Are we counting Mask of the Phantasm as well, since that also technically got a theatrical release? Because if so, then it might very well take the #1 spot for me (or at least #2 or 3). But if not, then:
1. The Dark Knight-It's wonderfully acted, got a deep and compelling plot, an instantly iconic villain in Heath Ledger's Joker. Batman, Harvey Dent, and Gordon are all wonderfully flawed heroes (and tragic one in Dent's case), it's got some real themes/ideas, there's palpable tension throughout, etc.
Perhaps it's a bit too long, has a few pacing issues here and there the love triangle between Bruce, Dent, and Rachel Dawes wasn't particularly compelling, and while I don't mind the Batvoice overall, it does get to be a bitt too much at times. But those are pretty minor complaints overall.
2. Batman Begins-One of the best superhero origin stories of all time. Well-paced, fantastically acted, with some real themes/ideas, the use of non-linear storytelling works well, it's got an interesting villain in Liam Neeson's Ra's al Ghul, and it's the first live-action Batman film to really focus in on Bruce Wayne/Batman and his psychology/character. Oh and they FINALLY got Gordon right, well-done.
3. The Dark Knight Rises-It's very ambitious, it doesn't lack for ideas either, it's a technical/filmmaking tour de force with some amazing set pieces, Bane is an interesting and terrifying villain (although whether you like the twist near the end is up to you), I LOVE Anne Hathaway's Catwoman, it's again well-acted, etc.
But it does have many more plot conveniences/contrivances than the other two, Catwoman just disappears for most of the second act, which was disappointing, they don't do as much with the "Bane takes over Gotham" idea as they could/should have, the lack of even a mention of the Joker is awkward imo, many people might not like the twist, etc. So good but flawed imo.
4. Batman 66-For what it is, it's really entertaining. There's some really good comedy and some genuinely kind of clever social/political satire as well. Plus seeing all of Batman's iconic rogues teaming up and playing off of each other was really fun to see.
5. Batman Forever-It's flawed and has a lot of dumb/silly moments (and TLJ's Two Face is awful, plus Nicole Kidman is kind of wasted as well and Gordon is even more of a joke than he was in the Burton films).
But it at least TRIES to be about Batman and his psychology (more so than the Burton films), I liked the paralleling of Bruce and Dick Grayson, Chris O'Donnell is pretty good here, Jim Carrey doing his Frank Gorshin impressing was fun, Val Kilmer makes for a decent Bruce Wayne and he looks really good in the suit, the action/fight scenes are a lot more compelling/dynamic than before. There's darkness/more heavy material to balance out the camp, etc. I honestly feel like this movie gets lumped in with the next one for some people, and that's not really fair.
6. Batman 89-Not a huge fan of this one, kind of a case of "style over substance." Gothic Gotham looks kind of cool (although a bit too obviously set-bound at times imo), Keaton gives a good performance, the suit looks really good, the Batplane is amazing (as is the Batmobile), Jack Nicholson is entertaining, as is Alexander Knox as a charactet the score by Danny Elfman is great, and it's tremendously iconic.
But I don't like how we never really get into Batman's head and he seems like such a creepy recluse, I don't like "psycho mass murderer" Batman, Jack Nicholson is more playing "crazy Jack Nicholson" than the Joker, Kim Basinger is annoying, The Joker killing the Wayne's was monumentally dumb, there's some really sloppy filmmaking/editing mistakes, etc.
7. Batman Returns-Really don't care much for this one either. Keaton, Danny DeVito, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Christopher Walken are all good. And there's a few cool moments.
But I don't like how Bruce Wayne/Batman is reduced to being an occasional guest-star in his own movie (even more so than the first one), he's even more of a sociopathic murderer than in the first one as well, I don't like Burton's take on Catwoman and Penguin, Penguin is also a supremely ineffective villain (and being reduced to being a pawn of a Burton-only character was lame), Gotham feels even more set-bound than the first film, it feels more like "Burton freak show #27" than a Batman film to be, and it's just generally unpleasant, gross, and mean-spirited throughout.
8. THAT MOVIE!!-A crime against film, a blight on the good name of Batman, a godawful waste of good money, and just a cinematic kick in the balls throughout. Get the point?
