Films

Batman (1989)
[4th or so watch]

I realised yesterday that I haven't watched a Batman film since the Adam West one three years ago, and I haven't watched one of the modern (i.e. Tim Burton and later) ones since I saw The Dark Knight in cinemas! With my curiosity piqued, I worked out that I probably haven't watched the others (i.e. Batman, Returns, Forever, and Robin, Begins) since 2006. That's like forever.

So, with the final part of Nolan's Bat trilogy less than two weeks away, I thought, "what better time to re-watch them all?" So I intend to.

Main thought after this one is how weird it is watching it in the wake of Nolan's films. This used to be the dark and serious take on superheroes, treating them in a more grown-up fashion. Now, it looks positively comic book-y. Sure, it's a bit grown-up -- there's elements of psychology and adult relationships, not just Boy's Own Adventure -- but the level of heightened reality and camp... nothing like comic book adaptations now.

Also, you forget just how true it was that the earlier Batman films focussed more on the villains than the hero. Batman's in the first scene, but that's it for a while, and it takes Bruce Wayne ages to appear. The story follows Jack Napier/the Joker and a pair of journalists, primarily Vicki Vale, though (again) I think it's easy to forget how prominent her partner (Alexander Knox, played by Robert Wuhl) is. The film puts a little more emphasis on Wayne/Batman later on, but for a hefty chunk it's not really about him at all. You can really see why Nolan & co thought that was a seam waiting to be tapped when it came to Begins.

(Incidentally, I first saw Batman when I was a kid, so I have no idea how many times I've actually seen it. Same goes for Returns (same situation) and Forever (which I saw in the cinema, but don't really know how many times I may've watched it on TV, etc). All of these numbers are, therefore, a guesstimate.)