SEVENSES: Batman
SEVENSES
BATMAN
Welcome to the third edition of Sevenses. The basic idea is to choose seven films of a category, which are of course of high quality but are also distinct in some way. It's not the same as a ranked list, because there are times better films might have been passed over for this purpose. For some, examples are a more effective explanation, so I encourage reading of the previous editions on westerns and biopics. A slight deviation, I have listed a handful of films as "also considered" in more than one slot.
Batman. It is a genre in itself at this point. I own nearly forty films with either his name or other moniker in the title in addition to others that feature the character prominently and television series of both kinds. As I stated before in the intro to Into the Fray: Batman, the film history of Batman is nearly as old as the character. I would technically consider it a subgenre of superhero which is typically a subgenre of action. But others are mixed in including comedy (not always intentionally!), drama, mystery, thriller, suspense, horror, fantasy, and science-fiction, to name a few. Before we "join the crusade in Gotham's streets", it is worth noting that since there are so many films as it is, an additional "rule" I made is eliminating all that merely feature Batman as a character, which is mostly Justice League films, some of which were harder than others for what they did with the character, one in particular worth mentioning is Justice League: Gods and Monsters (unrelated to the first chapter of the current DC cinematic universe) that reimagines the "Big Three" of Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman.
Also known as Batman: The Movie, this film was spun off from the instantly and immensely popular 1966-1968 television series. It released to theatres during the summer between the first and second seasons. It features one of the earliest super-villain team-ups in comic-based media outside the pages themselves. It is that grander scale of thinking that defines the film, also introducing new Batvehicles to go along with its iconic Batmobile (Batcopter and Batboat), Bat-gadgets (including Shark Repellent Bat-spray), and indeed the villains' plot. Nearly all of the show's first season cast reprised their roles, notably West as Batman, Ward as Robin, Cesar Romero as The Joker, Burgess Meredith as The Penguin, and Frank Gorshin as The Riddler. Meriwether fills in for Julie Newmar as The Catwoman, who did return to the role for the second season. Batman keeps perfect pace with the series' campy humor and almost cartoonish approach, setting itself apart in the realm of the lighter side of Batman films with one-liners like the famous (or infamous), "Some days, you just can't get rid of a bomb!" For earlier Batman films, I considered both the 1943 serial, also titled Batman, and its 1949 follow up, Batman and Robin. From the campy humor angle, the two animated derivative films that feature West, Ward, and Newmar in their respective roles, Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders and Batman vs. Two-Face, were also considered.
It might be difficult to believe now, but there was a time when there was little to no success in adapting a comic book character to film. It was beginning to look like Superman (1978) and Superman II (1980) were flukes. Then came Batman. Hugely popular and spawning a summer of the phenomenon known as Batmania, the film continues to wow. Burton crafts a superb combination of intrigue, semi-realism, and comic fantasy, balancing serious with dark humor. Keaton rules in both a three-piece suit and the Batsuit, Nicholson's Joker blends a unique take with cues from Cesar Romero, and Basinger shines in more than one capacity, from scream queen to confident & cool in her element as Vicki Vale. The excellent cast is rounded out with Michael Gough as Alfred, Pat Hingle as Commissioner Gordon, Billy Dee Williams as Harvey Dent, and Jack Palance as Grissom. The Batmobile is another classic, this film introduces the term "Batwing" for aerial assault vehicle offers quotable lines such as, "I'm Batman," and "Let's get nuts!" It includes a great score including a main theme from Elfman and great concept album/soundtrack from Prince. Batman yet stands as a great measure for a superhero film to be compared and began an era of filmmaking for the genre that is still ongoing. Other films with a blend of humor, drama, and high stakes that were considered are Batman Returns, Batman Forever, and Batman & Robin, not all necessarily seriously.
Batman: Mask of the Phantasm is the first of four films, not counting those consisting of compiled episodes, that spun from the popular DC Animated Universe of television series that spanned the early 1990s through the mid-2000s. Phantasm tells its story through a mystery in the present intermixed with flashbacks relevant to that mystery. The flashbacks tell another chapter of Batman's origin, the beginnings of his vigilante activities with the twist that he gets a glimpse at the potential to be happy in spite of the trauma of his parents' murder, until crime takes that away, too, albeit differently. This added nuance greatly deepens the level of commitment for his war on crime. In the midst of that glimpse, Bruce speaks to his parents at their graves, heart-wrenchingly including, "...but it just doesn't hurt so bad anymore..." It's his delivery of lines like that that Conroy excels in the role of Bruce/Batman as always, Hamill's Joker gets the opportunity to turn it up with a PG rating, and Delany is great as Bruce's love interest, the original character, Andrea Beaumont. The cast is stacked with Stacy Keach Jr. as Carl Beaumont and the Phantasm, Abe Vigoda as Salvatore Valestra, and Dick Miller as Chuckie Sol, plus series regulars Efrem Zimbalist Jr., Bob Hastings, and Robert Costanzo as Alfred, Gordon, and Bullock, respectively. I have more or less said it before, animation is the most logical method to adapt comic book characters, and even more so, traditional animation. Important to the character is that his detective skills are on display at least as much as his ability to fight and his gadgetry, and Mask of the Phantasm is at its core, a well-told mystery film. As a film spun from an animated TV series, I also considered the other three DCAU films, Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero, Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker, and Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman, the single film based on The Batman (2004-2008), The Batman vs. Dracula, and the DCAU-like, Batman and Harley Quinn, released as part of the DC Universe Animated Original Movie line. In addition, other animated films part of a large, shared continuity and also under the DCUAOM banner that were considered are Son of Batman, Batman vs. Robin, Batman: Bad Blood, Batman: Hush, and Batman: The Long Halloween.
The Dark Knight was the first film of the superhero genre to gross $1B worldwide. This success was likely partially fueled by Ledger's untimely, and very sad, passing, but it is of such great quality that this audience response is deserved. The middle entry of The Dark Knight Trilogy, it continues trends established in its predecessor of taking the material serious, rooting Batman's gadgetry mostly in realism, and particularly with The Dark Knight, using its longer runtime for an even paced slow burn that is not slack in excitement. It is the peak of Bale's Batman, a performance by Ledger to whom Joker actors will forever inevitably be compared, and a standout portrayal by Eckhart as Harvey Two-Face that does not pale even against Ledger's Joker. A great ensemble cast, mostly returning, includes Nolan favorite Michael Caine as Alfred, Maggie Gyllenhaal recast as Rachel (better than Katie Holmes, in my opinion), Gary Oldman as Gordon, Morgan Freeman as Lucius Fox, and a cameo appearance by Cillian Murphy as Scarecrow, all contributing in no small way to the film's high quality. The Dark Knight very well be the best superhero film ever made, but it's undeniable that it excels by simply being a great film with an intriguing story, which is much more important than the aspects that make it a superhero film. But the creators clearly understood, both from title and content, the significance of the theme of Batman as a symbol, summarized well when Batman says, "Because sometimes the truth isn't good enough. Sometimes, people deserve more." From the excellent sequel angle, I also considered Batman Returns. From the dark and gritty standpoint, the other two films of the trilogy, Batman Begins and The Dark Knight Rises were considered along with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and The Batman (2022).
The only virtually straight adaptation here, Batman: Under the Red Hood is primarily sourced from the similarly titled comic story arc, Batman: Under the Hood, with some aspects of A Death in the Family to set up the events. Another mystery at its core, it is also a story deepened by themes of moral character, ethical debate, and disillusionment. Along the way, Batman's precarious position as vigilante is briefly revealed through dialogue regarding executing Joker, "But if I do that, if I allow myself to go down that place...I'll never come back." It manages to pack quite a proverbial punch in its shorter length. The voice performance of Greenwood is very well likely the second best of Batman in dramatic animated media only after Kevin Conroy. Ackles excels as the Red Hood, and DiMaggio, an accomplished voice actor, turns in a sinister take on Joker that loses nothing of the madness that is synonymous with the character. Other great casting includes Neil Patrick Harris as Nightwing, Jason Isaacs as Ra's al Ghul, and Vincent Martella as young Robin / Jason Todd. Under the Red Hood hooks the audience with an unashamedly intense prologue, but the remainder of the film is more balanced so that it is not a one-trick pony. Other direct adaptations of Batman comic story arcs considered but are standalone films are Batman: The Killing Joke, Batman: Gotham by Gaslight, and Batman: The Doom that Came to Gotham. I also considered a couple of films that are sourced from the comics that share continuity with each other, Batman: Year One and Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, and two additional standalone films that have no direct source, Batman: Assault on Arkham (though it connects to the Arkhamverse of the games) and Batman: Soul of the Dragon. Lastly, I also considered the interactive film, Batman: Death in the Family, in which one of the story tracks is mostly Batman retelling this film, but they all start the same as Under the Red Hood. These were all released under the DCUAOM banner.
Oddly, no other Batman film celebrates the entire legacy of the character as The LEGO Batman Movie does. No other Batman film celebrates the entire legacy at all. It is not the basis of the entire film but ever present. Admittedly, the film is aptly named as it does this very much with the humor that has come to define LEGO-branded media. This is a precedent set in Batman's intro voiceover with lines like, "DC...the house that Batman built," which isn't even fully untrue. As is a common trend among both comedy and family movies, it contains some more dramatic undertones. These are surprisingly mature while yet remaining accessible and include isolation versus the ability to rely on others and moving on in light of grief. Arnett's Batman / Bruce Wayne is appropriately gruff with a touch of parody of darker takes, Cera's Robin / Dick Grayson balances it out with his perpetual optimism, and Dawson as the very capable Batgirl / Barbara Gordon meshes with them to form the Bat-trinity. Other great voicework is heard from Ralph Fiennes and Zach Galifianakis as Alfred (appropriately making it a trinity plus one) and Joker, respectively, plus two cameo role reprisals from Billy Dee Williams as Two-Face and Zoë Kravitz as Catwoman. LEGO Batman somehow finds the niche of fun and serious, spoof and tribute, with a wide audience appeal. I considered other movies with a unique attribute, and they are (and what that is): LEGO Batman: The Movie - DC Super Heroes Unite, a direct adaptation of LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes that uses cutscenes from the video game, Batman: Death in the Family with its interactive feature, its choices essentially creating seven different films with the same beginning and different endings, and Batman vs. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles with its merging of two franchises that may not seem logical at first but is in fact very much so.
"East Meets West" is part of the tagline for Batman Ninja, and while that is meant to sell units, it is actually quite accurate. Before I ever came across this film, I coined the term "Western Anime" by which I mean western franchise content made by anime creators which has also included The Matrix and Star Wars among others, and I have not ever been let down. Aside from the style, this film's premise is also captivating, reimagining Batman and many known characters into feudal Japan. I have included three of each set of actors above, but I am only familiar at this point with the dubbed version of the film. Smith had previous experience with voicing character including the prequel game, Batman: Arkham Origins, and that familiarity shines through in his work here. Voicing Joker is tricky, because there are expectations one must meet but also no one wants a copycat, and Hale handles this balance beautifully. Tatasciore has double duty here as Gorilla Grodd and Deathstroke, the latter he previously had voiced in Young Justice. The English dub cast includes Grey Griffin (DeLisle) who voices Catwoman, a previous role for her in other projects such as the games Batman: Arkham City and Injustice: Gods Among Us, Tom Kenney as Penguin, a role he has voiced multiple times starting with The Batman (2004-2008), and Tara Strong, taking on two roles she had played before and has again since, Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy. The story is well-told with a few twists, but what really impresses me is the artwork, particularly a sequence in a different style near the middle of the film. It might be said as Batman does, "This is madness," but that is part of the appeal to me. I also considered two other Batman anime, Batman: Gotham Knight and the sequel to Batman Ninja, Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League. Gotham Knight is distinctive for three other reasons: it is semi-canon to The Dark Knight trilogy, it is an anthology film, and it is Kevin Conroy's first return to the role after the DCAU.
In what is becoming tradition, this is very likely a living document, but probably never to be updated here. That is in spite of the fact that there are three major Batman projects in development, a sequel to The Batman, a separate film in the DCU continuity, and most exciting to me, finally an adaptation of Knightfall. Also as before, there were some films that were much more difficult to not give a slot than others. There were absolutely no plans for this, but I notice that each film here includes the Joker. It is worth noting that some of the more serious contenders do break this mold, though. With that, signing off in 10, 9, 8, 7...
Next up...Favorite Movie Quotes, with a twist!
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