Batman on the Big Screen
An Overview of the Batman Film Franchise

Grossing a total of $413.2 million dollars at the box office world-wide, Batman became the most successful comic book-inspired film of all time and currently ranks 12th in the all-time U.S. domestic box office money-makers (unadjusted for inflation). Along with the excellent acting talents of Michael Keaton and Jack Nicholson, Batman was graced with an excellent story by Sam Hamm and an awe-inspiring score by Danny Elfman, a long-time collaborator with Tim Burton, whose own directing talents made Batman's emergence on the big screen a memorable one.

The incredible success of Batman prompted Warner Brothers Pictures to fund a sequel, and 1992 saw the return of Batman to theatres, aptly named Batman Returns. Michael Keaton again donned the black cape, with Danny DeVito and Michelle Pfeiffer giving Batman bird and cat problems, portraying The Penguin and Catwoman. Tim Burton returned to the director's chair, as did Danny Elfman for yet another dark and emotional musical score.

Although Batman Returns did well in the box office, the film was chastised by critics for being "too dark," so for the third installment, Warner Brothers decided to make some changes to "breathe new life into the franchise."

Out were Tim Burton (except as producer), Michael Keaton, and Danny Elfman, with Joel Schumacher directing, Val Kilmer playing Batman, and Eliot Goldenthal writing the score for 1995's Batman Forever. A somewhat more upbeat version of Batman, Batman Forever saw the introduction of Robin (played by Chris O'Donnel) and villians Two-Face and Riddler, portrayed by Tommy Lee Jones and Jim Carrey, respectively. It was Carrey's high-caliber antics as Riddler that stole the show and made this movie the financial success it was.

Riding on the coattails of Batman Forever, the fourth Batman film, Batman and Robin (1997) kept Joel Schumacher and Eliot Goldenthal in their previous positions. A third actor was placed behind the mask of the bat, as George Clooney played alongside Chris O'Donnell's Robin to fight villians Mr. Freeze (Arnold Schwarzenegger) and Poison Ivy (Uma Thurman). The film also saw the introduction of Alicia Silverstone as Batgirl and a corny style, a throwback to the 60's television series, including the campy dialogue and fight scenes that were the signature style of the show. The film made a respectable box office return, but was not on par with the other films' returns. The critics' reactions to this film also seemed to indicate that Batman and Robin was a little too corny to stomach. This film temporarily killed the franchise.

Warner Brothers is reportedly looking to revitalise the franchise with a fifth Batman feature, Batman: Year One, based on Frank Miller's comic book story and with Darren Aronofsky at the helm. Visit Jett's Batman on Film for info about the project.