Batman Returns (1991) Movie Review

[potterriddle9]

I'd give it a 10/10

[TheKinKyMoFo]

Well said review

[301merlinoboss]

A ridiculous story...I understand where you're coming from but, it's a comic book movie. Some silliness is par for the course. This movie was still dark as well as interesting and entertaining. It's one of my favorite Batman movies, next to Mask of the Phantasm.

[aikiliam]

Is it me or is the Penguin's origin more like Killer Croc's?

[301merlinoboss]

@aikiliam Except for the mobster thing, yeah lol.

[xJoeEDangerouslyx]

I remember seeing this on opening day. It also happened to be my eighth birthday. My aunt was supposed to go with me, but she went into labor! My cousin Jen was born exactly eight years after me. Interestingly, I don't remember going to the hospital at all, but I remember seeing the flick. I also remember being slightly disappointed because I liked the first movie better. I now really don't like it. It was not Batman to me. B:TAS came out shortly after this, and I liked that much more.

[aMgVbros4aetas]

Best Character in this movie : Max Schreck. Walken steals the enitre movie! = )

[301merlinoboss]

@aMgVbros4aetas Absolutely.

[johnnyfive222]

I know you have your opinion. But I have to disagree with you here like a lot of people do. This movie was great and good. But I have to disagree with you respectfully

[deadstrider]

I loved this movie when I saw it first, I thought both movies done by Burton were great especially because the other two batman forever and batman and robin were pretty bad in comparison. This movie had a good lasting effect on many people and honestly you should have given it at least a 7. Hardly any movies live up to their sequels and i have to say this one was pretty damn close.

[MrSherlockWatson]

I agree with you on pretty much all of this, luv your reviews. I wonderr if after the sucsess of the first film they got cocky and went over the top with this.

[eekman87]

danny devito guilty of over acting?  you high man, his acting was the best. This movie is the best batman movie

[MrSherlockWatson]

@eekman87 Calm down, its his opinion :)

[thecosmicman123]

I like the way this movie was different from the other Batman movies. It had a more darker story which surprisingly worked well I thought. I'd give a 4 out of 5!

[RobRobertTheMusicMan]

1st Batman made 251 million, 2nd one made 162 million. I guess people were turned off by It. Maybe parents thought It was too violent for children to see. And dark. I do like this movie. The penguins with the rocket launchers are complete pea brains. You push a button and they would probably walk off a short pier.

[ShaDHP23]

I understand and respect your take on this film. Returns is one of my favorite Batman films(not counting the animated ones), and I quite enjoyed it. After listening to a handful of other opinions, I agree with some of what you have to say. The movie, while I still praise and love it, is hideously dated and the rocket-peguins were, I'll say, campy, but at the same time, is was a Burton film, in and out, and Burton has always been one of my favorite filmmakers.

[BRYANJONATHAN13]

Your review was awesome man

[PersonalJesus348]

This is not only a batman movie, its a Burton movie.

Its fucking awesome

[Angelus22]

I have to say, your views on Catwoman's character development and motivation are incredibly ignorant. She was the victim of sexism under Max Schreck, and her transformation into Catwoman reads as a metaphor of her coming into her femininity. She destroyed the department store as an act of retaliation against her primary oppressor, and her other choices in the film can be directly related to her fight against sexism. She's not a perfect character, but it's silly to reduce her to a "nut."

[NecroVMX]

@Angelus22 You're filling in blanks with information that you think makes sense, there's nothing in the film that actually points to any of that.

[Angelus22]

@NecroVMX So, her treatment as a supplicant and inferior to Max Schreck is not present? As is her (cliched) parody of the slogan "I am Woman, Hear Me Roar." when, in her first act as Catwoman, she rescues a woman about to be raped? Or her manipulation of Batman in their first encounter, preying on his subconscious sexism? Or her overall image, which severely resembles that of a Dominatrix, an archetype of a dominant, sexualized woman? I don't think that I'm filling many blanks on this issue.

[NecroVMX]

@Angelus22 Or you could say Max treated her that way because she's a jerk and Tim Burton has a bondage/leather fetish

[07liberian]

@NecroVMX I hope Phillip Seymour Hoffman desides to play The Penguin in the next movie.

His incredible acting especially his proformance as the villian in Mission Impossible 3, beating the shit out of Tom Cruise. He would be the perfect villian with some fight training.

What do you think ?

[NecroVMX]

@07liberian If the penguin is to be in the movie, I think he'll probably be a minor role, but I couldn't possibly think of a better actor then Hoffman

[Shenruss]

@NecroVMX While ur Burton view is true, you take away from Angelus's argument. Selena WAS heavily repressed in this film; in the comics, she was ALWAYS a dominating, skillful femme fatale, where as she has to psycho-trip into it here. Honestly, that DOES provide a REASON for her drastic change and vengeful, if not villianous, attitude. Had the story been better, she would have exposed Max, betrayed Penguin, bedded Bruce & left Gotham before capture to appear in a next film. What say u here, man?

[starball23]

Batman Retruns was released in 1992 not 1991

[splatadamful]

not to get picki but its 1992

[RavnDream]

Actually, Penguin's original plan was to kill all the firstborn sons. It was only sometime later Shreck convinces him to run for mayor. I figure the two villains were manipulating each other from their first meeting.

Yeah, this was more Tim Burton than it should've been. Call it a guilty pleasure, though, but I still like it. I blame my weird fascination for dark & depressing storylines. Nice review, btw.

[619wrestling]

I understand some of the things you're saying about the film but I don't agree. Now I'm not saying that you're wrong because it's your opinion and I respect that however this is my favorite Batman film of the original four. But like I said you have your opinion and a lot of my friends feel the same way you do so this is way I respect the review none the less. Good work!

[pissed7off]

Tim Burton's trying to imitate a movie that didn't exist at the time?

[Wadsy591]

My ranking:

1. Begins

2. Forever

3. Dark Knight

4. Batman

5. Returns

6. Batman & Robin

[okeanos317]

I like this movie as a film goer,though as a comic fan,this really doesn't stay true to the main characters like batman,catwoman,and penguin,thanks for the review,I really like this one out of the majority here on youtube :)

[dieselvox]

Regardless of whether or not you found her hot (I did), I've never heard Pfeiffer's performance described as anything but brilliant. As abysmal as Halle Berry's "Catwoman" film turned out to be,the only reason the concept it film managed to bounce around Hollywood for so long was because of the splash Michelle made in "Batman Returns."

Damn YT's text limits, but this film and "Batman 89" were groundbreaking movies and the impact "BR" in particular had on Nolan is evident.

[tthomaselli2]

@dieselvox

At least 'Catwoman', unlike 'Batman & Robin', was watchable.

[pissed7off]

@tthomaselli2

At least 'Batman & Robin' had Ahnold in it.

[PTSmash]

I see where you're coming from completely with this film, and despite some nitpicks I really like it. Burton actually didn't want a sequel but couldn't resist when offered more control. I hear that Batman went so brutal this time because Gotham is becoming more corrupt and its out of desperation. Max Schreck I think is Catwoman's living motivation; she knows what he is, she's tired of being stepped on, so she battles those who step on others and anyone who gets in her way.

[usayeed727]

I didn't actually like this film much. This was not actually at all in any shape or form better than the first, hell, it ain't even in the same league! By the way dude, it was released in 1992. The two main villains sucked ass, silly origin for both of them, and a stupid plot with the first born kids. Bullshit plot, and I gave the same rating as well. Definite 5/10. Great review man.

[TheChase86]

the nolan films are the best

[brunobb1]

1) Dark Night

2) Batman

3) Begins

4) Forever

5) Returns

6) Batman and Robin

[Corneliustheamoeba]

I just finished watching it for the first time. At first, I was just like you: I didn't like it. It was very dark but incredibly silly. Somewhere along the way, though, it started to grow on me. The action was a lot more refined than the original, Catwoman was pretty cool (even though she really had no reason for anything she was doing except for killing Shreck) and the Penguin could actually be kind of funny. It's not as good as 89, but IMO it's not as bad as you say, either.

[Wadsy591]

This is what I think of the Batman films -

Batman '89 - Great

Batman Returns - It's alright

Batman Forever - Great

Batman & Robin - Awful

Batman Begins - Awesome

The Dark Knight - Great

[Gallifrey1991]

i don't agree that Michelle Pfeiffer overacted. She was completely that character and it was a powerful performance.

[leon102]

I'm still trying to figure out, how she was resurrected by cats biting the shit out of her, and suddenly getting cat powers. I mean, were those cats radioactive, it makes no sense.

[desotowrong]

I mostly agree with this review, it was a visually stunning film and I loved the performances of the film. I think it could've benefited from a better ending where the Penguin didn't die. This is one of the times where a Batman movie was just too disturbing and depressing even for a hardcore fan like me. And the plot was just a little weak. Kind of overrated.

[tuworkzz]

I completely agree with this review.

The penguins with rocket packs, IMO, is an even more ridiculous moment than the Bat credit card.

[NecroVMX]

I think it's mediocre, many people think it's amazing, hence it's overrated. That's the only reason, it's simple logic.

[bats70]

well I don't think it's mediocre at all, actually alot of people have mixed reviews about it, like you and me, so I think it comes down to what you think of it and everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but I think its one of the BEST BATMAN MOVIES EVER MADE!!!

[NecroVMX]

It's only slightly better than the shit I just dumped out of my ass

[bats70]

well Im glad you think the movie is a piece of shit, thats basically what your saying, your review of the film is crap!

[NecroVMX]

nope, my review rules, you however are a currently being rolled around by a scarab.

In short, I rule, you fucking suck, and this movie is ass.

[Wadsy591]

@NecroVMX

I agree with you. I didn't mind Batman Returns, but compared to the Batman '89, Batman Forever, and the two Christopher Nolan ones, this one ain't such a big success. My biggest flaws were the lack of Bruce Wayne/Batman time making it more about the villains - and I didn't particularly like the Penguin or especially Catwoman that much.

[tthomaselli2]

@Wadsy591

At least 'Batman Returns' was better than 'Batman & Robin'.

[Wadsy591]

@tthomaselli2

Yeah I agree

[tthomaselli2]

@NecroVMX

bats70 has a point.; I liked this movie, as well.

At least it was better than 'Batman & Robin'.: :) .

[SavageBroadcast]

@NecroVMX

Enjoyable, none the less.

In fact, Batman Returns was the FIRST batman film I ever saw.

DON'T HATE ME!

[Wadsy591]

I have to agree with you, Returns was fair, nothing more. It was flawed, the villains weren't villains (Catwoman only after Batman, Penguin didn't become bad until 3/4 through), not enough appearances by Alfred, no Harvey Dent, Jim Gordan or anything. I did not like the Gotham City used on this film, as it did not feel like Gotham, I don't know eh.

I do like various aspects of this film but out of all 6 films, this only beats Batman & Robin. It is an overrated film, while Forever is underrated.

[bats70]

the movie is not 'overrated' I for one love this movie and how can you say that michelle pfeiffer looked creepy in the suit? that makes no sense, but to each is own.

[NecroVMX]

She looked creepy and the movie is overrated.

Simple.

[agentheroes89]

man nice review but it was released in 1992

[cutegirl00179]

This review is shit, this movie ROCKS!

[NecroVMX]

Nope, the movie is overrated, and I rule.

[tthomaselli2]

@cutegirl00179

Agreed.: :) .; At least it was better than 'Batman & Robin'.

[Maurcusj777]

he should do a superman 1,2,3,4, returns review

[NCslice911]

michelle pfeiffer's catwoman was awesome

[presleyj1]

This is a excellent movie, just not a good "Bat-Man" movie. I mean, it's a interesting Elseworlds tale. If you like Burton, you'll like it for sure, if not, then maybe not. It's the darkest Batman though. There's a lot that's wrong, but the few things that are right, like the dark tone, etc is unmatched in any other Batman film.

[rcw0388]

I think this movie is a decent sequal; it's no where near as good as 89 but it is still a good movie to watch, better than anything schumacher put out there that's for sure.

[batfan1939]

The Bastuit was 55 pounds. 15 pounds lighter than the previous suit. It was rubber to look more protective and to distance the films from Adam West. The creators also thought it might look silly to see a man in a cloth costume.

[batfan1939]

Vicky Vale isn't missing. Don't know what happened to Dent, but Bruce Wayne saysd that she couldn't handle the whole "dual-life" thing after a while, and left him.

[NCslice911]

the nigger harvey dent from the first one sucked anyway

[ondskapad]

this movie is a fucking masterpiece goddamit, you are stupid.

[NecroVMX]

Sir, as you think this is a masterpiece, much less a fucking masterpiece, that makes you the one bereft of intelligence. Don't worry though, it's okay to like banal things, you're in with the herd.

[Wadsy591]

Yeah.. Batman Returns is decent, but nothing more. You don't see enough of Batman/Bruce Wayne himself, and the two villains sucked. Batman Forever, Begins and Dark Knight were way better.

[NCslice911]

batman forever sucked shit...and catwoman is the second best villain in the whole series next to ledger's joker

[NCslice911]

fuck that, catwoman was badass in this movie, even if the penguin was retarded

[Corneliustheamoeba]

...in your opinion? In MY opinion, this one kicks Forever's ass hands down, then comes Batman 89 tied with Batman Begins. I haven't seen The Dark Knight yet (planning on getting it on Blu Ray) but I've heard really good things about it.

[agentheroes89]

i totally agree with ur opinion of batman forever

[Sermalla]

Cat Woman's motivation in this movie is to break away from conventions. This is perfectly displayed when she destorys all her feminine items and paints them black. She's no longer that good girl that damsel in distress who does what she's told and waits for her Romeo to arrive. That's why she rejected Batman's offer in the end. She said, "I can never forgive myslef if I did."

[tubeshark]

You left out the fact that killing the firstborn sons of Gotham as a revenge for how his parents treated him was the Penguin's plan all along, but Shreck lured him into the political stuff to get the permission for his power plant. As the campaign failed, he merely returned to the original plan. It makes sense to me. However I agree that the rocket-equipped penguins was really retarded idea.

Good and critical review, but a bit too harsh and nitpicking.

[imrank89]

Batman returns , Must say i didn't think this movie was bad , it did in fact go somwhere more dark and gothic which i thought was a good setting to have a batman movie in , but i do agree it just didn't work out tht way , it went from a batman movie to wtf ? some scary dark i don't even know . i don't hate this movie at all i'd rather have seen another dark/gothic Tim burton's version of Batman than ( oh god please never again) another Joel Schumacher vison of batman . and thanks 4 the review

[Johnlindsey289]

What do you think of Nolan's version?

[imrank89]

I like Nolan's version alot , cause he bring batman into a more modern time , and also makes batman seem alot more believeable .

[5648378]

yeah I agree the Henchmen in this batman flim are out of place and they should got some henchmen to match the peguin too me thats only weakness and actally this was the first Batman flim I ever saw when I was little I think burton should of left after the first one even do this is really good but today it just looks like something out of a scary chirstmas movie then a Batman flim and I think its a shame that Keaton never got a better Batman suit because i think he would of been the best Batman

[5648378]

man i think if Keaton didn't have a ruber batman suit and he had better batman suit I think Keaton would of been greatest batman ever I think

[WhatFilmProduction]

IT WAS 1992

[MatchewBAR9]

The one reason why this movie is annoying at times is because of contradictory issues. The scene where Batman rips is mask off for Catwoman at the end is a nice touch but, in one shot, he has the black make-up around his eyes, and then when he is about to tear the mask off, he doesn't, purely for the purpose of that scene. Maybe I'm being a little to harsh. It was a good movie though :)

[hunterkiller1440]

actually this does reminds me of the nightmare before christmas, lol, great review

[bats70]

I think you critized this movie too much, im not saying its a bad review, but rather the movie deserves alot more credit than what you give it. I honestly think that this movie is one of the best batman movies ever made, and I think Tim Burton has a unique and artistic style for Batman. In the early comics Batman did actually kill some criminals, so you can't say he was a 'mass murderer'. but thats just me.

[pissed7off]

"Live-action Nightmare before Christmas" ?!? I'm pretty sure this movie came out before The Nightmare before Christmas :-P

[NecroVMX]

So you can't compare the visuals to it? What's that got to do with anything

[pissed7off]

Nothing really... just I would compare TNbC to BR, and not vice versa, in terms of quality. Just me though!

[j04370859]

you got the year wrong batman returns came out in 1992.

[TURBODORK2]

what is batman supposed to do? sometimes he has to kill if people are going to slaughter people on the street

[NecroVMX]

Batman never kills, it's quite possible to knock people out or subdue them, which is what he does in pretty much every batman comic ever written.

[pista9]

he used to kill and even use guns on the early comics, i know it because the angry video game nerd said it on his review of those movies.

tim burton didn't make a batman movie, that's right, he made a live action nightmare before christmas, he even said he didn't care that much for superheros,and that he prefered the first batman over the second one

his movies don't make any sense, but i just love the style and music and fary tale like story. i don't really care for batman so i love this movie

[MikeDiastavrone3]

My two biggest gripes with this film: Batman's screen time and the Penguin. Batman seemed to have less screen time than that chick the Penguin hits on for his campaign. The Penguin is a deformed crybaby who has bad one-liners and his motivation sucks. Catwoman was fine to me because she is a confusing character that you don't get, similar to her comic book counter part and her relationship with Bruce Wayne (even with almost no screentime) was well done, in my opinion.

[ReviewForReel]

This is one of my lest favorite Batman movies. Keton as Batman is just terrible. He has the emotinal intensity of a rock. They turned Batman into a mass murder in this movie. And the turned Catwoman into a crazy person. That really pisst me off because they turned one of my favorite characters in the Batman universe into something she isnt

[pissed7off]

Mass murdering means killing many people at once. Batman only killed 2 people (1 is questionable, but I'll give it to you), and they were in different scenes.

[ReviewForReel]

The point I was trying to make is that they should not have Batman kill anyone in the movie

[seannyslow]

I loved this movie

[tuworkzz]

I give it a 4/10 because the Catwoman origin in this film was recycled in that 2004 Halle Barry abortion. Thank you, Burton.

[lacthewatcher1]

Abomination...

[okeanos317]

i'm a huge batman fan and i'm glad tim burton did this movie because it blew away all my expectations of what batman is about while still being highly entertaining,oh yeah great review btw,everything you said about the movie is why i loved it and i'm glad that you considered the comic book fans point of view when reviewing(most of the other reviews that i saw gave it props without understanding the batman universe in general)

[nicolekidmanfan1]

Thanks for the review!!! Excellent....

[martinpotts]

I do disagree with your review. I think Batman Returns is good as a stand alone film, It doesn't try and follow a path of how a superhero film should go. Its got a bit of a far out plot in parts, but ultimatley it is very different from the first Batman film, if Burton had copied what he did first time, would of just been the same film with a couple of different bad guys introduced.

[elliottalphebettown]

You sound like Richard Dreyfuss's narration in Stand By Me.

[cytonius1]

this is a bad review, this is way better than forever or part 4.

[NecroVMX]

So your definition of a bad review is one you happen not to agree with? You're an idiot, and blocked.

[korvgeek]

This is a fucking bad review, Batman Returns is the best batman movie

[NecroVMX]

You're wrong.

[americanpsycho28]

Batman Returns is my second favourite Batman movie of all time right behind The Dark Knight.

[disneyparkfreak]

same here

[peterlust26]

For me Returns is just as fun as Batman, and I like to watch them back to back. Pfeiffer as Selina/Catwoman is strangely attractive and the final scène with the death of the Penguin is oddly moving. For me Keaton still is the best Batman.

[karry299]

Ehh...if the city is named Gotham - it doesnt make the art style "gothic", FYI. Its art-deco/ slash /noir.

[NecroVMX]

Karry299 I have a telegram for you.

it says

KARRY 299 STOP

[CruxisFire]

I've actually only seen bits of this movie, but as bad as it may be, I want to at least check it out to see how different it really went. After all, it's the only Batman I haven't seen. I just can't get over the Penguin going from a quirky fat man to a mutant. XD

[vikmega]

thenk you! someone else sees it my way! it felt like a tim burton movie that just happened to have batman in it. they did the penguin all wrong, the penguin is well educated and grew up in high society and that eating raw fish nonsense was just dumb.

[efan64]

Good Review. It's a good movie.

This movie's catwoman is my favorite version of the character.

[denisiscena]

this is stil my fav batman movie

[okeanos317]

great movie and great review thanks

[ecartman12]

Your movie review are awsome and positive and stuff. I am going to subscribe for this. Please upload some more movie reviews.

[NecroVMX]

Keep an eye out, somewhere in the next few months I'm doing a series of movie reviews. Not saying what it is, but I will say I'll be reviewing 25 movies

[ecartman12]

Great! Can't wait.

[Hallinilla5]

Hate this movie.

[andy86i]

catwoman is supposed to be mental.. shes supposed to look like a pyscho too. dont moan about stuff that was meant to be like that.

[NecroVMX]

You're not quite smart. Catwoman is not supposed to be mental or look like a psycho. She's supposed to be a woman who is a CAT burglar, that's it. Maybe you should go and read the Catwoman comic before you talk shit you don't understand.

[DirtyDayMix]

i think that the only who's not smart here..is you.

[NecroVMX]

Great comment.

It's so refreshing to see the mentally handicapped on youtube.

[tthomaselli2]

"Batman turns into a homicidal maniac & starts killing people."...: To an extent, that's not true.

[NecroVMX]

It's true to every extent, you had the guy he threw off a building, the guy he burned up and let's not forget the one that got dynamite strapped to his crotch, which then exploded.

[tthomaselli2]

If you say so...: I guess I was wrong, then? (Lol.).

Regardless, I liked all the 'Batman' movies except for 'Batman & Robin', of course, but, I need to keep it original & say "My favorites are a tie between 'Batman Returns', 'Batman: The Dark Knight' & 'Batman Forever'.".

[okeanos317]

you mean he threw catwoman off a building or did you mean when penguin fell through the glass at the end scene

[tthomaselli2]

Where'd you get all the movie pictures for this review & all the other 'Batman' movie reviews?

(**Don't say "The internet."!**.). Lol.

[X2Magneto]

i respectfully dissagree

[NecroVMX]

It's all good.

[1973kissconcerts2008]

Returns came out in 1992 not 1991, just thought I'd point that out.

[megagrey]

I thought Michelle Pfeiffer was sexier, cooler and more believable whenever her mask was off. Going apeshit crazy destroying her apartment, the hideous makeup and bad hair day at the end...she just had the aura of 'crazy bitch' about her and I loved it.

Like you said, everything Catwoman did seemed random, but I thought it was damned fun to watch.