Batman & Robin

This article about the 1997 film.

* For the serial 1949 serial see Batman and Robin (1949 serial).

Batman is a 1997 American superhero film based on the DC Comics characters Batman and Robin. It is the fourth and final instalment of Warner Bros.' initial *Batman* film series. The film was directed by Joel Schumacher and written by Akiva Goldsman. It stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, George Clooney, Chris O'Donnell, Alicia Silverstone, and Uma Thurman. *Batman & Robin* tells the story of the titular characters as they attempt to prevent Mr. Freeze and Poison Ivy from freezing all mankind to death and repopulating the earth with mutant plants, while at the same time struggling to keep their partnership together. It is also to date the only live-action film appearance of Batgirl, who helps the title characters fight the villains.

## Plot

In Gotham, one year after the defeat of Two-Face and the Riddler, Batman and Robin attempt to thwart Mr. Freeze from robbing diamonds from the natural history museum, but he steals one and flees. Mr. Freeze was originally Dr. Victor Fries, a doctor working to develop a cure for MacGregor's syndrome to heal his terminally ill wife. Fries was forced to wear a cryogenic suit powered by diamonds after becoming unable to live at normal temperatures following a lab accident.

At a Wayne Enterprises lab in Brazil, the botanist Dr. Pamela Isley is working under the deranged Dr. Jason Woodrue, experimenting with the Venom drug. She witnesses Woodrue use the formula to turn the violent, but diminutive, convicted serial murderer Antonio Diego into a hulking monstrosity dubbed "Bane". Woodrue and Isley argue over the use of the drug which ends when Woodrue attempts to kill her by overturning a shelf of various toxins. Despite Woodrue's efforts, she is resurrected, transforming into the beautiful and seductive Poison Ivy before exacting revenge; she kills Woodrue with her poisonous kiss, and sets fire to the lab, leaving it to burn down while she escapes with Bane. She finds that Wayne Enterprises funded Woodrue, thus she appropriates Bane as a muscle-bound thug, taking him with her to Gotham City. Meanwhile, Alfred Pennyworth's niece, Barbara Wilson, makes a surprise visit and is invited by Bruce Wayne to stay at Wayne Manor until she goes back to school.

Wayne Enterprises presents a new telescope for Gotham Observatory at a press conference interrupted by Isley. She proposes a project that could help the environment, but Bruce declines her offer, which would kill millions of people. That night, a charity event is held by Wayne Enterprises with special guests, Batman and Robin, and she decides to use her abilities to seduce them. Mr. Freeze crashes the party and steals a diamond from the event. Although he is captured by Batman and detained in Arkham Asylum, he eventually escapes with the help of Poison Ivy and Bane. Meanwhile, Dick discovers that Barbara has participated in drag races to raise money for Alfred, who is dying of MacGregor's syndrome.

Batman and Robin begin to have crime fighting relationship problems because of Ivy's seductive ability with Robin, but Bruce eventually convinces Dick to trust him. Poison Ivy is then able to contact Robin once more; she kisses him but fails to kill him due to Robin wearing rubber lips. Meanwhile, Barbara discovers the Batcave, where an AI version of Alfred reveals he has made Barbara her own suit. Barbara dons the suit and becomes Batgirl. Ivy captures Robin, but he gets rescued by Batman, and Batgirl arrives and subdues Ivy to get eaten by her throne plant, before revealing her identity to the pair.

Batman, Robin and Batgirl decide to go after Mr. Freeze together. By the time they get to the observatory where Mr. Freeze and Bane are, Gotham is completely frozen. Batgirl and Robin are attacked by Bane, but they eventually defeat him by kicking apart his venom tubes, stopping the flow of venom to his body. Bane collapses before transforming back to his original diminutive size of Antonio Diego and is left helpless on the ground.

Meanwhile Batman and Mr. Freeze begin to fight each other, with Batman defeating Mr. Freeze. Batgirl and Robin manage to unfreeze Gotham, and Batman shows Freeze a recording of Poison Ivy during her fight with Batgirl, who had informed the latter that she killed Mr. Freeze's wife. However, Batman informs Mr. Freeze that she is still alive, having been restored by them[*clarification needed*] in cryogenic slumber before being moved to Arkham Asylum, waiting for Mr. Freeze to finish his research. Batman proceeds to ask Mr. Freeze for the cure Mr. Freeze has created for the first stage of MacGregor's Syndrome to administer to Alfred, and Mr. Freeze atones for his misunderstanding by giving him the medicine he had developed.

Mr. Freeze is then detained in Arkham Asylum. Poison Ivy is also imprisoned in Arkham Asylum with a vengeful Mr. Freeze as her cellmate and he plans to get revenge on Poison Ivy for what she did to his wife. After Alfred is cured, everyone agrees to let Barbara stay at Wayne Manor.

## Cast

* Arnold Schwarzenegger as Dr. Victor Fries/Mr. Freeze
* George Clooney as Bruce Wayne/Batman
* Chris O'Donnell as Dick Grayson/Robin
* Uma Thurman as Dr. Pamela Isley/Poison Ivy
* Alicia Silverstone as Barbara Wilson/Batgirl
* Michael Gough as Alfred Pennyworth
* Pat Hingle as Commissioner James Gordon
* John Glover as Dr. Jason Woodrue
* Elle Macpherson as Julie Madison
* Vivica A. Fox as Ms. B. Haven
* Vendela Kirsebom as Nora Fries
* Elizabeth Sanders as Gossip Gerty
 Gotham's top gossip columnist.
* Robert "Jeep" Swenson as Bane
* Michael Reid MacKay as Antonio Diego/Bane
* Eric Lloyd as Young Bruce Wayne
* Jack Betts as Party Guest
* Patrick Leahy as Himself
* Jesse Ventura as Arkham Asylum Guard
* Nicky Katt as Spike
* John Ingle as The Doctor