valley, Raleigh (16JUN95)
==
In the supremely entertaining BATMAN FOREVER, director Joel Schumacher serves up *story*. Five stories, actually, as if he's anxious to dispel the myth/truth that a BATMAN movie can only be about atmosphere. Working from a strong script that emphasizes the *humor* of Gotham City, the veteran director presents a colorful grab bag of "scarred psychoses."
There's the Riddler (Jim Carrey), a nerdy scientist who's invented a device to "read men's minds." He's in cahoots with Two-Face (Tommy Lee Jones), the scarred ex-District Attorney who is Gotham's villain du jour. Back at Stately Wayne Manor, the Big Guy (Val Kilmer, replacing Michael Keaton) is thinking about retiring the cape, while his ward, Dick Greyson (Chris O'Donnell), is itching to play dress-up. And, chasing everyone listed above, is a pin-up psychologist (Nicole Kidman) who's on hand to diagnose dreams and reaffirm the lead character's heterosexuality.
Each character in BATMAN FOREVER gets their own story, which is fair enough. Unfortunately, only two of those stories really work. The Riddler's is the most fun, with Jim Carrey in fine form as the disgruntled Wayne Enterprises employee who wants his *own* revenge. His Riddler is the life of the party, though we could stand to see more of what his invention does. The other fun one is Chris O'Donnell as Robin. He's the human side of BATMAN FOREVER, and he brings a fresh vitality to a series that's always in danger of taking itself too seriously. He even gets to joyride in the Batmobile, though no one bothers to explains why said vehicle has *two* tail fins in certain scenes, instead of one.
Val Kilmer makes an intriguing Caped Crusader, but he plays his part too straight. There's no edge to his character--nothing to distinguish the fact that *he's* Batman. He may be sturdier than his predecessor, but, frankly, he's a bit of a bore as he spends the entire film brooding over whether or not to be Batman. To cowl, or not to cowl? (Here is where huge chunks of the story seem to be missing. Bruce Wayne seeks help for his dreams, but we're never shown the scene where he's supposedly "cured." We see him *after* the fact, but the scripted explanation involving a diary and a giant bat (!) has been dropped. Why?)
There's enough energy around Kilmer to compensate for his flat Bat, though, even if said superhero functions more like James Bond in a cape than the Dark Knight detective of the comic books. Case in point: the unnecessary romance between Kilmer and Kidman. They barely have any screen time together! Like most of the story, their "love triangle" isn't given enough room to breathe. For super-battles, quick quick is fine; for romance it's a bust.
Academy Award winner Tommy Lee Jones plays the other villain, Harvey "Two-Face" Dent. He's obsessed with justice, but he raves too much for us to believe him. The actor also gets quite a few good lines, though much of his dialogue is muted, as if someone decided that the audience would only laugh at Jim Carrey. The jokes on them--however broadly he's played, Two Face is still more amusing than the one-dimensional Riddler.
If this second villain seems to get lost in the shuffle, it's because Two-Face is introduced immediately, with no background or context for the audience. The director must be counting on the viewer's presold knowledge of the characters; something that isn't true if you haven't been reading your Happy Meal. The credits are rolled over his bank robbery sequence, and it's a lousy to way to start a movie. It's too abrupt. They should've kept the originally scripted opening scene of Two-Face's escape from Arkham Asylum.
In fact, there are several places in BATMAN FOREVER where footage seems to be missing. Was Schumacher under pressure from Warner to bring the film in under two hours? The movie is missing about ten to fifteen minutes of extra footage--small (or not so small) pieces that could go a long way to explaining some of the action. What exactly does Batman's "sonar suit" do, for example? The order of some scenes could also be questioned. For example, the director interrupts a montage of Riddler robberies to show young Master Dick drying his clothes like Jackie Chan. It's a great a bit, but out of place at that point in the film.
BATMAN FOREVER is certainly more fun than the first films, due in no small part to the numerous nods to the TV series. The characters spend more time joking than fighting, while the director lightens nearly every scene with a skewered camera angle or two. Holy homage! There's also a ton of clever details, ranging from a beefcake shot of the Bat Butt to a creatively coifed character affectionately titled "Dr. Burton." Catch some of these on the third and fourth viewing.
The technical credits are all very good. The art direction is impeccable, with superb sets, costumes, and makeup. The special effects are good to very good--and rely a little too heavily on the computer-generated sort, if you ask me. The music is by Elliott Goldenthal, who replaces Danny Elfman. He's written a fine, loud score that never once breaks into the familiar refrain of "na na na na na na na na, BATMAN!"
BOTTOM LINE: The breeziest of the three movies, BATMAN FOREVER comes
the closest to reconciling the Dark Knight of the first
films with the Camped Crusader of the TV show. It's a
brilliant mix, compressed way too tightly into it's
121-minute running time. Recut, please, and let us see
the whole thing.
Grade: B+
-- Michael J. Legeros Raleigh, NC legeros@cybernetics.net
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