Batman: The Movie

This is the first single non combo Blu Ray I ever bought and I have to agree with commentary that nobody truly does campy as well as the classic Batman. Other that Jack Nicholson in 1989 Batman this movie has my favorite version of The Joker and for sure my favorite version of The Penquin. The way Blu ray sets up the special features differently from regular DVDs still takes some getting use to for me but I like both versions of commentary giving insight on the films and all the other extras on the batmobile and stuff. The story in simple as Joker, Penquin, Riddler and Catwoman team up for their greatest crime evil. Like an episode of the original Star Trek series where aliens dehydrated the Enterprise crew into crystals the criminals dehydrate the world leaders of a fictional version of United Nations into different colored power dust to hold ransom. The movie puts all the bat vechiles in the movie such as the bat copter, bat boat, bat cycle. Between their headquarters above a bar at the docks and Penquins submarine base the crooks seem to remain one step ahead of the dynamic duo till the very end of the film and come closer to destroying the cape crusaders than they ever did in the TV series. The only think that would make this movie perfect would of been if it came along late enough to of had Yvonne Craig star as her Batgirl character in it. She was the only person I missed watching the film.

I remember my father taking me to see this in the theater when it first came out. Several decades worth of growing up has taken a measure of the gilding off the movie, but its still super-campy and if thats what youre looking for, then its good. Not the best use of my time but it fit the bill for an evening I wanted to be entertained without thinking. (Besides, theres Lee Meriwether in her Catwoman costume... somehow I didnt notice her quite as much the first time I saw the movie!) It kinda all just peters out at the end, but there are still some laughs.

This is THE ORIGINAL. Intellectual humor, over the top comedy, total silliness and campy story lines. No dark demonic Batman here, just the real thing. After watching it, I remembered why I loved Batman so much as a kid! It was one of the most wordy shows out there and intelligence was required to get most of the jokes, it actually got me looking words up as a child! Nothing like the original series, sad how it has gotten debauched with dark violent themes. Nothing quite like the REAL THING.

Between season one and season two of the campy Batman TV show(1965-1968), there was a Batman movie that played in movie theaters. There was an X Files movie released in movie theaters in 1997. The Joker, Catwoman, The Penguin, and The Riddler are planning something big and Batman and Robin are our only hope! Adam West and Burt Ward do their usual hammy acting job as Batman and Robin. Wests deadpan humor makes me smile! This Batman movie is just as campy as the TV show. Batman almost throws a giant bomb into a marching band and some children! Batman yells, On some days, you just cant get rid of a bomb! Fox Home Video did a great job releasing this film on DVD. It was one of the first DVDs that I bought and it delivers in quality and quantity. I only paid $5 for it. Theres interviews with Adam West and Burt Ward as extras and movie trailers. Jerry Warren tried to emulate this film and the Batman TV show in The Wild World of Batwoman(1966). The film was so derivative that DC Comics sued him! Some prints of the movie are known as She Was a Hippy Vampire(1966). Batman The Movie(1966) is retro, campy fun.

I am a big Batman Fan, and when I saw this on dvd , I had to have it. Even though many think that the 1960s Batman was campy & corny, it is still fun to watch, and you can polk some fun at the fact that the Caped crusaders always had the right item on their belts to escape all types of trouble. Im not sure if the blue ray makes a big difference in the quality, however I have no complaints. I actually give it 4and 1/2 stars.

Great old school tongue in cheek comedy Batman. Not some three hour life inspire ing story of a poor down t rotten boy who rises up and....... IDK. NOR DO I CARE BS story....

Detective Comics from the late 30s and 40s portrayed Batman as a crime fighting detective / vigilante. The nonsensical and totally absurd TV series / movie was based on what the books had become by the 50s and early 60s. A low point in sales for DC at the time. Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 (May 1939). The character was originally written in the style of the pulps and this influence was evident with Batman showing little remorse over killing or maiming criminals and was not above using firearms. Batman proved a hit character, and he received his own solo title in 1940. By 1942, the writers and artists behind the Batman comics had established most of the basic elements of the Batman mythos. In the years following World War II, DC Comics adopted a postwar editorial direction that increasingly de-emphasized social commentary in favor of lighthearted juvenile fantasy. The impact of this editorial approach was evident in Batman comics of the postwar period; removed from the bleak and menacing world of the strips of the early 1940s, Batman was instead portrayed as a respectable citizen and paternal figure that inhabited a bright and colorful environment. It has also been suggested by scholars that the characters of Batwoman (in 1956) and Bat-Girl (in 1961) were introduced in part to refute the allegation that Batman and Robin were gay, and the stories took on a campier, lighter feel. In the late 1950s Batman stories gradually become more science fiction-oriented, an attempt at mimicking the success of other DC characters. By 1964, sales on Batman titles had fallen drastically; Bob Kane noted that as a result DC was planning to kill Batman off altogether. Editor Julius Schwartz was soon assigned to the Batman titles and presided over drastic changes. Beginning with 1964s Detective Comics #327 (May 1964) - cover-billed as the New Look - Schwartz introduced changes designed to make Batman more contemporary and return him to more detective-oriented stories. And then came the TV series and movie. Although both the comics and TV show were successful for a time, the camp approach eventually wore thin and the show was canceled in 1968. In the aftermath the Batman comics themselves lost popularity once again. As DC Comics editor Julius Schwartz noted, When the television show was a success, I was asked to be campy, and of course when the show faded, so did the comic books. Starting in 1969, writer Dennis ONeil and artist Neal Adams made a deliberate effort to distance Batman from the campy portrayal of the 1960s TV series and to return the character to his roots as a grim avenger of the night. ONeil said his idea was simply to take it back to where it started. I went to the DC Comics library and read some of the early stories. I tried to get a sense of what Bob Kane and Bill Finger were after.ONeil and Adams first collaborated on the story The Secret of the Waiting Graves (Detective Comics #395, Jan. 1970). Few stories were true collaborations between ONeil, Adams, Julius Schwartz, and inker Dick Giordano, and in actuality these men were mixed and matched with various other creators during the 1970s; nevertheless the influence of their work was tremendous. Giordano said, We went back to a grimmer, darker Batman, and I think thats why these stories did so well . . . Even today were still using Neals Batman with the long flowing cape and the pointy ears. In essence, DC Comics hated the way the Batman TV series / movie butchered their crime-fighting detective. The proper and most accurate point of reference that one should subscribe to are the original comic books - Tim Burton it seems did to a degree and Christopher Nolan has most definitely given us the best portrayal of the classic Batman. At the end of the day, if you like the campy style, thats fine. I just like keeping up with all the historical facts of a fictional character spanning almost 70 years. For reference, parts of this commentary was accessed from Wikipedia and yes I do have a comic book collection into the thousands with several hundred Batman books dating back to the early 60s. Its interesting that a lot of people seem to think that comic books are for kids only and that they should just provide slapstick entertainment, devoid of intelligent dramatic dialogue and social commentary. In fact comic books have been a great study resource because of their anthropological reflections. Look at what Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko and many other great storytellers and artists did in the early 60s at Marvel Comics. Super hero comic books that were wonderfully entertaining, incredibly scripted, dialogue that was realistic, dramatic, fun, quirky, serious and occasionally touching on social commentary. What a great balance. Its little wonder Marvel Comics has remained at the top of its field and even better that DC Comics in the late 60s returned to faithfully representing the true classic Batman ethos.

This film is terrible, and awesome and everything that would expect from a two hour episode of Batman from the 1960s. I watched it with my teenaged son who had never seen the show. It was cringe-worthy campy, and yet after 15 minutes we were hooked and we watched the whole thing. It was a thoroughly enjoyable way to pass some time. The plot is pretty thin. The action typical of the show. There are scenes and lines though that are pure comedy gold if you catch them. The film, made in 66, lacks the political correctness you see in many films and shows today and yet isnt mean. In some respects it is refreshing. So, if you like Batman, or are a 60s TV junky, give it 20 minutes. Youll probably enjoy its campiness.

I had the pleasure of watching this movie -- and the accompanying TV series -- in two different, but equally enjoyable, phases: First, as a 4th grader when they were first released in the 60s -- when I took them at face value as super hero adventure stories; and later, as an adult, reveling in the campy humor and the droll, dead-pan delivery of Adam West. This is a very corny movie -- but in a good way! Lots of fun. I especially enjoyed watching it while listening to the commentary by West and Burt Ward. And by the way, though Im not a kid any more, I still want that Batmobile in my garage, and want to take the Bat Boat out for a high-speed run!

I remember watching the reruns of the show back in the 80s. Loved it. Then I watched then again in the 90s. Funny thing is I had never really seen this movie. Id seen clips of it but never in its entirety. Movie is great, still holds its humor and adventure after all this time. Definitely a movie for a simpler, less technology rich time. Nostalgia probably has a lot to do with it honestly, but I still highly recommend it.