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18 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
George Clooney's Head??, 1 May 2004
The first two films, though slightly clunky (due to the restrictions of Michael Keaton's costume) were the real essence of the character that I, and many consider the modern image of Batman. A dark, tortured and deeply flawed character on the edge. Keaton, of course, played the Bruce Wayne role to perfection, the scene in his Gotham apartment in Batman perfectly illustrating the slightly psychotic edge to the character. In both film he is supported by incredible casts, Jack Nicholson (perplexingly recieving top billing) and Kim Bassinger in Batman; Danny DeVito, Michelle Pfeiffer and Christopher Walken (before he became Christopher Walk-on) each giving exceptional, and highly unselfish performances in Batman Return. Batman, and its sequel Batman Returns, I would say deserve 5 and 4 stars respectfully, especially for Burton's dark, twisted imagining of "Deep New York", Gotham City.If Batman Returns was, like a typical sequel, slightly less good than it's predecessor, Batman Forever was a jarring step down for the series, director Joel Schumacher's ridiculous desicion to include "bat nipples" on the plank-like Val Kilmer's costume was the first step of camping up the series. The wisecracks were frankly witless, and the unnecessary, and slightly cringeworthy introduction of Chris O'Donnel's Robin exentuated the feeling that replacement of Director and Star were mistakes for a second sequel. Tommy Lee Jones was ridiculously over the top, much like Jack Nicholson in Batman, however, Nicholson pulled it off. Jim Carrey attempts to outdo Jones on the camp front, and manages it. Whether this is an estimable achievement remains in question. Nicole Kidman gives a balanced performance, with her usual beauty and grace meaning the audience has one thing less to complain about. 2 stars of of five. Batman and Robin was really the end for the current Batman film series, a final nail in the coffin for the so far chronological series. The "human element" of Alfred approaching his end was patronising and frankly rubbish. I think the funniest thing about this movie is when you consider the effect it had on the careers of the younger stars. Chris O'Donnel has pretty much no career now, neither does Alicia Silverstone. George Clooney, Scwarzenegger and Thurman were well enough established before they made this to recover, but it makes you question what they thought when they read the scripts. They say money talks louder than words. The introduction of "Batgirl" was the final straw for the series, and unfortunately Schumacher worked again. This film cannot seriously be awarded more than 1 star out of five. I find it surprising that the packaging image of the "Legacy" is a still from the weakest point of the four Batman films. I always felt Warner Bros. would be better pretending Forever and Robin were never made, and would simply release the two original films. However, it seems there are lots of unshipped DVDs of the 3rd and fourth installments that need to be thrown in as well. My final rating for this product is the average out of five that I have awarded the four films then reduced the number of stars that seeing Clooney's head on the box deserves. Just buy Batman and Batman Returns separately, it's not worth the pain of owning the whole Legacy just to be a collector.
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