Favorite Batman portrayal and why

[marvelrobbins]

I agree, it's amazing too how well parts of that film hold up. The fight scenes are really decent and I think the whole psyche of Bruce Wayne aspect is really interesting. I honestly think if you reigned in TLJ performance as Two Face, had something more plausible than the Brain Waves plot and allowed Schumacher to go all the way (as intended with the deleted scenes) with the Bruce Wayne backstory aspects then BF would be considered one of the best CBMs of all time. Also if people think Schumacher can't do serious well then watch 8MM.

Schumacher has done serious films.there are elements of darkness in forever even more in deleted films.he was making the films warner brothers wanted.he has admitted that and he ads he as adult he went along with it.

i really wish wb would have allowed him to do director's cut of batman forever.

 

[BH/HHH]

Schumacher has done serious films.there are elements of darkness in forever even more in deleted films.he was making the films warner brothers wanted.he has admitted that and he ads he as adult he went along with it.

i really wish wb would have allowed him to do director's cut of batman forever.

Oh yeah it wasn't on him at all he was doing as he was advised. In some ways I think BF has the perfect balance of light and dark.

Yeah I'd love to see that, the scenes are on the Blu Ray but it's not the same.

 

[marvelrobbins]

Oh yeah it wasn't on him at all he was doing as he was advised. In some ways I think BF has the perfect balance of light and dark.

Yeah I'd love to see that, the scenes are on the Blu Ray but it's not the same.

I really wish they would have allowed forever to be give what they allowed for
superman 2.entire scenes were rearranged in editing when schumacher had to trim film down.deleted scenes have shown some good stuff were lost.

Schumacher took responabilty for batman & robin while showing he was doing
what studio wanted.

every batman film is really based off a peroid of batman eras.

adam west-early 1940's-1968
batman 89-first year of batman in comics from 1939-1940 and late 80's graphic novel
batman returns-1990's a-hole batman
batman forever-early 1940's-1954 comics
Batman & robin-1990's version of batman tv show
dark knight trilogy-elements from various batman comics

Batman geings-Batman:The man who falls,batman year one,and batman the long haloween'
The dark knight-batman # 1,and batman the long halloween
dark knight rises-dark knight returns,and knightfall

batman v superman-Dark knight returns version

kilmer is underated batman.keaton,bale,and affleck are choicesmany debate
on who is the best batman.

 

[Boy Scout]

Late in explaining my reasoning, but I voted for Bale. His character was intelligent, noble, compassionate, and self-sacrificing. What I really liked about him is that he was a rational, fairly well-adjusted man who didn't allow himself to wallow in the agony he felt after losing his parents. He was able to move on from that trauma and channel his grief into something pure. There's a place for the less sane and more emotionally traumatized versions of the character, but I prefer the opposite.

 

[Flint Marko]

Bale, and I don't even think there's a close second.

 

[Grommers]

I voted Bale but refuse to say any of them had been downright bad, Even clooney and Kilmer did okay with what they were given. (a bad movie doesnt = bad batman)

I just like that they are all very different from one another, no other super hero character has so many different portrayals, and thats special.

 

[I Am The Knight]

Bale.

 

[The Batman]

Late in explaining my reasoning, but I voted for Bale. His character was intelligent, noble, compassionate, and self-sacrificing. What I really liked about him is that he was a rational, fairly well-adjusted man who didn't allow himself to wallow in the agony he felt after losing his parents. He was able to move on from that trauma and channel his grief into something pure. There's a place for the less sane and more emotionally traumatized versions of the character, but I prefer the opposite.

Yup.

"I'm paranoid and borderline insane" Batman has become less and less compelling over the years, and I have to question how frequent that characterization has actually been in the comics. Bale's Batman harkens back to 70's Batman a bit, and I definitely appreciate that.

 

[Boy Scout]

It's probably an unpopular opinion, but I find the "crying out for mommy and daddy" interpretations of the character to be...sad. Tragic heroes can be and often are compelling, and I do genuinely believe that there's a place for that kind of Batman, but yeah...not my cup of tea.

 

[StormC]

A lot of Batman fans seem to want him to be this dark, tortured soul forever that never escapes or finds happiness. I find that boring and simplistic.

"Bale's Batman quit being Batman!" Yeah... because it's a movie trilogy with a definitive end and not a series of comics that have gone on for 80 years and counting.

 

[2kt09]

A lot of Batman fans seem to want him to be this dark, tortured soul forever that never escapes or finds happiness. I find that boring and simplistic.

To the contrary, actually. I just never felt this spectrum of emotions/mental states with Bale's version.

 

[Fincher]

Putting aside the merits of the films/characters on their own terms (a movie could change everything about Batman and still be good in its own right), my idea of who Batman is and what a Batman movie should be were defined first and foremost by Batman '89. That was the movie that made me a fan, and it remains my favorite of the movies and favorite interpretation of the character. And then Returns and Forever contributed to a point. What is and isn't in the comics doesn't matter to me.

So, for me, Bale's Wayne became less Batman-like as the series progressed. Meanwhile, Batfleck was a non-starter.

 

[Brother Jack]

Late in explaining my reasoning, but I voted for Bale. His character was intelligent, noble, compassionate, and self-sacrificing. What I really liked about him is that he was a rational, fairly well-adjusted man who didn't allow himself to wallow in the agony he felt after losing his parents. He was able to move on from that trauma and channel his grief into something pure. There's a place for the less sane and more emotionally traumatized versions of the character, but I prefer the opposite.

While I think this is true, I wouldn't want to undersell the darkness of Bale's version. All of those positives you listed are true about him, but he was still a guy fueled by pain and entropy in a lot of ways. Not just with the tragedy of his past but of the pain in the present, a lot of it indirectly caused by him. His mental health is a running joke throughout the films. Batman is a character full of contrasts with many aspects to him and I think the best representations embrace that multiplicity. Bale's could be brooding and tortured while still also being noble and heroic. I think that's one of the big problems with Affleck. He was all darkness.

 

[Osiris-Rex]

Schumacher has done serious films.there are elements of darkness in forever even more in deleted films.he was making the films warner brothers wanted.he has admitted that and he ads he as adult he went along with it.

i really wish wb would have allowed him to do director's cut of batman forever.

Oh yeah it wasn't on him at all he was doing as he was advised. In some ways I think BF has the perfect balance of light and dark.

Yeah I'd love to see that, the scenes are on the Blu Ray but it's not the same.

Yes, Joel Schumacher has done films like St. Elmo's Fire, The Lost Boys, and Flatliners, so he is capable of making serious movies. He was just doing what WB wanted him to do in regards to making a more Happy Meals friendly Batman movie.

 

[metaphysician]

Yup.

"I'm paranoid and borderline insane" Batman has become less and less compelling over the years, and I have to question how frequent that characterization has actually been in the comics. Bale's Batman harkens back to 70's Batman a bit, and I definitely appreciate that.

I've said it elsewhere, but I'd really like to see a Batman who can crack a smile occasionally, and who acknowledges that being Batman is sometimes kind of fun.

 

[Tg11]

Maybe I just didn't find Bale physically imposing enough as Batman or I didn't find him terrifying like in the sense that he doesn't strike real fear into the hearts of criminals I will say maybe he did that in Batman Begins but in The Dark Knight or in The Dark Knight Rises he didn't strike that same fear

Whereas Affleck his Batman was physically imposing enough and his Batman had a menacing, terrifying voice but also his Batman is definitely one that could strike real fear into the hearts of criminals everywhere because in his adaptation criminals alike were actually really terrified of him

 

[The Joker]

Late in explaining my reasoning, but I voted for Bale. His character was intelligent, noble, compassionate, and self-sacrificing. What I really liked about him is that he was a rational, fairly well-adjusted man who didn't allow himself to wallow in the agony he felt after losing his parents. He was able to move on from that trauma and channel his grief into something pure. There's a place for the less sane and more emotionally traumatized versions of the character, but I prefer the opposite.

Hear hear.

I've said it elsewhere, but I'd really like to see a Batman who can crack a smile occasionally, and who acknowledges that being Batman is sometimes kind of fun.

Even the most light hearted Batman of them all, Adam West, treated the crime fighting very, very seriously.

 

[Kreem Pi]

The difference between Luthor's intellect* and Wayne's in BvS is fascinating. Apparently both are obsessed with Superman. But only Luthor ends up figuring out Superman's secret identity and the people most important to him. Bruce couldn't do any of that**. Which is extra weird when you realize Bruce also had a secret identity. Some of this should be intuitive. I suppose you can say that his hate for Superman didn't allow him to see Supes as a crime fighter, making him lose that association. But are those amateur assumptions really fit for the world's greatest detective? I expect that of people who quote Dick Cheney......oh.

*But then this genius Luthor forgets to plan for his well being (or anything) after creating Doomsday. It's like his brain stopped working after that point in which Doomsday awakes. My head hurts.

**But then again we wouldn't have gotten the masterpiece of a scene that is Martha if we Bruce was smart.

 

[The Batman]

I've said it elsewhere, but I'd really like to see a Batman who can crack a smile occasionally, and who acknowledges that being Batman is sometimes kind of fun.

Honestly, I get the impression that All Star Batman and Robin Batman does enjoy being Batman..

 

[Kreem Pi]

He also enjoys abusing children.

 

[The Batman]

And setting people on fire.

 

[Osiris-Rex]

I've said it elsewhere, but I'd really like to see a Batman who can crack a smile occasionally, and who acknowledges that being Batman is sometimes kind of fun.

We sort of got that out of George Clooney in Batman & Robin.

 

[Fincher]

And setting people on fire.

Well, he is the G*****n Batman.

 

[The Guard]

The difference between Luthor's intellect* and Wayne's in BvS is fascinating. Apparently both are obsessed with Superman. But only Luthor ends up figuring out Superman's secret identity and the people most important to him. Bruce couldn't do any of that**. Which is extra weird when you realize Bruce also had a secret identity. Some of this should be intuitive. I suppose you can say that his hate for Superman didn't allow him to see Supes as a crime fighter, making him lose that association. But are those amateur assumptions really fit for the world's greatest detective? I expect that of people who quote Dick Cheney......oh.

He doesn't see or treat Superman as a man, let alone as a crime fighter.

There's a distinct story reason for Luthor to discover Superman's identity. Superman's family and loved ones being used in his plot.

Batman wouldn't need to do that, since he has a wholly separate plot, one that, unlike Luthor's main plot, makes him physically superior. He doesn't need to engage in Luthor's "games". He's not doing it to prove anything to anyone like Luthor is, he's doing it to end the threat, period.

What story reason is there that requires Bruce to discover Superman's identity?

Batman's scenes in this movie aren't about Batman proving how smart he is. They're about showing how far he has fallen.

That's what the "Martha" scene is about. It has little to nothing to do with his overall intellect, and more with how his emotions are overwhelming his reason.

 

[Rowsdower!]

I agree, it's amazing too how well parts of that film hold up. The fight scenes are really decent and I think the whole psyche of Bruce Wayne aspect is really interesting. I honestly think if you reigned in TLJ performance as Two Face, had something more plausible than the Brain Waves plot and allowed Schumacher to go all the way (as intended with the deleted scenes) with the Bruce Wayne backstory aspects then BF would be considered one of the best CBMs of all time. Also if people think Schumacher can't do serious well then watch 8MM.

You do bring up an interesting point, here. I wonder if Schumacher would have been able to make a decent Batman film if WB wasn't pushing him to make two giant toy commercials that felt more like the old Batman TV series than the dark world Burton had established. 8MM, Falling Down and Flatliners are really good, dark films and if Schumacher had gone that route, then perhaps he could have given us a Batman film for the ages.

But what we got... well, I know you think Batman Forever has held up, but I think it felt dated the moment it hit theaters. As I said earlier, everything about it just looked so cheap and fake. I'm not just talking about the sets and props, but also the action sequences. And that was a golden age for action movies... we had films like Die Hard: With a Vengeance, Speed and True Lies coming out. There's no reason why a Batman movie couldn't have competed with those movies as an action film unless the director and the studio didn't know what they was doing.

And seriously, the acting is awful. Kilmer's performance is kind of polarizing; I hate it but I can see why some people like it. But Kidman acted like a porn actress the whole time. TLJ was excruciatingly awful. All of the side characters were leftovers from a bad community theater production ("BOOOOOILING ACID!!!!!").

And then you just had weird sh** like putting f***ing nipples and giant codpieces on the batsuits. People can blame WB for forcing Schumacher to make a lighter Batman film to sell merchandise, but I doubt they asked him to give Batman and Robin kinky S&M outfits.