batmanmovie

It’s hard for a lot of people to say the name “Batman” without the preceding guitar strumming from
the 1960s television theme song. The campy show was a huge hit that made a lasting impression
on popular culture and became a significant benchmark in the history of the Batman character. The
shows were great of course, but nothing tops their feature film.

Adam West and Burt Ward suited up for a major motion picture in 1966 and the result is one that will
go down in history as the most ambitious and fun, if not necessarily the most sophisticated or well
written, Batman film of all time.

In the film, Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson are living the life of rich bachelors in Gotham City, but lo
and behold all of their major super criminals have joined forces against them and the entire world.
Using a dehydration ray, The Penguin has turned all of the United Nations ambassadors into piles of
colored dust and kidnapped them in test tubes. With The Riddler, The Joker and Catwoman in
cahoots with him, their plan seems unstoppable. Only the Dynamic Duo can stop them!

Honestly, this film is the apex of cheese, but the beauty of it is that the actors aren’t trying to play it
straight. They know it’s a feature length site gag as much as the audience does, and that makes it
all the more fun. Cesar Romero, who plays The Joker, even refused to shave his moustache for the
movie. As a result, you can see it under his makeup.

The ambition of the project is really the most impressive aspect of the experience. The budget must
have been substantial because there are more Bat vehicles in this film than any other Batman
movie. Check out the Bat Chopper, Batmobile, and even the Bat Boat! Also, the fact that all of the
villains make appearances, and are played by some decent actors, including Frank Gorshin and
Burgess Meredith as The Riddler and The Penguin respectively.

What I like most are the offhanded jokes made with completely straight faces yet cheesy deliveries
by the heroes. Even though Adam West has a nice paunch pressing against his utility belt, he
makes sure to remind the audience by telling Robin that they are both in “tip-top” condition, hence
running across town would be faster than taking a vehicle. At one point in the film, Batman races
through a boardwalk with the most cartoon looking bomb you’ll ever see, racing to find a place to
deposit it before it explodes. Nothing works as he runs in circles from sudden parades of nuns, a
lady with a baby and a pack of young ducklings and exclaims, “Some days you just can’t get rid of a
bomb!”

I know, it sounds weird and stupid, but in its own charming way, “Batman: The Movie” proves to be a
lot of fun. Check it out sometime.