Review of Batman Forever (1995) by Eric O — 14 Jul 2012

After the dark intriguing Tim Burton 'Batman' movies, Joel Schumacher took over the reigns of director for this third instalment. This proved to be one of the worst decisions in the history of cinema.

While 'Batman Forever' may not be the abomination that 'Batman & Robin' (the fourth movie) is, it was quite a big decline in the quality the first two movies produced, and showed signs that the next will be worse.

Not only was Burton gone, but so was the star, Michael Keaton! The man people grew to accept as Batman was not to feature here, so in steps Val Kilmer. Now I admit that at the time that probably seemed like a good choice.

He had just given an excellent performance in the masterpiece 'Heat', but perhaps that was a one-off. There has never been a duller, more monotone Batman in history. I mean, talk about a boring superhero.

This is the guy we're supposed to invest out interest in? So to counter this dreary performance the film's villains, Two-Face and The Riddler, are played by Tommy Lee Jones and Jim Carey respectively.

That's right, Jim Carey. If that doesn't signal how camp this movie is going to be then I don't know what will. Carey of course was just coming off a tremendous year where he starred in 'Ace Ventura: Pet Detective', Dumb and Dumber', and 'The Mask'.

All great comedic roles, but this is a Batman movie, and unless you're The Joker, I don't think flaming over-the-top comedy should be seen. I remember that when this came out, when I was a kid, Carey's performance was well received by children.

They thought he was hilarious, and he is, so I suppose you could say 'Batman Forever' works as a kids movie, but not as a serious adaptation of Batman, nor as a sequel to 'Batman Returns'.

After hearing about Carey's comedy and you want a serious villain, then don't expect much from Jone's Two-Face. The man who won an Oscar for his gruff kick-ass performance in 'The Fugitive' is just as ridiculously cartoony and flamboyant as Carey.

Why would you get Tommy Lee Jones in your movie and have him act like a clown? He's known for his serious gruff take-no-shit attitude. And then there is Chris O'Donnell as Robin. At first he seems like he would be an interesting character, after his family dies he vows revenge on Two-Face only for Batman to take him in and teach him revenge will consume him and justice is more important.

I like that and I liked where they tried to go with that ideal. But alas, Robin simply becomes a whiny annoying character that complains the entire movie. With a big budget and huge settings it seems as though there was more emphasis on style and very little attention put into the script.

There is a flamboyant tone that works both for and against the film. It's doesn't fit in with the previously serious 'Batman' movies, but somewhat works as a kids film. A bad movie, but it does have some moments like the justice vs.

revenge stuff, and Jim Carey is entertaining, even if he doesn't fit in a Batman film.