How does "The Batman's" explosive finale stack up
to "Batman & Robin's" pun-filled finale? Does "Batman v. Superman:
Dawn of Justice" wear the kryptonite crown when it comes to Bat-finales? Holy climaxes, Batman!
There aren't a whole lot of people out there who would argue that Joel Schumacher's 1997
film "Batman & Robin" was a masterpiece. The bloated, flashy sequel to the 1995 hit "Batman
Forever" dialed the silliness way up to an unprecedented degree. While the television
series from 1966 starring Adam West was also very goofy, the humor was intentional. None of
the jokes in "Batman & Robin" land and the rest of it is basically an amusement park stunt show.
The climax of the film is no different. With Gotham City frozen, it's up to Batman, Robin,
and Batgirl to save the day. While that isn't a terrible premise for a fun and
campy adventure film, it's so noisy and cluttered that you can't appreciate any
of the heroics that we're supposed to find so exciting. On top of that, the characters are so
devoid of charisma and depth that we can't even force ourselves to care what happens to them.
With a few changes in the dialogue, casting, and tone, this could have been a loving big-budget
tribute to the 1966 series. Instead, it comes across as a cynical toy commercial.
"You're about to become compost!"
After the dark and twisted "Batman Returns," the franchise took a notably more family-friendly
approach with its next installment, "Batman Forever." The film is big,
bold, and incredibly uneven. While it contains some staggering imagery, kinetic cinematography,
and a fun performance from Jim Carrey as The Riddler, there isn't much of a story happening.
The action set pieces are linked together by scenes that hint at
interesting ideas and possibilities that never get a chance to develop.
"Nice bike."
"Hang out at a lot of biker bars, Bruce?"
Bruce coming to terms with his own rage over the murder of his parents in order to help the
grieving Dick Grayson cope with his own tragedy could have led to a thrilling conclusion, where
the heroes finally suit up and work together. Unfortunately, the conflict between them is
limited to a few arguments with no substance. So as huge and visually riveting as Batman and Robin
facing off against The Riddler and Two-Face may be on a purely cinematic level, the lack of any real
emotional resonance leaves this otherwise mostly entertaining film feeling hollow.
Tim Burton's second film about the Dark Knight, "Batman Returns," has all the ingredients of a
masterpiece. For one thing, it features an incredible cast playing iconic characters.
Also, Burton had just come off of a major creative victory with the stunning and sentimental modern
fairytale "Edward Scissorhands," suggesting his next project would be his magnum opus.
There are elements of genius here, but just like "Batman Forever," the story linking
them together is paper-thin. The tragedy of Oswald Cobblepot seeking revenge on a city that
rejected him could have been the perfect motivation for a truly maniacal villain.
Bruce and Selina's doomed romance could have set up one of the all-time greatest
love stories. But none of it leads to anything.
"Hey stud. I thought we had something together."
"We do.”
Most of the character motivations are as murky as sewer water, making it difficult to understand
why anything happening even matters. This makes it virtually impossible to get invested in the film's
climax. All the primary players are together, but we're not quite sure what brought them there.
Still, the Penguin's death is truly unsettling, as is Selina's even stranger murder of Max Shreck.
If nothing else, you remember what happens, even if you're not sure why they happen.
Some people may consider this a little high for the original "Batman" feature film. After all,
many fans consider it a borderline parody of the character. However, the film is closer
to the style and substance of the comics of the time than many fans might like to admit,
and at least the tone is consistent throughout. Also,
unlike some earlier entries on this list, the humor is intentional and actually funny.
"Listen to these riddles. Tell me if you interpret them as I do. 1. What has yellow skin and writes?"
"A ballpoint banana!"
"Right."
The movie is almost the greatest hits of the television series. The Penguin, Riddler,
Joker, and Catwoman have joined forces for world domination. Through a series of fiendish plans,
this unholy alliance gets close to accomplishing their dastardly goals,
but Batman and Robin never give up. With lots of comedy, exciting plot twists,
and a splash of romance, this film succeeds in delivering a crowd-pleasing experience.
The finale even features an all-out battle royale aboard a submarine, with Batman and
Robin clocking henchmen left and right, sending them into the sea. At one point, Batman takes on
a series of thugs while cradling a cat in one arm, before sending it off in a tiny, inflatable raft.
It's bright, colorful, intentionally silly, and the ending does not disappoint.
After the brilliant heights achieved in 2008's "The Dark Knight," there was no way Christopher
Nolan was going to top himself. That being said, "The Dark Knight Rises" makes a valiant attempt at
doing just that. Its scale is bigger, the tone is relentless, and Bane — though not as charismatic a
character as the Joker — is a complex adversary capable of pushing Batman to the very brink.
The problem lies in the decision to make this a concluding chapter of a trilogy, rather than
the Batman's next adventure. After setting up this fascinating universe in the previous
installments, we were denied the chance to see new interpretations of other fan-favorite characters.
This Batman story was ending just as it began. This led to an overly complex and
confusing plot that had to both establish new characters and tie them into Batman's origin,
instead of standing on their own.
While the film is still epic in scope and packed with phenomenal action sequences,
story inconsistencies and sudden revelations weigh the whole thing down.
Still, the image of Batman possibly flying off to his death to save the city is powerful,
and the suggestion that John Blake (aka Robin) is going to take up his
mantle allows the world to live on in the imaginations of fans everywhere.
The first cinematic pairing of Batman and Superman may not have been what everyone expected,
but it did result in some pretty great moments that almost outshine the film's weaknesses.
The ending is a prime example of all the things that do and do not work in the film.
For instance, the confusing plot orchestrated by Lex Luthor to have
Batman and Superman fight to the death is conveniently resolved when Superman
inadvertently informs Batman that their mothers share the same name.
"You're letting him kill Martha."
Also, Superman's sacrifice is both overblown and unnecessary.
We just met this Superman in the previous film, and we're already being asked to mourn his death
when we've had very little time to get to know him. It's treated like an enormously
tragic moment but it comes practically out of nowhere. Conversely, the inclusion of Wonder
Woman gives us the chill-inducing moment where we finally get to see DC's trinity stand together.
Just like the rest of the film, many of the climax's details are muddled and strange,
but the simple excitement of having three classic heroes joining forces
to defeat a common enemy is absolutely thrilling.
Matt Reeves' attempt to reconnect Batman to his noir detective roots has, appropriately enough,
a dark ending that feels like something out of Dashiell Hammett or Raymond Chandler.
Gotham has been largely destroyed, the result of Riddler's plan to detonate
bombs near the seawalls surrounding the city, sending rushing waters through
the streets and nearly killing hundreds of citizens gathered at a local arena.
Thankfully, Batman and Catwoman were there to help out, battling Riddler-wannabes
attempting to anonymously amplify the supervillain's destructive efforts.
Although they save characters like Bella Real and the late Mayor Mitchell's son, anybody you can
reasonably call a "good guy" in this film limps into the shadows at the end, licking their wounds.
Catwoman, realizing Batman is forever linked with Gotham, leaves the city. Bruce Wayne,
newly burdened by realizations about his beloved parents that make his mission of
vengeance far more muddled, says in voiceover: "The city is angry, scared ... like me."
With many of Gotham's most powerful men on both sides now dead, opportunities
seem to be opening up for folks like the Penguin. Riddler, now in prison,
has a next-door neighbor at Arkham who speaks of clowns and a "comeback story."
If nothing else, the end of "The Batman" seems to be setting up one heckuva sequel.
"The Dark Knight" is probably considered the best film on this list. It picked up the reins
of "Batman Begins" and built an even bigger and menacing world than before. Of course, Heath
Ledger's performance as the Joker was instantly legendary and remains a major contributing factor
to the film's success, but "The Dark Knight" is still an epic by any and every measure.
Which is why the end is such a letdown. Not to say that it's bad by any means,
it's just that the rest of the film to this point had been so dynamic and spectacular that the idea
of waiting to see if criminals on a boat will choose to destroy another boat doesn't measure up.
Also, we've seen Batman and the Joker face off on top of
a building before, and it was much more emotionally gratifying in 1989.
Yes, Harvey Dent's turn to evil following the murder of Rachel Dawes is tragic,
and the decision to let Batman take the rap for his crimes perfectly demonstrates what
makes him a great hero, but his defeat of the Joker falls a little flat. This
is an oversimplification of the ending, of course,
but one can't help and wonder what happened to the amazing momentum built up in the first two acts.
The 1989 release of Tim Burton's "Batman" was the introduction to the concept of a "dark" Batman
for many audiences. While comic book readers had been well aware of the character's many
gothic exploits, your average moviegoer probably just knew the Adam West Batman up to that point.
The film is tonally inconsistent, with a serviceable — if underwhelming — plot.
But it's all elevated by its ending. While the rest of the film is certainly entertaining and
still worth a re-watch today, it's the emotional impact of the ending that allows the movie
to stand tall as still being one of the very best cinematic outings for the caped crusader.
"You killed my parents."
"What? What are you talking about?"
"I made you, you made me first."
When it's revealed that the Joker was the man who gunned down his parents,
Batman pursues the mad clown through Gotham City and to the top of a church.
From here on out, Batman's mission isn't just about protecting his city — he's out for revenge.
Against the shadowy backdrop of the towering cathedral,
Joker tries everything to prevent Batman from seeking justice, but it is ultimately futile.
Despite the fact that this confrontation, and the motivations behind it, doesn't exactly honor the
comics, all is forgiven, because the final moments are so emotionally and narratively satisfying.
"Batman Begins" is so different from any of the films that came before that
it's hard to imagine it was released a mere eight years after "Batman & Robin."
The next two films in this trilogy would take this grounded reality even further, to the point that
they almost cease to be Batman movies and become movies that happen to feature Batman. "Begins"
however, is still holding onto some of the more outrageous elements of Batman's comic book
origins. The third act, with Scarecrow's nightmare toxin causing horrific hallucinations and the city
of Gotham tearing itself apart, plays out like something right out of the pages of a comic book.
There are innocent citizens losing their minds and a horse blowing flames from its nose — it
is absolute chaos, and Batman is using everything he has to stop it from getting
worse. The most rewarding moment, though, has to be Batman's final showdown with Ra's al Ghul.
The entire film sees Bruce trying to prove that murder isn't justice. So when he tells Ra's
"I won't kill you.
But I don't have to save you."
It's a brilliant moment that makes you want to stand up and cheer.
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