Batman Forever

***Batman Forever*** is a 1995 American superhero film directed by Joel Schumacher and produced by Tim Burton, based on the DC Comics character Batman by Bill Finger and Bob Kane. The third installment of Warner Bros.' initial *Batman* film series, it is a standalone sequel to *Batman Returns* starring Val Kilmer and replacing Michael Keaton as Bruce Wayne / Batman, alongside Tommy Lee Jones, Jim Carrey, Nicole Kidman, Chris O'Donnell, Michael Gough, and Pat Hingle. The plot focuses on Batman trying to stop Two-Face and the Riddler in their scheme to extract information from all the minds in Gotham City while adopting an orphaned acrobat named Dick Grayson—who becomes his sidekick, Robin—and developing feelings for psychologist Dr. Chase Meridian.

Schumacher mostly eschewed the dark, dystopian atmosphere of Burton's films by drawing inspiration from the Batman comic books of the Dick Sprang era, as well as the 1960s television series, but without the campiness of the next film. Batman's alter ego, Bruce Wayne is much more prominent in the film, and like in *mh:besttvshows:Batman: The Animated Series*, he is shown to be actively involved in the management of Wayne Enterprises. After Keaton chose not to reprise his role, William Baldwin and Ethan Hawke were considered as a replacement before Val Kilmer joined the cast.

*Batman Forever* was released on June 16, 1995, to mixed reviews from critics, who praised the cinematography, music, action sequences, and performances of Carrey and Jones, but criticized the CGI, costume designs, and tonal departure from previous films. The film was a box office success, grossing over $336 million worldwide, and became the fourth-highest-grossing film worldwide in 1995. It was followed by *Batman & Robin* in 1997, with Schumacher returning as the director, Chris O'Donnell returning as Robin, and George Clooney replacing Kilmer as Batman.

## Plot

In Gotham City, costumed vigilante Batman defuses a hostage situation orchestrated by a arch-criminal known as Two-Face, formerly district attorney Harvey Dent. Flashbacks reveal that Two-Face was disfigured with acid by mobster Sal Maroni, which Batman failed to prevent, causing Dent to develop a split personality. Edward Nygma, an eccentric researcher at Wayne Enterprises, approaches his employer, Bruce Wayne (Batman's civilian identity), with an invention that can beam television signals directly into a person's brain. Bruce rejects the device, concerned the technology could manipulate minds. After killing his supervisor and staging it as a suicide, Nygma resigns and plots revenge against Bruce, sending him riddles. Criminal psychologist Dr. Chase Meridian diagnoses Nygma as psychotic.

Bruce attends a Haly's Circus event with Chase. Two-Face hijacks the event and threatens to detonate a bomb unless Batman surrenders. Dick Grayson, the youngest member of the Flying Graysons, manages to throw the bomb into the river, but Two-Face kills his family. Bruce persuades the orphaned Dick to live at Wayne Manor as his ward, and Dick discovers Bruce is Batman. Determined to avenge his family, Dick demands to join Batman in crime-fighting, hoping to kill Two-Face, but Bruce refuses.

Nygma, inspired by Two-Face, adopts a criminal persona, the Riddler, and allies with Two-Face. They commit a series of robberies to finance Nygma's new company and help mass-produce his brainwave device, the "Box", which steals information from users' minds and transfers it to Nygma's, which makes him smarter in the process. At a party hosted by Nygma, Batman pursues Two-Face and is almost killed but is saved by Dick.

Batman visits Chase, who explains that she has fallen in love with Bruce. He reveals to her his secret identity. The Riddler and Two-Face, having discovered Bruce's secret through the Box, blow up the Batcave, shooting Bruce and kidnapping Chase. As Bruce recovers, he and his butler, Alfred, deduce that Nygma is the Riddler when they figure out the final clue to his riddle. Bruce finally accepts Dick as Batman's partner, Robin.

At the Riddler's lair, Robin almost kills Two-Face but spares him, who holds him at gunpoint. The Riddler reveals that Chase and Robin are bound and gagged in tubes above a deadly drop, giving Batman the chance to save only one. Batman distracts the Riddler with a riddle, before destroying the Riddler's brainwave receiver with a Batarang, draining the Riddler's mind, and allowing Batman to rescue both. Two-Face corners them and determines their fate by flipping a coin, but Batman throws a handful of identical coins in the air, causing Two-Face to stumble in confusion and fall to his death.

Committed to Arkham Asylum, Nygma now exclaims that he is Batman, which leads Chase to remark that he is truly insane. Bruce resumes his crusade as Batman, with Robin as his partner.

## Production

### Development

> "I always hated those titles like *Batman Forever*. That sounds like a tattoo that somebody would get when they're on drugs or something. Or something some kid would write in the yearbook." — Producer Tim Burton
>
>

*mh:greatestmovies:Batman Returns* was released in 1992 with financial success and generally favorable reviews from critics, but Warner Bros. was disappointed with its box office run, having made $150 million less than the first film. After *Batman Returns* was deemed too dark and inappropriate for children, with McDonald's even recalling their Happy Meal tie-in, Warner Bros. decided that this was the primary cause of the film's financial results and asked Burton to step down in favor of another director; while Sam Raimi and John McTiernan were considered, Joel Schumacher was selected by Warner Bros. after his job in *The Client* and approved by Burton. Husband-and-wife screenwriting couple Lee and Janet Scott-Batchler were brought on to write the script and agreed with Burton that "the key element to Batman is his duality. And it's not just that Batman is Bruce Wayne."

Their original script introduced a psychotic Riddler with a pet rat accompanying him. The story elements and much of the dialogue still remained in the finished film, though Schumacher felt it could be "lighte[ne]d down". Keaton initially approved the selection of Schumacher as director and planned on reprising his role as Batman from the first two films. Schumacher claims he originally had in mind an adaptation of Frank Miller's *Batman: Year One* and Keaton claimed that he was enthusiastic about the idea. Warner Bros. rejected the idea as they wanted a sequel, not a prequel, though Schumacher was able to include very brief events in Bruce Wayne's childhood with some events of the comic *The Dark Knight Returns*. Akiva Goldsman, who worked with Schumacher on *The Client*, was brought in to rewrite the script, deleting the initial idea of bringing in the Scarecrow as a villain with Riddler, and the return of Catwoman. Burton, who now was more interested in directing *|Ed Wood*, later reflected he was taken aback by some of the focus group meetings for *Batman Forever*, a title he hated. Producer Peter MacGregor-Scott represented the studio's aim in making a film for the MTV Generation with full merchandising appeal.

### Casting

Production went on a fast track with Rene Russo cast as Chase Meridian but Keaton decided not to reprise Batman because he did not like the direction the series was headed in and rejected the script. Keaton also wanted to pursue "more interesting roles", turning down $15 million. A decision was made to go with a younger actor for Bruce Wayne, and an offer was made to Ethan Hawke, who turned it down but eventually regretted the decision. Schumacher had seen Val Kilmer in *mh:greatestmovies:Tombstone*, but was also interested in mh:greatestmovies:Keanu Reeves (who would later voice Bruce Wayne / Batman in *DC: League of Super-Pets*), Alec and William Baldwin, Dean Cain, Tom Hanks, Kurt Russell, Ralph Fiennes (who would later voice Alfred Pennyworth in *mh:greatestmovies:The Lego Batman Movie*), Daniel Day-Lewis and Johnny Depp. Cain was scrapped as he was well known for starring in the TV series *Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman*. Kilmer, who as a child visited the studios where the 1960s series was recorded and shortly before had visited a bat cave in Africa, was contacted by his agent for the role. Kilmer signed on without reading the script or knowing who the director was.

With Kilmer's casting, Warner Bros. dropped Russo, considering her too old to be paired with Kilmer. Sandra Bullock, Robin Wright, Jeanne Tripplehorn and Linda Hamilton were all considered for the role, which was eventually recast with Nicole Kidman. Billy Dee Williams took the role of Harvey Dent in *Batman* on the possibility of portraying Two-Face in a sequel, but Schumacher cast Tommy Lee Jones in the role, although Al Pacino, Clint Eastwood, Martin Sheen and Robert De Niro were considered, after working with him on *The Client*. Jones was reluctant to accept the role, but did so at his son's insistence. Robin Williams was in discussions to be the Riddler at one point but the role was eventually given to Jim Carrey with Williams only finding out in the trades. In a 2003 interview, Schumacher said mh:excellentmusic:Michael Jackson lobbied hard for the role, but was turned down before Jim Carrey was cast. Other actors considered were John Malkovich, Brad Dourif (considered before by Burton to portray Scarecrow, and was his original choice to portray The Joker, before being rejected by the Studio), Kelsey Grammer, Micky Dolenz, Matthew Broderick, Phil Hartman, Steve Martin, Adam Sandler and Rob Schneider. Mark Hamill was going to get the role, but had to turn it down due to contract issues, especially with *mh:besttvshows:Batman: The Animated Series* (being The Joker's voice). Robin appeared in the shooting script for *Batman Returns* but was deleted due to the use of too many characters. Marlon Wayans had been cast in the role and signed on for a potential sequel, but when Schumacher took over, he decided to open up casting to other actors. Leonardo DiCaprio was considered, but decided not to pursue the role after a meeting with Schumacher. Matt Damon, Corey Haim, Corey Feldman, Mark Wahlberg, Michael Worth, Danny Dyer, Toby Stephens, Ewan McGregor, Jude Law, Alan Cumming, Christian Bale (who would later star as Batman/Bruce Wayne in *The Dark Knight* trilogy), and Scott Speedman Chris O'Donnell was cast and Mitch Gaylord served as his stunt double, and also portrayed Mitch Grayson, Dick's older brother, created for the film. Schumacher attempted to create a cameo role for Bono as his MacPhisto character, but both came to agree it was not suitable for the film.

### Filming

Principal photography began on September 24, 1994, and wrapped on March 5, 1995. Schumacher hired Barbara Ling for production design, claiming that the film needed a "force" and good design. Ling could "advance on it". Schumacher wanted a design in no way connected to the previous films and instead inspired by the images from the *Batman* comic books seen in the 1940s/early 1950s and New York City architecture in the 1930s, with a combination of modern Tokyo. He also wanted a "city with personality," with more statues, as well as various amounts of neon.

Schumacher had problems with Kilmer, whom he described as "childish and impossible," reporting that he fought with various crewmen and refused to speak to Schumacher for two weeks after the director told him to stop being rude. Schumacher also mentioned Tommy Lee Jones as a source of trouble: "Jim Carrey was a gentleman, and Tommy Lee was threatened by him. I'm tired of defending overpaid, overprivileged actors. I pray I don't work with them again." Carrey later acknowledged Jones was not friendly to him, telling him once off-set during the production, "I hate you. I really don't like you ... I cannot sanction your buffoonery."

### Design and effects

Rick Baker designed the prosthetic makeup. John Dykstra, Andrew Adamson, and Jim Rygiel served as visual effects supervisors, with Pacific Data Images also contributing to visual effects work. PDI provided a computer-generated Batman for complicated stunts. For the costume design, producer Peter MacGregor-Scott claimed that 146 workers were at one point working together. Batman's costume was redesigned along the lines of a more "MTV organic, and edgier feel" to the suit. Sound editing and mixing were supervised by Bruce Stambler and John Levesque, which included trips to caves to record bat sounds. A new Batmobile was designed for *Batman Forever*, with two cars being constructed, one for stunt purposes and one for close-ups. Swiss surrealist painter H. R. Giger provided his version for the Batmobile but it was considered too sinister for the film.

The film used some motion capture for certain special effects. Warner Bros had acquired motion capture technology from arcade video game company Acclaim Entertainment for use in the film's production.

### Deleted scenes

*Batman Forever* went through a few major edits before its release. Originally darker than the final product, the film's original length was closer to 2 hours and 40 minutes, according to Schumacher. There was talk of an extended cut being released to DVD for the film's 10th anniversary in 2005. While all four previous *Batman* films were given special-edition DVD releases on the same day as the *mh:greatestmovies:Batman Begins* DVD release, none of them were given extended cuts, although some scenes were in the deleted scenes section in the special features.

## Good Qualities

1. The action scenes are still nicely done, with the catsuit being much more flexible and action-friendly than the previous versions.
2. The cinematography is beautiful.
3. Arkham Asylum from the comics finally makes an appearance in the *Batman* film series.
4. Robin finally makes an appearance in the *Batman* film series.
5. As mentioned, despite being campy, it does have some dark moments. And it still can be taken seriously at times at least.
6. Although Val Kilmer's performance wasn't great as mentioned above, he still does at least a better job playing Batman than George Clooney did in the next film.
7. Elliot Goldenthal's score is fantastic and the soundtrack (such as "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me" by U2 and "Kiss from a Rose" by Seal) was one of the most popular albums of the year, selling more than 2 million copies in the US alone.
8. To its credit, it was the first live-action Batman film to put on the focus on Bruce Wayne grappling with his double life and gave him plenty of character development.
9. Jim Carrey as the Riddler was great, despite the choice to imitate the character from the Batman 1966 TV series.
10. It's still a much better movie than its later sequel, *Batman & Robin*; despite its faults, you may still enjoy it.
11. Joel Schumacher's direction is consistently pointed toward maximalist bombast, so the film's *style*, intentionally clashing as it may be, is at least consistent in execution. There is a *lot* of energy on the screen!
12. The Riddler's riddles were pretty creative and memorable. Such as:
	* “If you look at the numbers on my face, you won’t find 13 any place.”
	* “Tear one off and scratch my head, what once was red is black instead.”
	* “The eight of us go forth not back, to protect our king from a foe’s attack.”
	* “We’re five little items of an everyday sort, you’ll find us all in a tennis court.”
13. It can be considered "so bad it's good".

## Bad Qualities

1. **Executive meddling:** After *mh:greatestmovies: Batman Returns* made less money than expected, the studio determined the reason to be the film being too dark and inappropriate for children. Consequently, director Tim Burton was replaced by Joel Schumacher and there were many changes made to the series' aesthetics and tone. The switch to a lighthearted and less dark direction was not only an attempt to increase the box office by making the film more accessible to families but also increase merchandise and licensing income from toys and promotional tie-ins.
	* Notably, fast-food giant McDonald's felt betrayed that their children's Happy Meals promoting *Batman Returns* were ultimately connected to the dreary and inappropriate end result and threatened to pull potential future promotional deals with the franchise barring a major change in the series' direction, going so far as refusing to sign any deal without full script access and having creative input on the costuming.
	* As a result of the tonal shift, Gotham City went from a depressing, industrial/gothic city (described in the '89 script as *"Hell erupted through the pavements and built a city"*) and turned into a contrasty, neon-lit circus likened by the creatives to nighttime Tokyo.
2. Thanks to copious amounts of footage being excised (most notably the subplot of Bruce's struggle to accept his role as Batman, which was the *basis of the film's title*) there is an inconsistent tone as the film shifts between attempts at drama or character development and scenes of cartoonish overacting without bridging material to help transition moods.
3. The leads are given odd directions in this movie:
	* Val Kilmer's performance as Bruce Wayne is inappropriately reserved in contrast to both the surrounding film and previous actor Michael Keaton's portrayal of the playboy.
	* Chris O' Donnell gives a confusing performance as Dick Grayson, alternating between smug & assured and whiny & bratty, often without reason.
4. **Continuity Error:** Harvey Dent was black in the previous two movies but now he's suddenly white?
	* It's most likely the movie was meant to be a reboot/standalone movie at the time, now it's considered non-canon or in an alternate timeline.
5. The villain portrayals feel like a downgrade from the two previous films, with the Riddler and Two-Face vying for the same role of "manic, over-the-top cartoon character". While Jim Carrey is an obvious choice to fill the Riddler's tights (the Emmy-winning Frank Gorshin performance of the '60s being the most prominent pop culture reference point for the character), Two-Face is a conundrum of a character, and Tommy Lee Jones is woefully miscast in the part.
	* The only established trait of Two-Face is his belief in chance as the only means of divining justice, often flipping a coin to determine his actions. Yet a scene late in the 2nd act has him repeatedly flipping a coin until he gets the result he wants... worse yet, this isn't a clever revelation that the character has been pulling one over on our heroes but a straight-up misunderstanding of who he is, as he ultimately ends up dying over his inability to make a choice without his beloved coin.
	* Jones' discomfort with the role and his co-star is palpable, as his demeanor seems to shift whenever they share the screen. According to Carrey, Jones was not a fan, telling him at the time "*I hate you. I really don’t like you.[...] I cannot sanction your buffoonery.*"
6. Inconsistencies that seem baffling to the story in general:
	* Why would Batman even appear in court, as seen in a news broadcast?
	* Batman's stance that Robin shouldn't kill Two-Face is hypocritical: after telling Robin that killing his own parents' murderer brought him no peace and that he wouldn't help Robin do the same, he himself kills Two-Face at the end of the movie.
	* There's a scene where Batman says that he's never fallen in love before, despite having a love interest in both of the previous films. And yes, the word "love" was used in those movies, too.
7. The movie tries to take on a more campy, toyetic approach than Burton's films did, such as the scene where the Batmobile drives up a wall, or where the Riddler and Two-Face are playing Battleship to sink Batman and Robin's vehicles.
8. The origin story of Harvey Dent/Two-Face feels very forced as it's only less than 1 minute and in the court, the footage mentioned above
	* In the video, Chemicals in court were spilled over his face which made him insane, which is very similar to the Joker from the first movie.
9. Dr. Chase Meridian is a creepy love interest, as she is stalkerish and deceitful, yet the movie seems to find no issues with it. Her sexual assault on Batman after calling him under the false pretense of a crime is treated as amusing and flirtatious.
10. The pacing can be sluggish or cartoony at times and lacks that tight direction that Burton's films had. It can also be attributed to the fact Schumacher was told to make the movie more kid-friendly but instead, he ended up making it more campy and similar to the 1966 Batman Series, and the inconsistent tone that the movie portrays also can make the pacing seem disjointed at times.
11. Bruce Wayne taking in Dick Grayson after his parents die doesn't make much sense; he's a fully grown man, with Bruce even calling him a "college student" derisively at one point. Gordon's handwave of Dick having nowhere else to go does a *lot* of the heavy lifting in this film.
12. Vestiges of cut plot threads linger throughout the film, primarily scenes surrounding the aftermath of the death of Bruce's parents, ultimately leading nowhere.
13. Numerous homoerotic oddities such as:
	* The Batman and Robin suits have sculpted nipples and oversized codpieces.
	* The infamous suit-up scene with a lingering closeup of Batman's foam rubber buttocks.
	* Edward has an infatuation with Bruce (the good doctor refers to his messages to Bruce as literal love letters) to the point of beginning to twin him when appearing in public, though it's ultimately portrayed as attempting to be a "bigger, better, smarter" version of Bruce.
14. Some of the dialogue is phoned in and there are a few one-liners that don't sound clever or funny.
15. Quite possibly the most awkward way of telling the audience a character knows how to fight without putting them in an actual fight: The Laundry Scene.

1. ↑ https://www.cbr.com/batman-forever-why-val-kilmer-replaced-michael-keaton-bruce-wayne/
2. ↑ Mark Salisbury and Tim Burton's Burton on Burton (page 155)
3. ↑ http://www.batman-online.com/features/2011/9/3/interview-with-batman-forever-screenwriter-janet-scott-batchler
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 https://www.mcall.com/news/mc-xpm-1993-11-07-2948980-story.html
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Shadows of the Bat: The Cinematic Saga of the Dark Knight-Reinventing a Hero, DVD, Warner Bros. (2005)
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 https://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,302969,00.html
7. ↑ https://www.variety.com/article/VR1117862593
8. ↑ https://www.cbsnews.com/news/michael-keaton-takes-wing-in-birdman/3/
9. ↑ http://www.details.com/celebrities-entertainment/movies-and-tv/201110/ethan-hawke-actor-woman-in-the-fifth
10. ↑ http://www.batman-on-film.com/dccomics-on-film\_JL-CRISIS-ON-TWO-EARTHS\_William-Baldwin-talks-Batman\_12-16-09.html
11. ↑ Ian Nathan's Hold me, thrill me, kiss me, Kilmer on *Empire* (pages=108–117)
12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 https://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,302503,00.html
13. ↑ Batman Heroes Profile: Harvey Dent, *Batman* Special Edition, DVD, Warner Bros. Home Video (2005)
14. ↑ https://www.filmstories.co.uk/features/batman-forever-and-its-villain-problem/
15. ↑ https://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,303022,00.html
16. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzHBWv1t30I
17. ↑ https://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,308987,00.html
18. ↑ Mike Thomas's Hey, what about that man in the glass booth? on *Chicago Sun-Times*
19. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20090226192703/http://www.avclub.com/articles/marlon-wayans%2C13500/
20. ↑ https://collider.com/matt-damon-robin-batman-movie/
21. ↑ https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a368806/danny-dyer-i-auditioned-for-robin-in-batman-robin/
22. ↑ https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/scott-speedman/bio/3030389434/
23. ↑ http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1994-12-16/entertainment/9412140581\_1\_joel-schumacher-batman-strange-days
24. ↑ https://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,308195,00.html
25. ↑ https://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,292752,00.html
26. ↑ https://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,293237,00.html
27. ↑ http://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/tommy-lee-jones-told-jim-carrey-i-hate-you-i-really-dont-like-you-20142910
28. ↑ https://books.google.com/books?id=9njZ482OYfwC
29. ↑ The Many Faces of Gotham City, DVD, Warner Bros.(2005)
30. ↑ https://books.google.com/books?id=oNSSw01RIw0C&pg=PA85
31. ↑ Out of the Shadows: The Production Design of Batman Forever, Batman Forever: Special Edition, DVD, Warner Bros (2005)
32. ↑ https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/batman-forever-story-behind-surprise-802804
33. ↑ https://archive.org/details/play-meter-volume-20-number-11-october-1994/Play%20Meter%20-%20Volume%2020%2C%20Number%2011%20-%20October%201994/page/22
34. ↑ http://www.batman-on-film.com/opinion\_scissorpuppy\_forever.html