Sept 15: Batman

"The Dark Knight of Gotham City begins his war on crime with his first major enemy being the clownishly homicidal Joker."

Directed by: Tim Burton, Rated: PG-13, 126 minutes

Tim Burton's Batman is what turned me onto The Dark Knight. As a young kid, looking for the "ultimate superhero" to worship and idolize, I found so much awesome in Batman that I was immediately hooked. The suit, the gadgets, and the Batmobile gave me something I not only wanted to be a part of, but awesome toys to play with as well (and as a kid, toys are king). Then, just as I was getting into the movies, a glorious thing happened. Batman: The Animated Series premiered and I just about lost it. I couldn't get enough of Gotham's Finest and the obsession rolled in faster than a Batrang flying at a gang of criminals. Now, whenever I hear Danny Elfman's memorable Batman theme, I go back to my childhood and worship the Bat even more, tapping into my nostalgia for a quick fix. 

The movie also gave me the most memorable VHS cover of all time. Just the Bat Symbol- so simple. 

Burton's Batman skips the origin story for the hero (played by Michael Keaton) and focuses on his greatest nemesis, The Joker (Jack Nicholson). The film starts with Batman already doing what he does, but alludes to the fact that he's still a mysterious figure that's popped up in Gotham City. We then see Jack Napier, a professional criminal who's looking to move up in the underworld. After a chemical accident turns his skin white and leaves a permanent smile on his face, Napier takes on the persona of The Joker, a man hellbent on destroying Gotham and taking control of the city. Driven insane by his accident, the man will not stop at nothing to take over and stop the Batman from doing any more good for the city. As The Joker begins his takeover by contaminating the city's hygiene supplies (makeup, deodorant, hairspray, etc.), turning all those who use any products into grin-faced corpses, Batman must figure out a way to stop him, while juggling a love interest (Vicky Vale played by Kim Bassinger), who's a little too curious as to what's going on in the city. 

The Clown Prince finally portrayed as a homicidal freak. 

While I appreciate the film starting off after Bruce Wayne takes on the cowl, the semi-focus on the origin of The Joker is a little out of place. I know a part of it is faithful to the comics, but I don't see how a man falling into a vat of chemicals makes him bat-shit crazy and insane. I would have much preferred to see The Joker exist already, and simply bring his mischief and chaos to Gotham in full force. Luckily, even that smallest bit of disappointment is almost washed away immediately with Jack Nicholson's performance. He steals every scene he is in and seeing his trademark grin (stretched a little wider for the role) and hearing him laugh like a mad man never gets old. His gadgets are just as entertaining and the more comedic route he goes about the role makes his darker moments even creepier. Michael Keaton also does a terrific job as Bruce Wayne, even though I've never thought he fits the role physically. However, even then he's just not on screen as much as I remembered. There's just a lot more focus on The Joker and his story. 

Keaton's Bruce/Batman focuses much more on the gadgets than brute force. He's still a stud. 

While I could go on for days about the film, I'll wrap up saying that Batman really isn't as good as I remember it being. Maybe a part of that is having the Nolan Dark Knight trilogy fresh in my mind, or maybe that times have changed so much that a somewhat campy adaptation just doesn't do it anymore. I actually prefer the animated series over this film and feel the colorful villain and over-the-top style fits much better when hand-drawn. Batman will forever have a place in my heart and I will never downright hate the film, but I have to say it has not aged as well as I hoped. The pacing is a little weak (back to the focusing on The Joker issues) and the entire film looks like it's on one giant sound stage. To argue that, however, one could say that it's a faithful adaptation to the comics, which I agree on, but I guess these days I'm just looking for a bit more from my superheroes, even if it's Batman. 

The Good:

seeing Batman in a live-action movie and realizing how much the film did for the hero and comic book adaptations as a whole (and of course, Nicholson)

The Bad:

too much camp in a post-camp world, feeling more out of place today than anything else

The Ugly:

realizing the film isn't as great as I remembered, with plenty of flaws that I now see as a more "experienced" movie-watcher

Overall: 7.8/10

Trailer:

June 3: Mars Attacks!

The Earth is invaded by Martians with irresistible weapons and a cruel sense of humor.

It is always sad watching a movie you remember loving as a kid and then, only now, realizing how bad of a movie it really is. Some times, these films should just stay in the crevices of your younger mind, lingering simply to thoughts of nostalgia. Okay, enough of the sermon and onto the review. Mars Attacks! is a very bad movie. Packed with nearly every star that was relevant in 1996, the film attempts to be a spoof of the old sci-fi movies of the 50s and 60s, even channeling Tim Burton's earlier inspiration in Ed Wood. However, Mars Attacks! does not come off as clever, or spoofy?, just bad. The film does not spoof the films of yesteryear and instead mimics and duplicates them in horrible ways. 

The guys at Mystery Science Theater 3000 would have a field day with Mars Attacks!

To give you an idea of how "grand" the film tries to be, just take a look at the cast. The movie stars Jack Nicholson, Glen Close, Pierce Brosnan, Natalie Portman, Christina Applegate, Jack Black, Annette Benning, Danny DeVito, Jim Brown, Pam Grier, Martin Short, Sarah Jessica Parker, Michael J. Fox, Rod Steiger, and yes, even Tom Jones. It's absolutely ridiculous that so many people (most of them at the peaks of their careers in 1996) came together to make this film. You would also think, that with this much talent, the film would be much better than it is. However, even then, you can't put the blame on the cast, because for the most part, they all know it's bad, and just have fun with what little script and ideas they were given. The plot tells the story of a Martian invasion on earth and shows what happens at all corners of the country. Nicholson plays the president, and while don't think I could ever see the Joker in the Oval Office, his attempt at being the Leader of the Free World is one of the few entertaining aspects to the film. I could go on and explain who every person plays, but then this review would be ten pages long and certainly the most tedious read. And, it really doesn't matter either. Each actor pops up here and there, with his/her encounter with the aliens in some way or another. It's here where the plot suffers, as the constant jumping around just makes everything a much bigger mess than it already is. The film implodes in on itself, as the weight of the cast and the over-the-top attempt to be some satirical spoof of Old Hollywood ruins the film. 

But even as bad as the film really is, I will always love the Ack-ing, Nitrogen breathing aliens who turn people into Christmas skeletons with their death rays. 

If you have already seen Mars Attacks! and have fond memories of the film like I used to, I would definitely recommend skipping a new viewing of the film. Let it lay in the past as something enjoyable and move on to bigger and better things. If, however, you have never seen the film, I won't say it's worth watching. I certainly cannot say the movie is great and while I attempt to think of any suggestions on what could have been changed to make it better, I draw a blank as the film is really too bad to be fixed. I know that Tim Burton has a huge love for older movies, especially the sub-genre, cult "classics" and I know his attempt to pay homage to those same films was filled with respect and his own case of being a fan-boy, but I cannot praise the film for those aspects alone. 

The Good:

the martians look good and are pretty amusing

The Bad:

a complete lack of a solid script and what little there is, is messier than the inside of a space helmet after an alien's head explodes inside

The Ugly:

wondering if this mega-cast "comedy" was a precursor to the likes of Valentine's Day and New Year's Eve, or even a foreshadowing that no matter how many stars you pack into a turd, it's still a piece of shit... just shinier

Overall: 3.5/10

Trailer:

*NEW FEATURE

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Discussion:

After watching Men in Black last night and Mars Attacks! tonight, I am thinking of doing an alien movie week, leading up to Prometheus next weekend. Thoughts? Suggestions?