Batman forever was fantastic, I'm a fan of the psychological aspect and this film delivered on that. Joel knew what he was doing and it's a shame he couldn't be given complete control to do his entire vision
Also note, Batman Forever did mention some parts of burtons movies. The part where Chase mentions “tight leather with a whip” was a catwoman reference, and the part where Robin says “your parents weren’t killed by a maniac” and Batman says, “yes they were”, was a reference to Jack Napier aka Joker
Although Batman Returns was the first Batman movie I ever saw, I have fond memories of Batman Forever. I still remember that I was 5 years old when my aunt and uncle took me to see this movie in theaters. And I also remember the coloring book and the pajamas that I had. And boy, the commercial of its video game adaptation for SNES still stuck in my head. Yeah, despite its flaws, it was one of my childhood treasures, next to Space Jam.
I love that Batman 89, Batman returns, Batman forever, and Batman and robin all kind of have this soft reboot from each other. Even Burton to Burton and Schumacher to Schumacher are kind of different. Meaning, Batman 89, and Batman returns, despite being directed by Tim Burton still feels like it’s a soft reboot from one another. am I supposed to believe that these two Gotham city’s are the same two Gotham city’s? Batman forever and Batman and Robin aren’t tonally the same either. One is more campier then the other. It’s like both directors did a good job making a Batman film with some personal flair and their reward was they got to have a sequel were they could do whatever they wanted. One more Gothic one more campy. I love all four of these films for very different reasons. And I love that Batman Forever! I like that it’s for kids and adults at the same time. And above all, I love the soft reboot of all four of the films
This is an incredible deep review of the movie. You highlighted so many interesting points - from the consistency of the "flamboyant" parts with the original stories to the dual essence of the movie that reflects the constant duality of Batman itself - that helped me reconsider this movie. Thank you for your amazing work.
As a kid, I enjoyed it. I still do whenever I watch it. Schumacher understood the character better than Tim Burton in my opinion. It added elements of the 66 but also the melodrama associated with the comics
This was my Batman movie when I was a kid. I have siblings who are younger than I am and both Batman and Batman Returns who too dark and violent for them to watch as my sister was 2 when Batman Returns came out and my brother was only a year old. Of course the Penguin biting someone's nose scared me when I was a kid, so I also wasn't allowed to watch Batman Returns again until I was a teenager. Forever was the first Batman movie that I got for my own movie collection when I was a kid and I loved it. I had a couple of the toys, the backpack, the pencil case with pencils, the comic book adaptation, and the picture book adaptation. It was also the Batman movie that I first saw my classmates also have merchandise for it at school too. In 1992 all the kids were about Batman: The Animated Series.
Good job offering a different perspective on Joel Schumacher and Batman Forever. The range of quality and style in the movies directed by Joel Schumacher is crazy. Like I couldn't believe Falling Down, one of my favorite movies, and Batman and Robin were both directed by the same guy. Your analysis of Batman Forever provided a link connecting the diversity of Schumacher's oeuvre.
The serious scenes coexist pretty seamlessly with the over the top villain scenes. The serious scenes are not going to be filmed in the same manner as riddler being an insane person. There has to be a contrast to such scenes and this movie pulled it off well. As surreal as the riddler brainwashing everyone was, the serious scenes had a sense of mystery and sorrow that were equally as surreal.
I wouldn’t call myself a huge fan of the film, but there’s definitely some good moments in there that people don’t give it enough credit for. Also, I hadn’t caught onto the handshake symbolism! That’s super cool.
Great work! I always loved the aesthetic and design of this movie with the exception of Two Face’s terrible purple makeup, this movie definitely deserved better acting from their villains though.
You know I'm kind of sad that Joel Schumacher didn't get to make the Batman movie that he wanted to make it would have been cool to see a live action Batman Year One and Salazar knight is Right it's not fair that people kind of blame him for ruining The Tim Burton Schumacher Batman franchise he never meant to do it and he didn't really want to do much of a kid friendly Batman film anyway and I feel sorry for him.😔
Batman Forever was the one that had me loved Batman , the adults at that time might not like it due to its appeal to younger audience but still it has successfully left a strong impression to young kids that time . I'm very thankful for this movie in my childhood and also BATMAN and ROBIN .
I must’ve seen this movie on VHS 10,000 times…but it wasn’t until DVD subtitles that I finally learned what Dick says when he cat calls “Gon-Fo-Li-Ry-My-Lub-Ma-Chee-Bay!”
I remember in 1995 the merchandise for this movie was everywhere. There was actually bad blood between Jim Carrey and Tommy Lee Jones during the film's production.
Although I'm not a huge fan of Batman Forever today you made me realize/remember that it was actually my favorite Batman movie as a kid. My history with Batman Forever is actually pretty complicated.😅 I was born in 1988 so didn't get the chance to see Batman or Batman returns in cinema (I was 1 and 4 years old respectively). Furthermore I was born in communist Czechoslovakia (which stayed communist until 1989 and intact until 1993) so American superheroes weren't well known. I think I was like the only kid in town who knew about Batman because of a comic smuggled in from Hungary. 😂 I still have it, but the cover and some of the first few pages went missing. It's about an active shooter sniping from a rooftop, Batman tries to catch him before the swat takes him down and while doing it he remembers THAT NIGHT with his parents, so it has the origin story too. He also repeats the line 'wish everybody would die'... true Batman nerds would have probably guessed the exact issue by now. 😅Of course I obtained a huge library of Batman comics since then, but this was my first one. I'm going off topic here, back to Batman Forever.😅 Growing up as a kid, the first 2 movies have already been airing on television, the first time I saw Batman was 1994 and the TV station made a huge deal about it, advertising it almost constantly. Batman returns was aired like a year later as far as I remember. I was aware of Batman Forever, but the rating system in Slovakia was weird at the time I was 8 when the movie premiered (in 1996 btw, up until the late 90's we would get movies like 6 months or even a year later. Nowadays it's the opposite, movies often get released before the American premier.) and there was an age limit of 10 or something like that. Post-communist Slovakia didn't get the memo that this is a kid friendly movie.😅 Weird because they would let me in on the Three Musketeers (1993) also starring Chris O'Donnell while only being 5 and that movie literally starts with a torture scene.😂👌 Then 1997 rolled around I came prepared: I went to see Batman & Robin with my dad. 😎 It was ok to see an age restricted movie with parents... today nobody would care, but kids don't really go to the cinema alone either these days. Times have changed. So I saw Batman & Robin before Forever. For Batman Forever was this mysterious movie which always alluded me for some reason. I was starting to develop a love/hate relationship with it. I hated it because I haven't seen it, but if had the chance I would love to see it. Then in 1999 one of the TV stations would air all 4 Batman movies, it was 'Batman month' they aired 1 Batman movie each Saturday. Regardless to say I was mostly excited to see Forever. After watching all of them Forever became my favorite...for a year or two, because in my early teenage years (13-14) I've become something of a cinema snob and I've decided that Batman 1989 is THE Batman movie, nothing can or could ever top it and everything else is trash. 😂😂😂... until Batman Begins came along much much later.
There is a scene from the 1960s Batman TV series that pretty much captures Forever's cinematography. In the crossover episode with the Green Hornet, the villain Colonel Gumm is seen portraying a persona of a normal stamp factory worker: the camera is filming on a straight angle. However, as soon as the woman he was talking to in his façade leaves, he shuts the door, and the camera blatantly changes into a Dutch angle.
Batman Forever was awesome, even if it’s always going to be in the shadow of the Burton movies. The only things that didn’t work for me were the performance of Two-Face, Batman’s costume change (that grey suit looks terrible), and of course, the nipples. Other than that, it’s so underappreciated And let’s not forget “Kiss from a Rose,” that song is so 🤌🌹
I saw this and Mask of the Phantasm in theaters as a kid. As a huge fan of the cartoon, I thought I'd love Phantasm, and as someone who hadn't seen the Burton films, I was less sure about Forever. I wound up LOVING Forever and finding Phantasm pretty boring, actually. Now that I'm an adult, I can easily see that Phantasm is the better movie, and while I've come to like it, I still can't help but love Forever more. It's flawed, and it's version of Two-Face really is terrible, but there's a fun campiness to it that I can't helped but enjoy. Appreciate a video like this looking at the movie with a kinder lens!
This is a superb analysis of Batman Forever, and no word of a lie, has significantly altered how I see the movie. I'm going to have to rewatch it as soon as I can 🙂
Fun fact did u know before BATMAN FOREVER was released Michael Keaton and Nicole Kidman did a film together in 1993 called MY LIFE and they had a great chemistry in the film, imagine if Keaton wouldve stayed with Nicole Kidman at his side again it wouldve been even more fun to watch but Kilmer still nailed it.
Nicole Kidman has appeared on screen with every modern cinematic Batman with the exception of Ben Affleck: *My Life with Michael Keaton *Batman Forever with Val Kilmer *The Peacemaker with George Clooney *The Portrait of a Lady with Christian Bale *Queen of the Desert with Robert Pattinson
I felt a little better about Batman Forever once we got the Batman 89 book and The Flash. I still wouldn't own BF or watch it, but I accept it's existence and got the Kilmer final battle suit figure included in the live action movie actors McFarlane set.
I mean let's be honest, if there was one flaw Schumacher films, especially in Batman and Robin, was studio management. Schumacher had a perfect understanding of Batman both on a fan and personal level. #ReleaseTheSchumacherCut
Cinematic Batman has suffered from the same curse as cinematic Hulk: "we need a psychological movie, no more explosions!" Then that happens and they say, "Not enough explosions! It focused too much on the story, smash stuff!" then "Why did you smash stuff? Is that what you think we care about?"
Did anyone see the interview with Colin Farrell defending Joel Schumacher? Yes his Batman movies are bad (for the most part) but he had good intentions and really did love Batman. I would say even more so than Burton.
People call Batman Forever to campy and full of neon lights but Joel is the only one who got Gotham City right. He took Batman Year One Gotham City idea and if u look at his version of Gotham City it look just like New Orleans or Las Vegas
I will always be thankfull to Joel Schumacher for making Batman Forever, it was one of my first memories as a child and the movie that changed my life forever ( no pun intended). It could have been really good but it wasnt the case, I cant say the same about Batman & Robin even as a kid I thought it was really silly. Now Im 31 years old and I still enjoy the movie
You showed it but you didn’t mention the Bruce/Dick handshake in the garage scene. To me that says “I respect you to make your own decision” and I think Dick responds to that.
I only knew Schumacher as the director of *Falling Down and I thought oh shit that’s gonna be awesome(and even darker)….I also only knew Clooney from From Dusk Til Dawn and thought the same thing when I heard he would be Batman😭🤣
Hello Salazar Knight great video on Batman Forever just discover your channel am hook you are my main Batman Channel personally it's my number 10 batman film i don't have any of burton/schumacher films in my batman ranking burton films are not batman films and Batman & Robin is an batman focus story just like batman forever but juggles too much plot and characters to deliver satisfy product. Where Batman Forever how ever finally focus Bruce Wayne/Batman as character not in best way but enough to set the other and better batman films like Nolan and reeves films focus our main heroes journey.Anyway keep up awesome content have good weekend.
Batman Forever is a dumpster fire. The doctor was supposed to be and elderly woman, Dick Grayson is an only child and his parents were killed by Tony Zucco, not Two-Face. It should've stopped there, but no we get a sequel the only thing that was good about it was Batgirl...except her origin story was also was supposed to be Jim Gordon's daughter not the niece to Alfred. In this case, two wrongs don't make a right.
I noticed in the helicopter scene, the giant eye gets destroyed when the helicopter flies through it. Later when the helicopter flies towards the Statue of Liberty, the blades directly hits the eyes.
A flawed film of extreme conflicts, kids presentation with heavy heavy adult themes. The only way to watch this is the red book edition made with deleted scenes which take this film the extra mile, will it make it a better film... No. But you can see what Joel was going for, and for that I respect the film alone.
@@dermilchmann3655 He's being very hypocritical and that's why he won't reply. It's obvious that he is willing to be open-minded and understanding towards Joel Schumacher's creative vision but not towards Zack Snyder because of his personal bias against him.
It's not so much of biasness it's just the Zack Snyder movies are not as good as people say they are Zack Snyder didn't have a clear understanding of Batman and what makes him who he is he had the wrong idea of the character@@notofthisworld9691
As far as the symbolism goes, it's nothing new. The hand shake is not about salvation. Look into Masonic handshake symbolism. And also the one eye (right eye being revealed), while the other eye is concealed is also occultic symbolism.
Used to love the movie when I was a kid, but when I got to my teens I started having an anti attitude towards it obviously because go figure, but after the edge lord nonsense of Batman v Superman, I started to reevaluate the movie and found new appreciation for it. Couple months ago I even watched it and found myself enjoying it despite some of the sillier moments such as Two-Face being goofy. Until this review, I did not see all those background elements that you mentioned, so now I'll probably watch the movie with a more careful eye. I didn't know the extent the studio interfered with this movie compared to the follow up, but thanks for the enlightenment. Also, I think there's some golden age influence in there as well considering that in Batman & Robin Bruce dates Julie Madison.
Yeah Joe Schumacher had a clear understanding of the character better than most I've seen that have done movies on the character he understood him way better than Zack Snyder too Joe Schumacher gets way too much hate from fans people blame him for Batman Robin being a disaster but they don't look at the real reason why those movies were the way they were it was because of Warner Brothers and their greed All those corporate suits looked at when they saw Batman is dollar signs they didn't care about what the fans wanted All they cared about was banking off of the character which is the reason why Batman and Robin and forever got the criticism yeah I'm good The blame deathly really should go on the studio not Joe Schumacher He's One of the few directors that Ashley had a clear understanding of Batman and who the character is most movie directors today when they make a Batman movie they claim that they're giving fans what they want but in actuality they're not And when the fans criticized their interpretation of these characters whenever they do comic book movies they want to attack the fans all the time because they don't know how to take criticism.
This was the first movie i saw in theaters and besides the amazing visuals the score in my opinion is the most memorable in the franchise, Elliot Goldenthal doesn’t get the credit it deserves
It's definitely a bit of an odd choice to see, especially when his voice goes wildly deep with seemingly no explanation on the word 'god' If I remember correctly, but the shot after when no music and just sound effects fill the room is actually slightly discomforting. An odd piece of dialogue that lead to a very briefly resonant moment, at least to me.
I think this film is awful, BUT I love Batman and Robin, that's the superior Schumacher Batman, as a kid as that was the Batman VHS I used to watch the most, and as an adult as that is the most fun Batman movie that was ever made.
If Two Face had been more like the comics and animated series they could have contrasted Bruce dealing with the memories of his parents deaths with Harvey struggling with his other personality. As it is it's hard to take him killing Dick's parents seriously with Tommy Lee Jones loony cackling and acting nothing like Two Face.
Batman Forever is my second favourite film in the Burton/Schumacher franchise after Batman 1989. The cast was great and it had a nice balance of darkness and humour. Batman Returns was too dark, depressing and a bit disgusting and Batman & Robin was just...TOYETIC but i like them as well.
When you say superheroes should be for all ages, do you mean all superhero movies should be all ages fare? or that some of yhem should be for kids, some for teens and some for adults thereby having superhero stories for everyone?
I think that superheroes are primarily a power fantasy that should be enjoyed by everyone regardless of their age. The best example of this are the Sam Raimi Spider-Man movies!
@@SalazarKnight the raimi films are a perfect Way of doing it for some heroes but I do think characters like Batman who are darker normally should be aimed older normally. Obviously cartoons like BTAS should still be for kids.
Had Joel Schumacher been allowed to let his stuff, Batman Forever would have been the best Batman film of all time. But sadly it didn't happen because of the financial trauma Warner brought on themselves after Batman Returns. In time, I have become softer on this film, because I consider Val Kilmer superior to Michael Keaton as Batman (though he did deserve better), as well as Elliot Goldenthal's soundtrack. The flaws, including Two Face and Robin, production design, and inconsistent focus are still present, but Forever is more entertaining than both Batman and Robin and Batman v. Superman.
Facts I really wish Warner Brothers let him make a more darker Batman film because he really did have an excellent understanding of the character unlike Zack Snyder who has no clear understanding of Batman whatsoever he made Batman look like a complete murderer in Batman versus Superman And he forgot the one ruled that Batman goes by is the no kill rule and he completely threw that out the window thinking that was what fans wanted to see hell he didn't even have a clear understanding of Superman either after all Zack Snyder was the same guy that wanted to kill off Lois Lane for stupid reasons He's a prime example of why people like him who don't have a clear understanding of these characters should not be directing superhero films at all if I was making a Batman movie Joe Schumacher would be the guy would hire to direct it.
Shit, I enjoy this movie. This isn't Batman and Robin bad. As a kid I enjoyed Batman Forever. I watched it all the time as a kid because I owned it on VHS. But even as a kid when I watched Batman and Robin something didn't sit right with me. I didn't like George Clooney as Batman as a kid, and there is something about the plot as a kid we're even as a child I was like this isn't great. So looking back and if you compare the two movies yes Batman Forever isn't as good as the Tim Burton movies or even the Christopher Nolan trilogy. But if you think about it it does have a lot going on in the story. Bruce Wayne is still haunted by the visions of his parents death and he falls in love with a psychiatrist so that's psychological anyway. I wish they would have kept the deleted scene where he goes back into the Batcave and finds his father's diary and reads from it and then he sees the bat that he saw as a kid but it's fully grown now and realize it's his choice to be Batman. Even though it's not in the movie there's still a lot of psychological themes going on in there. And some of them are Dark even if it is in a movie with a bunch of bright neon flashing lights and brightly colored streets of Gotham over Tim Burton's nightmare Dark City. The story plot of The Riddler in this movie is really good because basically he wants to be the most intellectual being of all time. Tommy Lee Jones's performance as two-faced he has the split personality quality of the character but I will not deny that he hams it up a bit, or alot in some scenes. But overall, I actually enjoy this movie I will stand by and say that this is the last good Batman movie from the 90s. Val Kilmer looked like a tormented soul still having visions of his parents death. His Batman is still Dark. The part where Nygma is twisted and deformed where his mind is shattered and Batman tells him he chooses to be Batman. Then he moves forward to him...And Nygma screams in terror because he invisions the Bat Bruce saw as a kid that scarred him. That's pretty Dark.
@@SalazarKnight I see. Also cam you add Strange Apperitions to "The Complete Batman History" playlist lime how you added it to the Bronze Age Playlist.
hey Sal! i am making a presentation video about the history of batman for my class. And i am watching your videos for information and i was wondering if you would want me to shout you out in some way in the video? and BTW the video is going to be in Norwegian.
I hate this movie so much because I despise Jim Carrey, his over the top performance along with Tommy Lee Jones clown Two-Face are something I can't stand to watch. I like Batman & Robin (1997) more 'cause it was all about camp instead of this film which as you mention is splitted on two.
This film sucked. It's that simple... and that... whatever it was that Schumacher followed this up with... 🤮 Anyway, great video as always Salazar. I personally cannot defend the film in any way. It's just... crap.
I have a very soft spot for Batman Forever. It’s still is one of my all time favorite Batman movies, next to dark knight. I’ll never forget at 11 years old how hyped I was back in 1995 for this movie in theaters because it had my favorite Batman villain, the riddler, and it had robin. It was a big deal at the time. For me anyway…. I still enjoy this movie till this day.
Batman forever was fantastic, I'm a fan of the psychological aspect and this film delivered on that. Joel knew what he was doing and it's a shame he couldn't be given complete control to do his entire vision
We need the schumaker cut, yes it’s real but WB won’t release it.
It's almost like history repeated itself. It's just no one ever thought about it and it won't happen cause people aren't thinking about seeing it
I wish we could get the UNCUT version by Warner Bros! At least we can see the dark and awesome deleted scenes here in CZcams.
@@Facade953 they should release the schumaker cut
Also note, Batman Forever did mention some parts of burtons movies. The part where Chase mentions “tight leather with a whip” was a catwoman reference, and the part where Robin says “your parents weren’t killed by a maniac” and Batman says, “yes they were”, was a reference to Jack Napier aka Joker
I always loved Batman forever, and as an adult I appreciate it more for being the first of the og movies that focused on the psychology of Batman.
Although Batman Returns was the first Batman movie I ever saw, I have fond memories of Batman Forever. I still remember that I was 5 years old when my aunt and uncle took me to see this movie in theaters. And I also remember the coloring book and the pajamas that I had. And boy, the commercial of its video game adaptation for SNES still stuck in my head. Yeah, despite its flaws, it was one of my childhood treasures, next to Space Jam.
I love that Batman 89, Batman returns, Batman forever, and Batman and robin all kind of have this soft reboot from each other. Even Burton to Burton and Schumacher to Schumacher are kind of different.
Meaning, Batman 89, and Batman returns, despite being directed by Tim Burton still feels like it’s a soft reboot from one another. am I supposed to believe that these two Gotham city’s are the same two Gotham city’s?
Batman forever and Batman and Robin aren’t tonally the same either. One is more campier then the other. It’s like both directors did a good job making a Batman film with some personal flair and their reward was they got to have a sequel were they could do whatever they wanted. One more Gothic one more campy.
I love all four of these films for very different reasons. And I love that Batman Forever! I like that it’s for kids and adults at the same time.
And above all, I love the soft reboot of all four of the films
This is an incredible deep review of the movie. You highlighted so many interesting points - from the consistency of the "flamboyant" parts with the original stories to the dual essence of the movie that reflects the constant duality of Batman itself - that helped me reconsider this movie. Thank you for your amazing work.
As a kid, I enjoyed it. I still do whenever I watch it. Schumacher understood the character better than Tim Burton in my opinion. It added elements of the 66 but also the melodrama associated with the comics
Ngl,we need a modern Batman movie that has similar visual aesthetic to this,dark yet colorful just like it's comics
Batman forever is special batman movie. It was my favorite as a kid and my kids favorite.
This was my Batman movie when I was a kid. I have siblings who are younger than I am and both Batman and Batman Returns who too dark and violent for them to watch as my sister was 2 when Batman Returns came out and my brother was only a year old. Of course the Penguin biting someone's nose scared me when I was a kid, so I also wasn't allowed to watch Batman Returns again until I was a teenager. Forever was the first Batman movie that I got for my own movie collection when I was a kid and I loved it. I had a couple of the toys, the backpack, the pencil case with pencils, the comic book adaptation, and the picture book adaptation. It was also the Batman movie that I first saw my classmates also have merchandise for it at school too. In 1992 all the kids were about Batman: The Animated Series.
Good job offering a different perspective on Joel Schumacher and Batman Forever. The range of quality and style in the movies directed by Joel Schumacher is crazy. Like I couldn't believe Falling Down, one of my favorite movies, and Batman and Robin were both directed by the same guy. Your analysis of Batman Forever provided a link connecting the diversity of Schumacher's oeuvre.
The serious scenes coexist pretty seamlessly with the over the top villain scenes. The serious scenes are not going to be filmed in the same manner as riddler being an insane person. There has to be a contrast to such scenes and this movie pulled it off well. As surreal as the riddler brainwashing everyone was, the serious scenes had a sense of mystery and sorrow that were equally as surreal.
I never realised all the hand shakes in batman forever 🤝
I wouldn’t call myself a huge fan of the film, but there’s definitely some good moments in there that people don’t give it enough credit for.
Also, I hadn’t caught onto the handshake symbolism! That’s super cool.
I think Joel's artistic ideas get buried by the neon elephant in the room. But they're still there!
@@SalazarKnightWhen will you post 1995
Great work! I always loved the aesthetic and design of this movie with the exception of Two Face’s terrible purple makeup, this movie definitely deserved better acting from their villains though.
You know I'm kind of sad that Joel Schumacher didn't get to make the Batman movie that he wanted to make it would have been cool to see a live action Batman Year One and Salazar knight is Right it's not fair that people kind of blame him for ruining The Tim Burton Schumacher Batman franchise he never meant to do it and he didn't really want to do much of a kid friendly Batman film anyway and I feel sorry for him.😔
My favourite Batman channel talking about one of my favourite Batman movies!
Batman Forever was the one that had me loved Batman , the adults at that time might not like it due to its appeal to younger audience
but still it has successfully left a strong impression to young kids that time .
I'm very thankful for this movie in my childhood and also BATMAN and ROBIN .
I must’ve seen this movie on VHS 10,000 times…but it wasn’t until DVD subtitles that I finally learned what Dick says when he cat calls “Gon-Fo-Li-Ry-My-Lub-Ma-Chee-Bay!”
I remember in 1995 the merchandise for this movie was everywhere. There was actually bad blood between Jim Carrey and Tommy Lee Jones during the film's production.
10/10, Great Video.
I enjoyed it very much!
Hope you had fun making it as I did watching it!
You bet I did!
I grew up on this movie. I'm a huge Batman fan always been and always will be. This is one of my favorite ones.
Although I'm not a huge fan of Batman Forever today you made me realize/remember that it was actually my favorite Batman movie as a kid. My history with Batman Forever is actually pretty complicated.😅 I was born in 1988 so didn't get the chance to see Batman or Batman returns in cinema (I was 1 and 4 years old respectively). Furthermore I was born in communist Czechoslovakia (which stayed communist until 1989 and intact until 1993) so American superheroes weren't well known. I think I was like the only kid in town who knew about Batman because of a comic smuggled in from Hungary. 😂 I still have it, but the cover and some of the first few pages went missing. It's about an active shooter sniping from a rooftop, Batman tries to catch him before the swat takes him down and while doing it he remembers THAT NIGHT with his parents, so it has the origin story too. He also repeats the line 'wish everybody would die'... true Batman nerds would have probably guessed the exact issue by now. 😅Of course I obtained a huge library of Batman comics since then, but this was my first one. I'm going off topic here, back to Batman Forever.😅 Growing up as a kid, the first 2 movies have already been airing on television, the first time I saw Batman was 1994 and the TV station made a huge deal about it, advertising it almost constantly. Batman returns was aired like a year later as far as I remember. I was aware of Batman Forever, but the rating system in Slovakia was weird at the time I was 8 when the movie premiered (in 1996 btw, up until the late 90's we would get movies like 6 months or even a year later. Nowadays it's the opposite, movies often get released before the American premier.) and there was an age limit of 10 or something like that. Post-communist Slovakia didn't get the memo that this is a kid friendly movie.😅 Weird because they would let me in on the Three Musketeers (1993) also starring Chris O'Donnell while only being 5 and that movie literally starts with a torture scene.😂👌 Then 1997 rolled around I came prepared: I went to see Batman & Robin with my dad. 😎 It was ok to see an age restricted movie with parents... today nobody would care, but kids don't really go to the cinema alone either these days. Times have changed. So I saw Batman & Robin before Forever. For Batman Forever was this mysterious movie which always alluded me for some reason. I was starting to develop a love/hate relationship with it. I hated it because I haven't seen it, but if had the chance I would love to see it. Then in 1999 one of the TV stations would air all 4 Batman movies, it was 'Batman month' they aired 1 Batman movie each Saturday. Regardless to say I was mostly excited to see Forever. After watching all of them Forever became my favorite...for a year or two, because in my early teenage years (13-14) I've become something of a cinema snob and I've decided that Batman 1989 is THE Batman movie, nothing can or could ever top it and everything else is trash. 😂😂😂... until Batman Begins came along much much later.
I didn't know Batman Forever outperformed Batman Returns at the box office. I wouldn't have guessed that.
There is a scene from the 1960s Batman TV series that pretty much captures Forever's cinematography.
In the crossover episode with the Green Hornet, the villain Colonel Gumm is seen portraying a persona of a normal stamp factory worker: the camera is filming on a straight angle. However, as soon as the woman he was talking to in his façade leaves, he shuts the door, and the camera blatantly changes into a Dutch angle.
Batman Forever was awesome, even if it’s always going to be in the shadow of the Burton movies.
The only things that didn’t work for me were the performance of Two-Face, Batman’s costume change (that grey suit looks terrible), and of course, the nipples. Other than that, it’s so underappreciated
And let’s not forget “Kiss from a Rose,” that song is so 🤌🌹
Loved as a kid hated as an adult
Happy new year Salazar
Happy new year, friend!!
I saw this and Mask of the Phantasm in theaters as a kid. As a huge fan of the cartoon, I thought I'd love Phantasm, and as someone who hadn't seen the Burton films, I was less sure about Forever. I wound up LOVING Forever and finding Phantasm pretty boring, actually. Now that I'm an adult, I can easily see that Phantasm is the better movie, and while I've come to like it, I still can't help but love Forever more. It's flawed, and it's version of Two-Face really is terrible, but there's a fun campiness to it that I can't helped but enjoy. Appreciate a video like this looking at the movie with a kinder lens!
Love your video’s man 👍🏾
Thank you! I love your comments :)
I watched this movie with my little bro when I was 15. Since I never really liked Tim Burton's, this became my favorite.
This is a superb analysis of Batman Forever, and no word of a lie, has significantly altered how I see the movie. I'm going to have to rewatch it as soon as I can 🙂
The tonal dissonance makes it a frustrating watch, but I respect both halves individually.
i think the eye represents "the minds eye" and is part of the symbolism of the riddler along with the question marks.
You are the Batman content I have wanted all my life. I'm having a blast, man. Thank you for sharing your work
This is the finest dissection I’ve ever seen on this film.
Thank you!
That classic movie you referenced is named "Falling Down" not "Going Down".
Fun fact did u know before BATMAN FOREVER was released Michael Keaton and Nicole Kidman did a film together in 1993 called MY LIFE and they had a great chemistry in the film, imagine if Keaton wouldve stayed with Nicole Kidman at his side again it wouldve been even more fun to watch but Kilmer still nailed it.
That movie is heartbreaking, but you're right!!
Nicole Kidman has appeared on screen with every modern cinematic Batman with the exception of Ben Affleck:
*My Life with Michael Keaton
*Batman Forever with Val Kilmer
*The Peacemaker with George Clooney
*The Portrait of a Lady with Christian Bale
*Queen of the Desert with Robert Pattinson
I felt a little better about Batman Forever once we got the Batman 89 book and The Flash. I still wouldn't own BF or watch it, but I accept it's existence and got the Kilmer final battle suit figure included in the live action movie actors McFarlane set.
I mean let's be honest, if there was one flaw Schumacher films, especially in Batman and Robin, was studio management. Schumacher had a perfect understanding of Batman both on a fan and personal level. #ReleaseTheSchumacherCut
This video made me realized I'd REALLY like to know your views on Lego Batman.
I’m a huge fan of this movie your analysis of the movie is spot on ! Release the Schumacher cut ‼️
Cinematic Batman has suffered from the same curse as cinematic Hulk: "we need a psychological movie, no more explosions!" Then that happens and they say, "Not enough explosions! It focused too much on the story, smash stuff!" then "Why did you smash stuff? Is that what you think we care about?"
Please do a video on pre crisis Earth-2 Batman. I think Alan Brennert did a great job of making him a unique interpretation
Did anyone see the interview with Colin Farrell defending Joel Schumacher? Yes his Batman movies are bad (for the most part) but he had good intentions and really did love Batman. I would say even more so than Burton.
People call Batman Forever to campy and full of neon lights but Joel is the only one who got Gotham City right. He took Batman Year One Gotham City idea and if u look at his version of Gotham City it look just like New Orleans or Las Vegas
Great review! ! !
I will always be thankfull to Joel Schumacher for making Batman Forever, it was one of my first memories as a child and the movie that changed my life forever ( no pun intended). It could have been really good but it wasnt the case, I cant say the same about Batman & Robin even as a kid I thought it was really silly. Now Im 31 years old and I still enjoy the movie
Love the Movie and the Soundtrack
I appreciate that Schumacher was a fan of the comics unlike Burton. The Bruce Wayne elements were the best part of Batman Forever.
You showed it but you didn’t mention the Bruce/Dick handshake in the garage scene. To me that says “I respect you to make your own decision” and I think Dick responds to that.
I only knew Schumacher as the director of *Falling Down and I thought oh shit that’s gonna be awesome(and even darker)….I also only knew Clooney from From Dusk Til Dawn and thought the same thing when I heard he would be Batman😭🤣
Hello Salazar Knight great video on Batman Forever just discover your channel am hook you are my main Batman Channel personally it's my number 10 batman film i don't have any of burton/schumacher films in my batman ranking burton films are not batman films and Batman & Robin is an batman focus story just like batman forever but juggles too much plot and characters to deliver satisfy product. Where Batman Forever how ever finally focus Bruce Wayne/Batman as character not in best way but enough to set the other and better batman films like Nolan and reeves films focus our main heroes journey.Anyway keep up awesome content have good weekend.
Batman Forever is a dumpster fire. The doctor was supposed to be and elderly woman, Dick Grayson is an only child and his parents were killed by Tony Zucco, not Two-Face. It should've stopped there, but no we get a sequel the only thing that was good about it was Batgirl...except her origin story was also was supposed to be Jim Gordon's daughter not the niece to Alfred. In this case, two wrongs don't make a right.
16:36 Riddle solved. Obviously count Olof killed Batman's parents.
I noticed in the helicopter scene, the giant eye gets destroyed when the helicopter flies through it. Later when the helicopter flies towards the Statue of Liberty, the blades directly hits the eyes.
Nice
Joel Masterpiece
A flawed film of extreme conflicts, kids presentation with heavy heavy adult themes. The only way to watch this is the red book edition made with deleted scenes which take this film the extra mile, will it make it a better film... No. But you can see what Joel was going for, and for that I respect the film alone.
I like that little jab you made at Zack Snyder. 13:00.
Yes, exactly!
@@SalazarKnight You don't like Zack Snyder's vision?
@@dermilchmann3655 He's being very hypocritical and that's why he won't reply. It's obvious that he is willing to be open-minded and understanding towards Joel Schumacher's creative vision but not towards Zack Snyder because of his personal bias against him.
It's not so much of biasness it's just the Zack Snyder movies are not as good as people say they are Zack Snyder didn't have a clear understanding of Batman and what makes him who he is he had the wrong idea of the character@@notofthisworld9691
I'd hire schumaker to make a year one movie today.
Batman Questions
I ❤ this movie 😅🎥🍿😛👀🪭
I hoped you do an exploration video about batman's contingency plans on the justice league in the tower of babel story arc soon
As far as the symbolism goes, it's nothing new. The hand shake is not about salvation. Look into Masonic handshake symbolism. And also the one eye (right eye being revealed), while the other eye is concealed is also occultic symbolism.
Timestamp? : I’m familiar with this kind of symbolism I would like to look into it
Used to love the movie when I was a kid, but when I got to my teens I started having an anti attitude towards it obviously because go figure, but after the edge lord nonsense of Batman v Superman, I started to reevaluate the movie and found new appreciation for it. Couple months ago I even watched it and found myself enjoying it despite some of the sillier moments such as Two-Face being goofy. Until this review, I did not see all those background elements that you mentioned, so now I'll probably watch the movie with a more careful eye. I didn't know the extent the studio interfered with this movie compared to the follow up, but thanks for the enlightenment. Also, I think there's some golden age influence in there as well considering that in Batman & Robin Bruce dates Julie Madison.
James Gunn does not meet that Superhero Movie director descriptor you gave no way I'll give you Whedon and Snyder and Ayer though
I Will always stand up for Joel Schumacher, he's movies may not be The Best but he understood Batman i think maybe even better than Burton
Yeah Joe Schumacher had a clear understanding of the character better than most I've seen that have done movies on the character he understood him way better than Zack Snyder too Joe Schumacher gets way too much hate from fans people blame him for Batman Robin being a disaster but they don't look at the real reason why those movies were the way they were it was because of Warner Brothers and their greed All those corporate suits looked at when they saw Batman is dollar signs they didn't care about what the fans wanted All they cared about was banking off of the character which is the reason why Batman and Robin and forever got the criticism yeah I'm good The blame deathly really should go on the studio not Joe Schumacher He's One of the few directors that Ashley had a clear understanding of Batman and who the character is most movie directors today when they make a Batman movie they claim that they're giving fans what they want but in actuality they're not And when the fans criticized their interpretation of these characters whenever they do comic book movies they want to attack the fans all the time because they don't know how to take criticism.
This was the first movie i saw in theaters and besides the amazing visuals the score in my opinion is the most memorable in the franchise, Elliot Goldenthal doesn’t get the credit it deserves
Forever is one of the best Batman movies and much much better than Returns
Please make more videos I love your channel I watched every video
Thank you! I am working on a new video. Make sure to subscribe and ring that bell so you don't miss it!
This movie was done well like a living comic book felt like the dick Tracy movie
That Riddler became a God and went crazy that’s cool
It's definitely a bit of an odd choice to see, especially when his voice goes wildly deep with seemingly no explanation on the word 'god' If I remember correctly, but the shot after when no music and just sound effects fill the room is actually slightly discomforting. An odd piece of dialogue that lead to a very briefly resonant moment, at least to me.
@@amarcade4991 the Arkham scene at the end is cool
@@NastalgicCLOWN80687 Yeah!
I think this film is awful, BUT I love Batman and Robin, that's the superior Schumacher Batman, as a kid as that was the Batman VHS I used to watch the most, and as an adult as that is the most fun Batman movie that was ever made.
If Two Face had been more like the comics and animated series they could have contrasted Bruce dealing with the memories of his parents deaths with Harvey struggling with his other personality. As it is it's hard to take him killing Dick's parents seriously with Tommy Lee Jones loony cackling and acting nothing like Two Face.
Batman Forever is my second favourite film in the Burton/Schumacher franchise after Batman 1989. The cast was great and it had a nice balance of darkness and humour. Batman Returns was too dark, depressing and a bit disgusting and Batman & Robin was just...TOYETIC but i like them as well.
"Goin for a lil ride in my love machine bae"
When you say superheroes should be for all ages, do you mean all superhero movies should be all ages fare? or that some of yhem should be for kids, some for teens and some for adults thereby having superhero stories for everyone?
I think that superheroes are primarily a power fantasy that should be enjoyed by everyone regardless of their age. The best example of this are the Sam Raimi Spider-Man movies!
@@SalazarKnight the raimi films are a perfect Way of doing it for some heroes but I do think characters like Batman who are darker normally should be aimed older normally. Obviously cartoons like BTAS should still be for kids.
Had Joel Schumacher been allowed to let his stuff, Batman Forever would have been the best Batman film of all time. But sadly it didn't happen because of the financial trauma Warner brought on themselves after Batman Returns.
In time, I have become softer on this film, because I consider Val Kilmer superior to Michael Keaton as Batman (though he did deserve better), as well as Elliot Goldenthal's soundtrack. The flaws, including Two Face and Robin, production design, and inconsistent focus are still present, but Forever is more entertaining than both Batman and Robin and Batman v. Superman.
Facts I really wish Warner Brothers let him make a more darker Batman film because he really did have an excellent understanding of the character unlike Zack Snyder who has no clear understanding of Batman whatsoever he made Batman look like a complete murderer in Batman versus Superman And he forgot the one ruled that Batman goes by is the no kill rule and he completely threw that out the window thinking that was what fans wanted to see hell he didn't even have a clear understanding of Superman either after all Zack Snyder was the same guy that wanted to kill off Lois Lane for stupid reasons He's a prime example of why people like him who don't have a clear understanding of these characters should not be directing superhero films at all if I was making a Batman movie Joe Schumacher would be the guy would hire to direct it.
Shit, I enjoy this movie. This isn't Batman and Robin bad. As a kid I enjoyed Batman Forever. I watched it all the time as a kid because I owned it on VHS. But even as a kid when I watched Batman and Robin something didn't sit right with me. I didn't like George Clooney as Batman as a kid, and there is something about the plot as a kid we're even as a child I was like this isn't great. So looking back and if you compare the two movies yes Batman Forever isn't as good as the Tim Burton movies or even the Christopher Nolan trilogy. But if you think about it it does have a lot going on in the story. Bruce Wayne is still haunted by the visions of his parents death and he falls in love with a psychiatrist so that's psychological anyway. I wish they would have kept the deleted scene where he goes back into the Batcave and finds his father's diary and reads from it and then he sees the bat that he saw as a kid but it's fully grown now and realize it's his choice to be Batman. Even though it's not in the movie there's still a lot of psychological themes going on in there. And some of them are Dark even if it is in a movie with a bunch of bright neon flashing lights and brightly colored streets of Gotham over Tim Burton's nightmare Dark City. The story plot of The Riddler in this movie is really good because basically he wants to be the most intellectual being of all time. Tommy Lee Jones's performance as two-faced he has the split personality quality of the character but I will not deny that he hams it up a bit, or alot in some scenes. But overall, I actually enjoy this movie I will stand by and say that this is the last good Batman movie from the 90s. Val Kilmer looked like a tormented soul still having visions of his parents death. His Batman is still Dark. The part where Nygma is twisted and deformed where his mind is shattered and Batman tells him he chooses to be Batman. Then he moves forward to him...And Nygma screams in terror because he invisions the Bat Bruce saw as a kid that scarred him. That's pretty Dark.
Bruise Wayne
What happened to your Golden Bat Videos.
The Golden Bat is now exclusive content for channel members! :)
@@SalazarKnight I see. Also cam you add Strange Apperitions to "The Complete Batman History" playlist lime how you added it to the Bronze Age Playlist.
@@disneyboy3030 Consider it done!
I remember seeing that as a kid and I didn't like it at all. It looked too cheesy.
Do you have a tiktok? I found a account with you Twitter pfp and same name is that you?
Yes. It was an experiment. I do not use it anymore.
@@SalazarKnight ok 👍
You know what's weird? If Batman Forever and Batman & Robin were meant for kids then why were they rated PG-13 ?
There was a bit of sexual inuendo and adult themes.😅
@@Facade953 so much for making them kid friendly.
hey Sal! i am making a presentation video about the history of batman for my class. And i am watching your videos for information and i was wondering if you would want me to shout you out in some way in the video? and BTW the video is going to be in Norwegian.
Hey! That's awesome!! If you want to let your classmates know about my work, then by all means! Also, you're from Norway?? So cool!!
@@SalazarKnight Then i will!. And Norway, yes thanks :)
#releasetheschumachercut
I hate this movie so much because I despise Jim Carrey, his over the top performance along with Tommy Lee Jones clown Two-Face are something I can't stand to watch. I like Batman & Robin (1997) more 'cause it was all about camp instead of this film which as you mention is splitted on two.
This film sucked. It's that simple... and that... whatever it was that Schumacher followed this up with... 🤮
Anyway, great video as always Salazar. I personally cannot defend the film in any way. It's just... crap.
Ridiculous people treating Schumacher like the devil.
I have a very soft spot for Batman Forever. It’s still is one of my all time favorite Batman movies, next to dark knight. I’ll never forget at 11 years old how hyped I was back in 1995 for this movie in theaters because it had my favorite Batman villain, the riddler, and it had robin. It was a big deal at the time. For me anyway….
I still enjoy this movie till this day.