Batman Forever (1995) (part 1 of 14)
Nov 17, 2008
Cut to a close-up of Batman as he mentally prepares himself for his nightly assault on the criminal scourge of Gotham. Actually, if his facial expression is anything to go by, he’s trying to decide between stopping off at Burger King or Wendy’s. Seriously, I have cauliflower in my refrigerator that emotes better than Kilmer.
You know, from all the talk of bad blood between Kilmer and Schumacher, and Kilmer’s fairly respectable back catalogue of performances, I can’t help but wonder if his distinct lack of effort in this movie was meant to spite the director. If this is the case, then he clearly cut off his nose to spite his face. Kilmer’s portrayal of Batman has pretty much dropped off the cultural radar. These days, he’s like the George Lazenby of the Bat-universe. Hell, even Lewis Wilson’s 1943 portrayal is more fondly remembered.
“Bruce from Gotham, you’re on Talk Radio.”
“Hi, Barry, I’m narcoleptic and I think it’s having an adverse affect on my crime fighting career.”
Also in this sequence, Batman uses a Bat-omni-control-lever to accelerate, decelerate, and ignite the engines, almost by magic, regardless of the direction in which it’s being pushed or pulled. I’d suggest it was powered by brain waves, except there’s a notable absence of swirling green light (more on that later).
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