Batman: The Movie

Ok, I remember the TV show and made sure that I was front and center of our black and white 19 TV. And, I also remember seeing this film in our local movie theater one Saturday matinee. And, I was too giddy at seeing my favorite TV show on a big screen and in color, that the details escaped me. So, one night recently, I saw the movie available on Prime. I clicked and sat back. I smiled and shook my head: how did I miss all these things? And, in the first 15 minutes I had a laundry list of mistakes and shortcomings. For example, there is a scene when Batman descends down a helicopters ladder--and for those of us who have rappelled or fast roped down a moving helicopter that is one of the scariest things I did--that I burst. Impossible. Then when Robin overshot the LZ of the yacht they were chasing and Batman sank into the water, what appears to be a shark--yes, it is very poorly made rubberized fake--attacks Batman. I said to myself, well, at the time, that was exciting! So, if you watched the TV show in black and white in 1966, saw this at the movie theater, take a trip, back in time, and sit back and smile.

Classic American production, what a great view. I would advise anyone to show the new generation this masterpiece. It reminds me of watermelon Sundays and hot summer nights when my heart was young and gay. Adam West the majestic somber faced master, with his devoted Burt Ward rallying as the perfect foil parrying and cavorting through the majestic sets of a magnificent bygone era. This movie represented the zenith of entertainment on this planet. The only series to go near it, was the Star Trek original with Captain Kirk, and the crew of the good ship enterprise, reward yourself and buy this, then purchase the box set of the complete series. I have not opened my set yet, I am still savoring the bouquet of the the haunting memories that linger within my soul.

As a family we love it year after year it is so tongue in check hilarious! Doesnt take itself seriously like the animated versions. Casting could not be better : Burgess Meredith; Caesar Romero; Frank Goshen ; and Adam West as Batman. Id mention them all and I would if I could remember them. (Im the grandma) Grandkids are 6, 8 and 10 years; their father is 41. We span the decades and we all love this beautiful comedy! Dont you remember that Batman music: da-na-da-na-da-na BATMAN. Slide down the Bat Escape to the waiting Bat-winged Chrysler Imperial or the likes. Pure unreal fun! Great Color super-real fiction.

While this is pretty much a bare-bones DVD release, for me it is an entertaining guilty pleasure. When this first was released in the theatres in 1966, I was a 5 year old Batman obsessed kid. I remember my wonderful twin great aunts taking me to the movies to see this cheese-fest. While its no technical marvel, it is a very fun addition to the 60s TV show era of the Batman legacy. And for just a few dollars, its well worth re-living the the memories associated with it.

When I was growing up Batman was the show to watch on Wednesday and Thursday nights to find out if the Dynamic Duo would get out of their latest pickle. This 1966 movie was released at the height of the Batman craze. Adam West and Burt Ward as Batman and Robin were fun to watch along with the villains featuring some of the best names of entertainment including Burgess Meredith, Cesar Romero, Frank Gorshin and Lee Meriweather. Good story,and just plain fun! I am also a fan of the Batman series of movies from 1989 through the 1990s plus the Batman Returns movie of a few years back. Holy Movie Entertainment!

Just couldnt bring myself to give it a 5 star. Not to give away much, but Bruce Waynes in depth attraction to Miss Kitka made me cringe too much. Couldnt take it much longer. Other than that, great movie! A must see for all Bat-fans. My kid loved it too.

Detective Comics from the late 30s and 40s portrayed Batman as a crime fighting detective / vigilante. The nonsensical and totally absurd TV series / movie was based on what the books had become by the 50s and early 60s. A low point in sales for DC at the time. Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 (May 1939). The character was originally written in the style of the pulps and this influence was evident with Batman showing little remorse over killing or maiming criminals and was not above using firearms. Batman proved a hit character, and he received his own solo title in 1940. By 1942, the writers and artists behind the Batman comics had established most of the basic elements of the Batman mythos. In the years following World War II, DC Comics adopted a postwar editorial direction that increasingly de-emphasized social commentary in favor of lighthearted juvenile fantasy. The impact of this editorial approach was evident in Batman comics of the postwar period; removed from the bleak and menacing world of the strips of the early 1940s, Batman was instead portrayed as a respectable citizen and paternal figure that inhabited a bright and colorful environment. It has also been suggested by scholars that the characters of Batwoman (in 1956) and Bat-Girl (in 1961) were introduced in part to refute the allegation that Batman and Robin were gay, and the stories took on a campier, lighter feel. In the late 1950s Batman stories gradually become more science fiction-oriented, an attempt at mimicking the success of other DC characters. By 1964, sales on Batman titles had fallen drastically; Bob Kane noted that as a result DC was planning to kill Batman off altogether. Editor Julius Schwartz was soon assigned to the Batman titles and presided over drastic changes. Beginning with 1964s Detective Comics #327 (May 1964) - cover-billed as the New Look - Schwartz introduced changes designed to make Batman more contemporary and return him to more detective-oriented stories. And then came the TV series and movie. Although both the comics and TV show were successful for a time, the camp approach eventually wore thin and the show was canceled in 1968. In the aftermath the Batman comics themselves lost popularity once again. As DC Comics editor Julius Schwartz noted, When the television show was a success, I was asked to be campy, and of course when the show faded, so did the comic books. Starting in 1969, writer Dennis ONeil and artist Neal Adams made a deliberate effort to distance Batman from the campy portrayal of the 1960s TV series and to return the character to his roots as a grim avenger of the night. ONeil said his idea was simply to take it back to where it started. I went to the DC Comics library and read some of the early stories. I tried to get a sense of what Bob Kane and Bill Finger were after.ONeil and Adams first collaborated on the story The Secret of the Waiting Graves (Detective Comics #395, Jan. 1970). Few stories were true collaborations between ONeil, Adams, Julius Schwartz, and inker Dick Giordano, and in actuality these men were mixed and matched with various other creators during the 1970s; nevertheless the influence of their work was tremendous. Giordano said, We went back to a grimmer, darker Batman, and I think thats why these stories did so well . . . Even today were still using Neals Batman with the long flowing cape and the pointy ears. In essence, DC Comics hated the way the Batman TV series / movie butchered their crime-fighting detective. The proper and most accurate point of reference that one should subscribe to are the original comic books - Tim Burton it seems did to a degree and Christopher Nolan has most definitely given us the best portrayal of the classic Batman. At the end of the day, if you like the campy style, thats fine. I just like keeping up with all the historical facts of a fictional character spanning almost 70 years. For reference, parts of this commentary was accessed from Wikipedia and yes I do have a comic book collection into the thousands with several hundred Batman books dating back to the early 60s. Its interesting that a lot of people seem to think that comic books are for kids only and that they should just provide slapstick entertainment, devoid of intelligent dramatic dialogue and social commentary. In fact comic books have been a great study resource because of their anthropological reflections. Look at what Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko and many other great storytellers and artists did in the early 60s at Marvel Comics. Super hero comic books that were wonderfully entertaining, incredibly scripted, dialogue that was realistic, dramatic, fun, quirky, serious and occasionally touching on social commentary. What a great balance. Its little wonder Marvel Comics has remained at the top of its field and even better that DC Comics in the late 60s returned to faithfully representing the true classic Batman ethos.

This film is terrible, and awesome and everything that would expect from a two hour episode of Batman from the 1960s. I watched it with my teenaged son who had never seen the show. It was cringe-worthy campy, and yet after 15 minutes we were hooked and we watched the whole thing. It was a thoroughly enjoyable way to pass some time. The plot is pretty thin. The action typical of the show. There are scenes and lines though that are pure comedy gold if you catch them. The film, made in 66, lacks the political correctness you see in many films and shows today and yet isnt mean. In some respects it is refreshing. So, if you like Batman, or are a 60s TV junky, give it 20 minutes. Youll probably enjoy its campiness.

4 stars for the fun! If you are a Batman fan and you grew watching the show starred by Adam West and Burt Ward, this special edition is definitely a keeper. The series were a hit on its days and have become a cult classic for fans. In the old days in which Batman wore tights and was accompanied by Robin everywhere, the humor was not voluntarily at all. The movie opens with a hilarious sequence in which Batman fights a suicidal shark filled with bombs, how does he escape the trap? With his anti-shark bat spray of course! What makes this movie a fun thing to watch is all the camp humor in it, the detective labor of Batman and Robin is reduced to nothing but funny, wait until you see how they resolve the riddle on who was behind the attack at the beginning of the film. The united underworld puts together our favorite villains form the series: the Joker, the Riddler, the Penguin and Catwoman. There are memorable sequences in this film such as the described opening sequence or Batman trying to get rid of a bomb. This movie may not be a great film compared to recent Batman flicks, but it is definitely fun to watch and to see how naive was the humor in the decade they made it and the concept of Batman that this series created; no wonder why Joel Schumacher tried to pay a tribute with his two attempts on Batman (`Batman Forever and `Batman & Robin) Adam West also made a career thanks to this show and the film, he had presentations everywhere as the caped crusader; unfortunately people never stopped seeing him as the Batman. Besides of a very decent digital transfer of both image and sound (Sound is presented in both Stereo and Mono), the bat features are a good complement to this special edition, there is a comprehensive audio commentary by Adam West and Burt Ward that opposite to what you may expect, gives you a lot of details, production notes and facts about the making of the movie. There is also a Batman featurette, 2 still galleries, the trailer and a documentary on the creation of the famous Batmobile from the show. The menus are colorful and very well designed according to the movie. The only flaw this special edition has are the subtitles, they do not match at all what is being said on screen, sentences were shortened by an unknown reason, and some of the jokes and funny dialogues will pass unnoticed if you are reading the subtitles. If you were a fan of the show as a kid, youll love this special edition; if you have never seen this film or the show, be prepared for the best camp humor ever seen. Not a great movie maybe but lots of fun and good memories.

Great move and great blu ray version.