MIDDLE-AGED MATINEE! #17 - 'Batman' (1989)

5/5 Stars

It’s 1989 and I’m heading to the Rialto theater with my dad. Outside, there is a man dressed as Batman to entertain the kids outside because even in a small place such as El Dorado, Arkansas, the new movie known as “Batman” was an event to behold!

At the age of four, this was the first movie that I ever saw in theaters and I had a big smile on my face the whole time. Now, 35 years later on what is affectionately known as Batman Day, I find myself sitting in a theater getting ready to watch it on the big screen yet again. When the credits begin to roll and that familiar Danny Elfman theme song begins, the smile quickly returns and almost never leaves my face.

I think that it goes without saying that I have loved “Batman Begins”, “The Dark Knight”, and even the latest rendition of the character found in 2022’s “The Batman”. However, director Tim Burton’s version of the character will always hold a special place in my heart because of that initial viewing over three decades ago.

Michael Keaton and Kim Basinger star as Batman and Vicki Vale in 'Batman'!

In this movie, Batman is still a largely unknown vigilante that is lurking in the shadows ready to strike any criminals who want to do harm to others. This includes Jack Napier (Jack Nicholson), a criminal enforcer who Batman attacks at a chemical factory that Napier was trying to raid. At first, it seems that Batman loses Napier into a vat of chemicals but soon both Batman and the city of Gotham are introduced to Napier’s new alter ego, the Joker!

The first thing that I love about this movie is the film noir setting that Burton gives the whole piece. The criminals that Batman faces beyond the Joker feel like they belong in film noirs from the 1950s. The Joker doesn’t really care to take over these crime families, though. He wants to just take them out so he can begin a whole new reign of terror that justifies having someone that dresses up like a bat in order to stop him.

The story is helped by the fact that the Joker was played by Jack Nicholson, an actor that seemed born to play the role. The producers wanted to cast Nicholson so they would have a star to bank on. This is like when the filmmakers cast Marlon Brando in 1978’s “Superman” as Jor El, Superman’s biological father. Thankfully, it just so happened that Nicholson was up to playing the role and accepted the part.

Jack Nicholson stars as the psychotic Joker in 'Batman'!

Another person who is perfect for their role is Michael Keaton as Bruce Wayne/Batman. When he was cast back in ‘88, the internet before it was the internet lost their collective minds. At the time, all they remembered was the campy 1966 television show starring Adam West so they were afraid that Burton, hot off the success of the hit comedy film “Beetlejuice” that also starred Keaton, wasn’t going to take the new Batman movie seriously.

Their fears turned out to be unfounded as Keaton proved to be perfect as Batman and, to this day, he is honestly my favorite live-action Batman. He has a charming yet awkward Bruce Wayne, a reclusive millionaire that is able to attract Kim Basinger’s Vicki Vale but only subtly hides Wayne’s tortured past.

As Batman, he is the perfect brooding no-nonsense Batman that comes in to take out the bad guys. Now, I must admit that he has no problem killing the bad guys in this movie and I know that rubs purists the wrong way, but I would simply remind them that there were past versions of the comic when Batman was quite a bit loose with his whole “no kill” rule so I’ve learned not to care if filmmakers ignore it so long as the movie is good.

Finally, there is Elfman’s iconic score that has to be the definitive Batman score of all time. When the theme begins to play, you know that Batman is on the way and that things will indeed get nuts.

This is a movie that I’ve watched dozens of times since its release 35 years ago. Yes, other great and not so great Batman films have come along since. Where those films stand in the franchise will continue to be debated, but one thing's for sure. Burton’s “Batman” helped set the stage and, more importantly, the tone for the better Batman films and, overall, it foreshadowed the eventual rise of the modern day superhero film in Hollywood.