While I enjoy this movie more than most people, I actually considered giving Batman and Robin no stars because it is by far the worst film in the Batman franchise. However, this movie veers into the “so bad it might actually be fun and okay to watch if I’ve nothing else to do” territory making it worthy of a one star rating. Batman and Robin is like the black sheep of superhero movies, and rightfully so. The plot gives its villains interesting motivations then pulls the rug out from under them with plot contrivances, it’s campy to a fault (were the nipples on the batsuit really necessary?), has 3 villains and lacks substance. It’s hard to know what the powers that be were thinking when crafting this film, were the going for a campy masterpiece or an actual film? Even in the wide spectrum of superhero films (dark and foreboding to humorous fun) this film sits so far away from either. The Avengers proves your superheros can occupy a world where we’re in on the inside joke, but Batman and Robin wants you to take it seriously while presenting nothing but silliness and over the top innuendo.
The plot of this movie is simple, but gets increasingly ridiculous as the movie goes on. Basically, Batman and Robin are tested physically, mentally, and emotionally by 2 new villains: Mr. Freeze and Poison Ivy, each with their own individual agenda. Mr. Freeze, a former doctor who becomes a diamond thief, plans to freeze Gotham until he gets the money needed to finish finding the cure for a disease that has stricken his wife. Poison Ivy just wants to take over Gotham City with her genetically engineered plants and henchman Bane. While these two villains push our heroes to the brink, they eventually band together with the help of Batgirl to defeat the villains and save Gotham City.
Batman and Robin does many things wrong, but what I will give it credit for is giving its villains interesting motivations for their actions. Especially with relation to Schwarzenegger’s Mr. Freeze, the filmmakers engender a lot of sympathy as his character is motivated by his wife’s failing health and his own mistakes. But these great character motivations become undone with the silliness of the storyline, such as him freezing all of Gotham City and Batman having to thaw it. Similarly, Poison Ivy starts off as the next logical feminist step from Catwoman, but after hearing Uma purr “Poison Ivy” one too many times, you never take the character seriously. Why put two talented and scene stealing actors in role with strong motivations and then undermine them with bad dialog and foolish actions?
This film more than anything, really suffers from a crisis of identity. With the loud and brash color scheme, “family friendly” action, and over the top villains, this movie appears to skew younger. But this is Batman, and dark things happen during the story, which become overshadowed and are completely at odds with the lighter fare. The script of this movie is truly laughable with such choice quotes as “Chicks like you give women a bad name” and “Tonight, hell freezes over!” The action is also shot with an uneven editing style similar to that of music videos of the time and the fights are not really that impressive. Still that didn’t stop audiences from turning out to see this movie to the tune of $238 million worldwide, proving that brand recognition can out weight quality of the material.
In terms of the legacy of Batman and Robin, it was pretty much decided in 1997 when the movie was released that this film wouldn’t be viewed favorably and it received eleven Razzie nominations that year. It doesn’t help the movie’s reputation that soon after this we got Bryan Singer’s X-Men and Sam Raimi’s Spiderman films which set new standards for how a superhero story could be told. Interesting Aside: The one positive of this movie is that the careers of almost all of the principal cast have gone well. George Clooney won an Oscar and was nominated for 5 more, Colin O’Donnell is on mega-hit NCIS: LA, Uma Thurman did Kill Bill, and Arnold Schwarzenegger became governor of California. That’s incredibly impressive when you consider what a dud this film was. While I admire the go for broke campiness of this movie, this is truly a terrible film.
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Tags: Arnold Schwarzenegger, batman, Batman and Robin, George Clooney, Historical Circuit, Joel Schumacher
7 Comments
This is what annoys me the most about this (and most superhero movies)
Robin and Batgirl have these little things that cover their eyes and we’re suppose to believe everyone is THAT blind that no one can see who they really are. Especially Batgirl with her flowing blonde hair and signature lips.
I usually think the same thing about Superman. Glasses and a little curl in his hair are suppose to make a HUGE difference? I guess.
Clayton Davis(Quote) (Reply)
“…with relation to Schwarzenegger’s Mr. Freeze, the filmmakers engender a lot of sympathy as his character is motivated by his wife’s failing health and his own mistakes.”
Should we really credit Akiva Goldsman and Joel Schumacher for this, though? That whole backstory was lifted wholesale from Batman: The Animated Series’ “Heart of Ice” episode. The only contribution Batman & Robin made to the character was a new record in terrible ice puns.
However, with all the (deserved) bashing that this movie gets, I’m actually very grateful that Batman & Robin was such an unmitigated disaster. If it had simply matched Batman Forever’s level of passable mediocrity, we might have had to deal with two or three more of these movies until the series simply sputtered out. But because it was such a flaming pile of neon-colored poo, it put the kill on Schumacher’s prospects of ever making another Batman movie and forced Warner Bros. to go back to the drawing board.
In other words, if Batman & Robin never happened, we probably would have never had Christopher Nolan’s trilogy.
Robert Hamer(Quote) (Reply)
The only positive takeaway from the film that I’ve gotten is Uma Thurman’s performance. Watching the movie again, I’m convinced she’s the only one who is actually entertaining enough to stand. It feels like she’s the only one who knows how to work with the abysmal material and try to elevate it. Honestly she’s the only reason to watch this terrible film at all.
That said, I would also make it clear that this is very much a kids movie, and therefore is never going to be for me. If I had an eight-year-old in front of me, and I had the choice of showing him this film of “The Dark Knight”, I would honestly pick this film because it’s more appropriate for younger audiences. That doesn’t say anything about it’s quality, but just the intentions behind the two films.
Josh P.(Quote) (Reply)
But is it really “appropriate for younger audiences?” I’m not a father so I can’t make any definite statements on this, but I would think most parents would object to their children being exposed to the blatant sexual innuendoes and gratuitous nipple and butt shots in Batman & Robin. Why not just skip the live-action movies and show them Batman: The Animated Series if you want your kids to get into the caped crusader?
Robert Hamer(Quote) (Reply)
Fair point that I would agree with. The animated series is much more appropriate and would be the better option as opposed to either. I just tend to think that nipples on the batsuits and some innuendos are a little more acceptable for kids to be privy to than shoving pencils in people’s eyes, graphic portrayals of a man’s face burned off (something I think could have pushed the film to an R rating) and heavy political messages. But only if you want to go with the “lesser of two evils” argument.
Josh P.(Quote) (Reply)
I’m a father of two girls and at three my oldest watched Jurassic Park (1993) and asked why the dinosaurs were so mean? Why do they eat people? So we explained, and also explained that the dinosaurs were not real but a “special effect” which for her became “special fects” — guide them carefully, but know that they will be exposed to the films at some point (play days, sleepovers) and we always wanted to be there first rather than they see them somewhere else.
John H. Foote(Quote) (Reply)
Just an FYI….. It’s Chris O’Donnell not Colin O’Donnell.
Derek(Quote) (Reply)